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News Analysis

FIFA Shuts Down a BC Spinal Injury Charity's $1,000 Raffle: What Canadian Charities and Nonprofits Should Do Before the World Cup

On May 11, 2026, Toronto law firm Lipkus Law sent a nine-page cease-and-desist letter on FIFA's behalf to Spinal Cord Injury BC, forcing the charity to cancel a raffle of two June 21 World Cup tickets and refund $2,300 in raffle ticket sales. With Vancouver and Toronto hosting 13 World Cup matches over the next five weeks, here is the practical playbook every Canadian charity, sponsor, employer, and fan engagement program should run before they touch a tournament ticket.

By Refdesk Team

FIFA Shuts Down a BC Spinal Injury Charity's $1,000 Raffle: What Canadian Charities and Nonprofits Should Do Before the World Cup

What This Means for You

If you run a Canadian registered charity, manage a nonprofit, organize a corporate raffle, plan a school auction, or coordinate fan-engagement activities for a 2026 FIFA World Cup partner, the cease-and-desist letter Spinal Cord Injury BC received from FIFA's lawyers on May 11, 2026 is a clean warning shot. Two tickets with a face value of about $500 each had raised $2,300 in raffle sales before a nine-page letter from Toronto firm Lipkus Law shut the entire fundraiser down, according to CBC News, CP24, and the National Observer.

Based on our reading of FIFA's published Terms and Conditions of Sale (Section 16, ticket usage), the BC Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch (GPEB) raffle licensing regime, the Canada Revenue Agency's guidance on registered-charity fundraising activities, and the precedent set by FIFA's enforcement at the 2018 (Russia) and 2022 (Qatar) tournaments, here is what each affected group should actually do this month before the tournament kickoffs in Vancouver (June 13) and Toronto (June 12).

If You Run a Canadian Registered Charity:

Do not raffle, auction, or use World Cup tickets as fundraising prizes under any circumstances without FIFA's prior written consent. FIFA's standard ticket terms explicitly prohibit using tickets "for any advertising, promotional or competition purposes, including raffles, sweepstakes or similar activities, without FIFA's prior written consent," according to CP24's reading of the letter sent to Spinal Cord Injury BC. The "prior written consent" pathway exists in theory, but in practice the FIFA Hospitality and Partnership team grants it almost exclusively to registered Tier 1-4 commercial partners — not to small or mid-sized Canadian charities.

Immediate actions this week if you are mid-campaign:

  • Audit every fundraising activity touching a World Cup ticket, jersey, or trademark. This includes raffles, silent auctions, "guess the score" pools with a ticket prize, social media giveaways, and even "buy our merchandise and get entered to win." If a World Cup ticket, official jersey, FIFA logo, World Cup logo, official ball, or named tournament mascot ("Maple," "Zayu," "Clutch") is involved, treat it as a high-risk activity.
  • Cancel and refund within 72 hours if your campaign is non-compliant. Spinal Cord Injury BC's response — cancelling, refunding, and putting the tickets on the official resale marketplace — is the legal playbook. Refunding within 72 hours preserves your charity's reputation, your gaming licence, and your CRA-registered status. A nine-page cease-and-desist that goes unanswered or is partially complied with creates a documented record of non-compliance.
  • Document the cancellation in your board minutes. A two-paragraph board minute — "On [date], the Board reviewed correspondence from FIFA's legal representative dated [date]. The Board resolved to cancel the [activity], refund all participants within 72 hours, and report the matter to GPEB / AGCO / the appropriate provincial regulator. The Board further resolves that no future fundraising activity will involve FIFA-licensed property without prior written consent from FIFA." — creates the governance record your auditor and the CRA will want to see.
  • Pivot to a permitted fundraising structure within 7 days if possible. A non-ticket alternative — a watch-party with a $25 cover charge at a licensed venue, a 50/50 raffle during a fan-zone event, or a sponsored silent-auction of non-FIFA-trademarked sports memorabilia — captures most of the fan engagement upside without the legal exposure. Spinal Cord Injury BC reported new donations after the news broke, suggesting the public reputational sympathy alone can replace the lost raffle revenue.

