The BC Lions got the boot from their home stadium for the FIFA World Cup, but they don’t seem to be struggling to compete for sports fans’ attention.

The BC Lions are coming to Kelowna to play two games for in an event called Touchdown Kelowna. They’ll be playing on June 27 and July 4, and there’s a nine-day festival built around the games that’s running at the same time as the World Cup.

The Lions typically play at BC Place in Vancouver, but that stadium is needed for World Cup games until July 7.

Tourism Kelowna’s communications lead Lindsay Kelm said the city has a huge appetite for sports events so there isn’t a need to try to pull fans away from World Cup events to come out to see the BC Lions play.

“Touchdown Kelowna is a result of the World Cup in that the BC Lions were displaced, obviously, from their home turf. So it worked out really well for Kelowna that we were able to be the host city for their couple of games,” Kelm said.

Tickets for Touchdown Kelowna have been selling quickly and an additional round of tickets just became available on June 17.

“The strong ticket sales demonstrate the enthusiasm that exists for major sporting events in our community and show that Kelowna residents are eager to be part of the excitement surrounding sport at every level,” Tourism Kelowna president Cassandra Zerebeski said in an emailed statement.

The city has has made some temporary upgrades to the Apple Bowl to accommodate the 17,000 fans coming to each game. It has also set up watch parties for the Lions games and the World Cup.

While the city has been marketing Touchdown Kelowna for months, it isn’t as easy to market World Cup events.

The city’s “World Soccer Watch Party” can’t be branded with anything FIFA has copyrighted because it could go against the organization’s strict intellectual property guidelines.

Kelowna’s had the Memorial Cup, Hoopfest and there’s the BC Summer Games on the way. Plus with the World Cup happening nearby, Zerebeski said this is the city’s “year of sport.”

“The result is a truly exceptional lineup of events that reflects Kelowna’s ability to host high-profile sporting events while delivering unforgettable experiences for athletes, spectators, and organizers alike,” Zerebeski said.