Despite terrible shooting and traffic, KC is worthy World Cup host. What to know | Porter

We hoped we could say after Kansas City’s first FIFA World Cup 2026 match Tuesday that everything would go off without a hitch. Yes, Lionel Messi’s hat trick in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria at Kansas City Stadium was glorious. But massive traffic delays and an Uber driver who took passengers to the match being injured in a string of highway shootings casts a pall. Still, the global event is shaping up well here in the metropolitan area.

FULL STORY: KC is a worthy World Cup host. The hype is real, but the work isn’t over. | Porter

Here are key takeaways:

• Messi tied the all-time record for goals scored during World Cup action, electrifying fans inside the temporarily renamed Kansas City Stadium (formerly Arrowhead) and across the region.
• Nearly 69,000 people packed the stadium before kickoff, Mayor Quinton Lucas told The Star, despite traffic snarls and shuttle delays that left one reporter waiting nearly two hours to board a bus.
• KC2026 organizers need to fix transportation issues before Saturday’s Game 2, pointing to the Morton Amphitheater in Riverside, which cleaned up its parking and traffic problems after a rough June 3 debut.
• Prior to Tuesday’s shooting neither the Kansas City Police Department nor the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office reported any World Cup-related arrests between the start of Fan Fest on June 11 and Tuesday’s opener — notable for a city that spent $25 million on a temporary World Cup jail that isn’t even ready.
• On Wednesday, Kansas City Police said four people were wounded the day before in separate incidents at Interstate 670 and Wyoming Street, Interstate 70 and Paseo Boulevard, I-70 and Prospect Avenue, and at Truman Road and Hardesty Avenue. The name of the Uber driver injured in the shooting has not been released. Another man, who died after his vehicle crashed at Truman Road and Bennington Avenue, is also thought to have been shot by the same suspect, identified by police as 22-year-old Oscar Sanchez-Munoz.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.