Realistic budget math: A typical mid-sized BC charity raffle generates $5,000-15,000 in net revenue over a 4-6 week campaign. The legal cost of defending a single cease-and-desist letter from a firm like Lipkus Law starts at roughly $3,500-7,000 for an initial response and grows to $25,000-75,000 if it proceeds to a court application. Even a "winning" defence costs more than the raffle would have raised. Cancel, refund, pivot.

If You Manage a Corporate Sponsor or Employer with Tickets:

Distinguish between FIFA Hospitality packages and individual fan tickets — the rules are different. FIFA Hospitality packages (sold through FIFA Hospitality Canada and authorized resellers like On Location and MATCH Hospitality) come with written promotional rights tied to the package level. Individual fan tickets sold via FIFA.com/tickets carry no promotional rights at all. Many employers have purchased a mix of both and assume the same rules apply. They do not.

Action this month if you are an employer with tickets:

  • Inventory your tickets by purchase channel. Hospitality-package tickets have rights memorialized in your written hospitality agreement; check Section 4 (Promotional Rights) of your specific package contract. Individual fan tickets purchased through FIFA.com have no promotional rights and are subject to the standard fan terms — non-transferable except via the official FIFA resale platform.
  • Use hospitality tickets for client entertainment, not raffles or contests. Even hospitality rights typically do not extend to raffles or contests; they usually permit "internal team-building" and "client entertainment" only. Read your contract carefully and consult your legal team before any contest, raffle, or external promotion.
  • For individual fan tickets you can no longer use, resell on the official FIFA resale platform. This is what Spinal Cord Injury BC did with their two unused tickets. The platform pays you (or your designated charity) the resale value minus a service fee, with the funds available approximately 30 days after the match.
  • Train your marketing and HR teams in writing. A one-page internal memo — "Our company has purchased [X] tickets to [match]. These tickets may be used for [client entertainment / employee recognition / specify use]. They may NOT be raffled, used as contest prizes, advertised on social media, or transferred outside official channels. Violations may result in ticket cancellation and personal liability." — protects the company from well-intentioned but non-compliant employee actions.

If You Are a Small Business or Pub Owner During the Tournament:

Public viewing rights are FIFA-controlled. Get your Public Viewing Licence early or rely on the "non-commercial" exception. FIFA distinguishes between commercial public viewing (paid admission, ticketed events, or any setting where the event is the primary commercial draw) and non-commercial public viewing (a sports bar showing the match on existing TVs as part of normal operations). The non-commercial exception is broad enough for the typical pub, but explicit "World Cup watch party" branding crosses the line.

Practical guidance this month:

  • Use generic language in your marketing. "Watch the match here" or "Live football, 60-inch screens, two-for-one wings" is non-commercial. "Official FIFA World Cup Watch Party" or "Canada vs. [opponent] Watch Party" with FIFA logos is commercial — and requires a paid Public Viewing Licence, which can run from a few hundred dollars for small venues to thousands for larger events.
  • Do not use any FIFA, World Cup, mascot, or official-ball imagery in promotions. Use the country flag, the city name, the generic word "football" or "soccer," and your own venue branding. Skip the official logos entirely.
  • Do not sell tickets to your venue specifically for watching a match. A cover charge tied to a specific match converts the activity from non-commercial to commercial public viewing in FIFA's interpretation.
  • For Toronto and Vancouver venues near the official Fan Festival zones: Expect FIFA's monitoring teams (which patrolled Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 extensively) to be active. The risk of a cease-and-desist is highest within 1-2 km of BC Place and BMO Field.

If You Are a School, University, or Community League:

You almost certainly do not have FIFA promotional rights. Plan accordingly. Schools and universities planning World Cup watch parties, social media campaigns, or contests with World Cup tickets as prizes are in the same legal position as Spinal Cord Injury BC. The rules apply regardless of nonprofit status.

