From Pelé to Messi: Over 50 soccer legends celebrated in FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown plaza in Vancouver
The final brushstrokes have been applied to one of Vancouver’s most creative public art installations celebrating the world’s most popular sport and its biggest sporting event.
A newly completed collection of FIFA World Cup-themed murals — named the “Beautiful Game” — can now be found at Helmcken Plaza in Downtown Vancouver’s Yaletown district, following several weeks of painting that transformed the on-street public plaza into a vibrant tribute to global soccer history.
All of these vibrant, colourful murals use Vancouver’s city-specific 2026 FIFA World Cup branding colours.
Helmcken Plaza spans a short vehicle-free segment of Helmcken Street between Hamilton and Mainland streets (located next to Earl’s Restaurant and Yaletown Brewery, and near SkyTrain’s Yaletown-Roundhouse Station). It was permanently closed a few years ago to create a pedestrian-oriented space.
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The largest of the new murals spans the plaza’s entire asphalt surface, replacing a previous mural that had begun to fade. It is an abstract mural oriented around the number “26” — representing the tournament year — inside a mix of geometric shapes, with angular ribbons, circles, and triangular forms in mint, blue, lavender, olive, and deep green.
Now that the mural on the plaza surface is fully finished, the patio tables have been moved back into a public space boasting a new energetic and playful look.
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
In addition to the plaza surface mural, there are six other new murals that enclose the plaza space — painted on the raised concrete walls of the area’s former warehouse loading docks, originally built in the early 1900s for freight rail and trucking. These structures now serve as elevated pedestrian sidewalks and outdoor patios for restaurants.
The six wall murals feature stylized soccer players in action, created using simplified shapes, almost like silhouettes, and the same West Coast colours that define Vancouver’s look of the tournament.
Through flowing outlines and abstract shapes, the artwork captures iconic moments involving legendary players during FIFA World Cup matches and other memorable international soccer games, with scenes spanning more than seven decades of the sport’s history. The earliest depicted moment dates back to the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
Design concepts of the “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza. (800K)
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
These wall murals show players celebrating, dribbling, passing, shooting, and making saves in moments drawn from international soccer matches that took place across 18 different years, most of them FIFA World Cup tournaments.
One player representation notably illustrates Brazil’s Pelé’s iconic overhead (bicycle) kick in 1965 during a friendly match between Brazil and Belgium at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
In fact, over 50 soccer players — FIFA World Cup champions, record-breaking goal scorers, and other stars — are featured in these wall murals, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, David Beckham, and recent Vancouver Whitecaps FC star Thomas Müller.
Canadian soccer history is also depicted on a Hamilton Street mural — a representation of Alphonso Davies scoring Canada’s first-ever FIFA World Cup goal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Brazil’s Pelé’s iconic overhead (bicycle) kick in 1965; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
These murals were conceived and painted by a small team led by Vancouver artist Seth Book, who is behind the local creative studio of 800K. Book is known for his previous sports-themed work, including designs themed after the BC Lions, Vancouver Southsiders (the official Vancouver Whitecaps FC support group), and Toronto Blue Jays.
Upon inquiry, Yaletown Business Improvement Association (BIA) told Daily Hive Urbanized that these “Beautiful Game” murals were spearheaded and funded by their organization.
“It was created as part of our FIFA World Cup 2026 programming, to bring more colour, energy, and celebration to the neighbourhood, while helping Yaletown feel connected to the broader excitement building across Vancouver,” Yaletown BIA told Daily Hive Urbanized.
“The mural’s colour pallet was drawn from Destination Vancouver’s FIFA colour scheme to stay aligned with FIFA’s design and branding standards.”
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 23, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
“Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 23, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
The BIA regularly programs and stewards Helmcken Plaza, including leading previous mural installations and overseeing the seasonal changes to the plaza’s suspended overhead art installations.
Here are full lists of the soccer players featured on each of the six wall murals:
- Mainland Street southwest mural (left to right):
- England’s Geoff Hurst, 1966
- Argentina’s Emi Martínez, 2022
- England’s Wayne Rooney, 2006
- Argentina’s Diego Maradona, 1986
- Scotland’s Archie Gemmill, 1978
- Netherlands’ Dennis Bergkamp, 1998
- Germany’s Rudi Völler and Netherlands’ Frank Rijkaard, 1990
Mainland Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
Mainland Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
Mainland Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
- Mainland Street northeast mural (left to right):
- Cameroon’s Roger Milla, 1990
- Spain’s Andres Iniesta, 2010
- Brazil’s Ronaldo Nazario, 2002
- Netherlands’ Johan Cruyff, 1974
- Uruguay’s Alcides Ghiggia, 1950
- Germany’s Mario Goetze, 2014
- France’s Zinedine Zidane and Italy’s Marco Materazzi, 2006
- Italy’s Marco Tardelli, 1982
- Brazil’s Pelé, 1965
Mainland Street northeast mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
Mainland Street northeast mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
- Helmcken Street southwest mural (left to right):
- England’s Gordon Banks, 1970
- Netherlands’ Nigel De Jong and Spain’s Xabi Alonso, 2010
- France’s Thierry Henry, 1998
- Brazil’s Cafu and Scotland’s Gordan Durie, 1998
- Germany’s Thomas Müller, 2014
- Mexico’s Luis Hernandez, 1998
- England’s David Beckham and Argentina’s Diego Simeone, 1998
- Columbia’s Carlos Valderrama, 1990
- Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, 2018
- Italy’s Dino Zoff, 1982
Helmcken Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
Helmcken Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
- Helmcken Street northeast mural (right to left):
- Argentina’s Lionel Messi, 2006
- England’s Michael Owen, 1998
- Brazil’s Ronaldinho, 2002
- Argentina’s Diego Maradona, 1986
- Croatia’s Luka Modric, 2018
- France’s Kylian Mbappé, 2022
- Germany’s Manuel Neuer, 2014
- Denmark’s Brian Laudrup, 1998
- Honduras’ Noel Valladares, 2010
Helmcken Street northeast mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on May 29, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
- Hamilton Street southwest mural (left to right):
- South Africa’s Siphiwe Tshabalala, Kagiso Dikgacoi, Reneilwe Letsholonyane, and Katlego Mphela, 2010
- Portugal’s Eusébio da Silva Ferreira, 1966
- Germany’s Lothar Metthäus, 1990
- Italy’s Paulo Maldini, 1994
Hamilton Street southwest mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
- Hamilton Street northeast mural (right to left):
- Germany’s Miroslav Klose, 2014
- Brazil’s Jairzinho, 1970
- France’s Just Fontaine, 1958
- Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer, 1974
- Soviet Union’s Lev Yashin, 1966
- Canada’s Alphonso Davies, 2022
- Netherlands’ Robin van Persie, 2014
Hamilton Street northeast mural; “Beautiful Game” FIFA World Cup murals at Yaletown’s Helmcken Plaza, as seen on June 1, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)
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