2.8 million passengers recorded at Vancouver airport during FIFA World Cup | Daily Hive

Nearly 2.8 million passengers recorded at Vancouver International Airport during FIFA World Cup

2026 FIFA World Cup decorations at Vancouver International Airport. (Kenneth Chan)

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is reporting that preliminary statistics show nearly 2.8 million passengers travelled through the airport during the 2026 FIFA World Cup period.

YVR defines this period as June 8 to July 10 — beginning just days before the tournament and Vancouver’s first of seven matches, and ending shortly after the final match at BC Place Stadium.

The airport handled an average of more than 86,000 passengers per day during this period, with traffic reaching about 92,000 passengers on the busiest day.

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These figures roughly align with the airport authority’s projections released in early June, before the tournament began, of an increase of five to 10 per cent compared to the same period in 2025.

TransLink’s preliminary public transit ridership data also shows that SkyTrain’s Canada Line ridership from the airport increased by nearly nine per cent during the tournament. The busiest sustained period was from June 21 to 26, when YVR Airport Station recorded at least 10,000 boardings per day. Moreover, the station’s three busiest days were June 18, June 23, and July 6, with approximately 10,900 boardings recorded on each date.

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SkyTrain’s YVR Airport Station; FIFA World Cup Vancouver decorations, as seen on May 11, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)

go canada yvr vancouver international airport fifa world cup runway

“Go Canada!” message next to the north runway of Vancouver International Airport, ahead of the 2026 FIF World Cup. (Anne Kang)

According to the airport authority’s latest complete statistics, as of May 2026, YVR handled 10.9 million passengers during the first five months of 2026, representing a four per cent increase compared with the same period in 2025.

May 2026 was also a strong month, with 2.37 million passengers — an increase of about four per cent compared with May 2025.

Each of the first five months of 2026 set a new all-time passenger record for that particular month at YVR.

If this strong passenger volume trend continues for the remainder of the year, YVR could reach a new all-time record for passenger volumes in 2026, exceeding the record of 26.9 million in 2025.

fifa world cup vancouver international airport yvr

Vancouver International Airport during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. (Vancouver International Airport)

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