Action this month:

  • Replace any "World Cup" branding on student or community events with generic terms. A university residence event becomes "Football Watch Night" not "World Cup Watch Party." The student union prizes a generic soccer ball, not a FIFA Match Ball replica.
  • For any contest or raffle, use a cash prize equivalent to the ticket value, not the ticket itself. A $500 cash prize is functionally equivalent to a face-value ticket and avoids every FIFA terms issue.
  • Check your provincial gaming regulator before any raffle. In BC, GPEB requires a licence for any raffle generating more than $500 in gross sales. In Ontario, AGCO requires the same. The gaming licence is independent of FIFA's rules — you need both.

The News: What Happened

According to CBC News and CP24, on May 11, 2026, Toronto law firm Lipkus Law sent a nine-page cease-and-desist letter on FIFA's behalf to Spinal Cord Injury BC, a Vancouver-based charity supporting people with spinal injuries. The letter accused the charity of trademark infringement and ticketing-policy violations in connection with a planned raffle of two World Cup tickets for the June 21 match between New Zealand and Egypt at BC Place. The tickets had a face value of approximately $500 each, per CP24.

Per the National Observer, Chris McBride, executive director of Spinal Cord Injury BC, said a staff member had purchased the two tickets through regular channels on the charity's behalf and the organization had raised approximately $2,300 in raffle ticket sales before receiving the letter. McBride said the charity cancelled the raffle, refunded all purchasers, and subsequently listed the two tickets on FIFA's official resale marketplace.

According to CP24, the FIFA letter cited the standard ticket terms stating that "tickets are issued as personal, revocable licences and may not be used for any advertising, promotional or competition purposes, including raffles, sweepstakes or similar activities, without FIFA's prior written consent." FIFA's position, per the CP24 reporting, is that these restrictions protect "the integrity and fair allocation of tickets, ensure that access is provided through controlled and secure channels, and safeguard the commercial rights that underpin the organization and delivery of the FIFA World Cup."

The Lethbridge Herald and other Canadian Press outlets reported that public response after the cancellation included new donations to Spinal Cord Injury BC, partially offsetting the lost raffle revenue.

Analysis: Why This Matters

Based on our analysis of FIFA's ticketing regime, this enforcement action is consistent with FIFA's pattern at every recent tournament and is not unique to Canada or to Spinal Cord Injury BC. Three observations stand out.

First, FIFA's ticketing terms are unusually restrictive even by major-sports-league standards. The NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB all permit ticket holders to resell tickets and, in most cases, to use them for charity raffles with notice but without prior written consent. FIFA is the outlier — its terms position every ticket as a "personal, revocable licence" rather than as transferable property. The legal effect is that even a registered charity buying tickets on the open market has no right to use them as it would use any other purchased asset.

Second, the BC GPEB raffle licensing regime is separate from FIFA's restrictions and was likely also a factor. Any raffle in BC generating more than $500 in gross sales requires a Gaming Event Licence from GPEB. Spinal Cord Injury BC, as an established charity, almost certainly had the licence — but the dual-jurisdiction overlap (provincial gaming law plus FIFA's contract terms) is what makes World Cup raffles uniquely high-risk for Canadian charities. Most other major-event raffles only require GPEB clearance.

Third, the reputational dynamics favour the charity, not FIFA, in the court of public opinion. Spinal Cord Injury BC was a small charity raising $2,300 to support people with spinal injuries; FIFA is a $7+ billion organization. The donations that followed the news coverage demonstrate the reputational asymmetry. FIFA's enforcement of its rules is legally defensible but generates negative coverage that other major-event organizers (notably the IOC at recent Olympics) have learned to soften with charity carve-outs.

Historical Context:

FIFA enforced similar restrictions at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the 2019 Women's World Cup in France, the 2022 men's World Cup in Qatar, and the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia/New Zealand. In each case, small charities, employers, and local businesses received cease-and-desist letters for raffles, contests, or branded watch parties. The enforcement is consistent and well-documented in international sports-law commentary. Canadian organizations should not expect the 2026 tournament to be different.

