Ontario man living the dream hosting World Cup in Qatar
Most of the action at the World Cup is on the field, but for those in the stadium seats there's another show – this one features a Canadian talent.
"My job is to inject as much fun as possible and to leave them with a lasting experience. Whether they win or lose, my job is to make sure they can go home saying 'wow that was a great show.'"
He goes by Dancin' Wayne. The Oshawa, Ont. native has been working as an in-stadium host for the 2022 World Cup games. From dancing, to fan-interviews, Wayne does almost anything he can to entertain the fans at the games.
"It's been a marathon," he told CTV News, "I think I've had three days rest and that's just because of the grind of so many games."
The journey from the GTA to Qatar involved a move to British Columbia, and a decision to make a big life change.
"I quit my job," he said. "I felt like I wasn't, I shouldn't be sitting at a desk eight hours a day. I went full time on an app called TikTok, ended up becoming pretty popular on that app. A couple of companies slid into my DMs…one of them was FIFA."
After hosting a couple of trial events, Wayne was chosen to be one of the hosts for the World Cup.
His epiphany also followed a serious motor vehicle collision that he was involved in last year.
"A drunk driver ran me off the road and almost left me with very long lasting injuries where I couldn't even walk properly. And I went from that to where I'm at now because I didn't want to live the same life I was living."
Dancin' Wayne is seen at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Wayne says he spent three hours a day in the gym, every day during the 18 weeks leading up to the tournament to get himself into shape for his stadium performances.
"They're not small stadiums right? These are 50 thousand seat stadiums so to get from one end to the other end to see some fans you've gotta move, you've gotta hustle."
With the World Cup wrapping up in Qatar, Wayne has been having the time of his life. And he hopes others will be encouraged by his story to stop sitting on the sidelines of life and get in the game.
"My best message to people right now is find your best version of happiness. I was hosting and dancing and doing all this stuff as a kid in high school even up through college and even then I loved doing it,” he said.
“It wasn't about the money, it was just about what I wanted to do. And I did the millennial thing and got a corporate job and paid off debt which was great but it wasn't me so I had to go back and realize I wanted that version of happiness again."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING 120 active fires burning across Canada, 30 are 'out of control'
The 2024 wildfire season has begun, and it's shaping up to follow last year's unprecedented destruction in kind, with thousands of square kilometres already consumed.
Veteran TSN sportscaster Darren Dutchyshen has died
Veteran TSN broadcaster Darren 'Dutch' Dutchyshen, one of Canada’s best-known sports journalists, has died. He was 57. His family says 'he passed as he was surrounded by his closest loved ones.'
BREAKING B.C. parents sentenced to 15 years for death of 6-year-old boy
A British Columbia Supreme Court judge has sentenced the mother and stepfather of a six-year-old boy who died from blunt-force trauma in 2018 to 15 years in prison.
Speaker cuts ties with Sask. Party, alleges he faced threats, harassment from gov't MLAs
The Speaker of the Saskatchewan Legislature Randy Weekes has severed ties with the Sask. Party after accusing some members of harassment and intimidation tactics, including a situation he claimed saw the Government House Leader bring a hunting rifle to the legislative building.
Kevin Spacey receives star support as he fights to get his career back
Kevin Spacey is pushing back on the 'rush to judgment' against him and is being backed by some big names as he seeks to reclaim his acting career.
A Toronto man killed his mother and decapitated her. His lawyers argue it wasn't murder
A ‘lifetime of abuse’ led Dallas Ly to snap and repeatedly stab his mother inside their Leslieville apartment in 2022 but he never intended to kill her, his defence lawyers argued during his murder trial in Toronto on Thursday.
Father charged with second-degree murder in daughter's stabbing death southwest of Montreal
A father has been charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his 34-year-old daughter in southern Quebec.
Trudeau calls New Brunswick's Conservative government a 'disgrace' on women's rights
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau assailed New Brunswick's premier and other conservative leaders on Thursday, calling out the provincial government's position on abortion, LGBTQ youth and climate change.
The latest advice for expecting parents? Sign up for childcare as soon as you're pregnant
Canada's new $10-a-day child care program is expanding, but there's growing evidence that demand for the program is rising even faster, leaving many parents on the outside looking in.