With less than five weeks until kickoff, and hundreds of thousands of visitors expected, Vancouver is preparing for the FIFA World Cup 2026 following British Columbia’s worst measles outbreak in years. Unlike Ontario, where public health officials released a detailed Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment flagging measles and other infectious diseases as risks at mass gatherings, B.C. has not yet provided comparable guidance.

Public health experts say preparation is critical for mass gatherings, particularly for contagious diseases such as measles. Vaccination rates in many parts of B.C. have fallen below the approximately 95 per cent coverage needed to prevent sustained transmission of measles, and last year’s outbreaks have exposed pockets of vulnerability.

In crowded settings such as FIFA World Cup venues, where visitors arrive from other provinces and countries with varying vaccination coverage, even a single imported case can spread rapidly beyond stadiums. That risk is not theoretical; past sporting events in Vancouver have shown how quickly measles can take hold.

Lessons from past international sporting events

The 2010 Winter Olympics in B.C. provides precedent. Following the Games, imported measles cases spread after the crowds dispersed.

In preparation, public health surveillance systems were in place, including daily health watch reports.

“At the time, what seemed like........

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