What Happens Next:

Based on our analysis, we expect:

  • Continued enforcement throughout the tournament window (June 11 to July 19, 2026). FIFA monitoring teams will be active in Vancouver and Toronto, focused on commercial public viewings, unauthorized ticket promotions, and trademark misuse around the official Fan Festivals.
  • A small number of high-profile takedowns of well-intentioned community fundraisers, similar to the Spinal Cord Injury BC case. These will be reported by Canadian outlets and will further chill nonprofit ticket-based fundraising.
  • No meaningful change to FIFA's terms. FIFA has resisted carve-outs at every previous tournament; the 2026 tournament is unlikely to be different.
  • A public-policy conversation about charity carve-outs for future major events in Canada. Calgary's 2030 Olympic discussions, the Toronto FIFA Club World Cup bid, and any future major event hosted in Canada are likely to face Canadian government pressure to negotiate broader charity rights into the host agreement.

Your Action Plan

Immediate (This Week):

  • Charities: Audit every campaign touching a World Cup ticket, jersey, or FIFA trademark.
  • Charities: If non-compliant, cancel, refund within 72 hours, and document in board minutes.
  • Employers: Inventory tickets by purchase channel (hospitality vs. individual fan).
  • Pubs and restaurants: Replace "World Cup" branding with generic "football" language.

Short-term (This Month):

  • Charities: Pivot to a non-ticket fundraising structure (watch party at licensed venue, 50/50, non-FIFA memorabilia auction).
  • Employers: Issue written marketing and HR memo on permitted ticket uses.
  • Schools and universities: Replace ticket prizes with cash equivalents.
  • All organizations in BC: Confirm your raffle licence status with GPEB at gaming.gov.bc.ca.
  • All organizations in Ontario: Confirm your raffle licence status with AGCO at agco.ca.

Long-term (This Year):

  • Train marketing, HR, and fundraising teams on the distinction between trademark, ticketing terms, and gaming licences.
  • For future major events (2030 Olympics bid, 2027 Pan Am Games, World Junior Championships), build trademark and ticket compliance into the planning phase.
  • Engage your provincial MP or the federal government if you support charity carve-outs in future host agreements.

Other Perspectives

FIFA's Position:

According to CP24, FIFA's standard terms position tickets as "personal, revocable licences" that may not be used for "any advertising, promotional or competition purposes, including raffles, sweepstakes or similar activities, without FIFA's prior written consent." FIFA's stated rationale is to protect "the integrity and fair allocation of tickets, ensure that access is provided through controlled and secure channels, and safeguard the commercial rights that underpin the organization and delivery of the FIFA World Cup."

Spinal Cord Injury BC's Response:

Per the National Observer, executive director Chris McBride said his organization understood it had violated the terms but felt denied a reasonable fundraising opportunity. The charity cancelled the raffle, refunded all purchasers, listed the tickets on the official FIFA resale marketplace, and continued operations supported in part by new donations that arrived after the news broke.

Sports Law Commentary:

Canadian and international sports-law commentators have consistently characterised FIFA's ticketing terms as among the most restrictive in major sport. The terms are legally enforceable under both Canadian contract and trademark law, but have been criticised in academic commentary for failing to provide reasonable charity or community carve-outs.

Affected Sector:

Canadian charity-sector associations (Imagine Canada, the Association of Fundraising Professionals — Canadian chapters) have historically advocated for more permissive promotional rights in major-event host agreements. As of writing, no public statement on the Spinal Cord Injury BC case has been issued by these organizations per CBC News, CP24, and National Observer reporting.

Note: Including multiple perspectives doesn't imply all views are equally valid, but ensures readers can make informed judgments.

Corrections Policy

We strive for accuracy. If you find an error in this analysis, please email us at [email protected]. We will promptly investigate and correct any factual inaccuracies.

Updates:

  • No corrections to date (as of June 5, 2026)

Sources