Your favorite World Cup takeaway? You told us, and we added a few of our own | Walker
With the dismantling of Fan Fest over the weekend, it seems like the World Cup in Kansas City experience is over. Of course, that’s not really true, with plenty of local fans still cheering on the remaining teams in the semifinals. We know that Argentina and England have fan bases here, and will be in fine form to watch Wednesday’s afternoon game from Atlanta.
But many of you told us you did celebrate and participate in the many World Cup activities here in KC. We asked whether you went to any games, Fan Fest or watch parties, or did you just watch on TV? You told us, and we’ve picked a few that represented the Kansas City area and fandom:
Family connection
The highlight for me was gifting the KC limited edition jersey to my nephew, who graduated July 1 from Edinburgh University in Scotland. He got No. 331 out of 999. A great collector’s item. He is off to study in England now, so he was happy to see the photos I texted of the “Good luck England” signs around the Inn at Meadowbrook. He will cheer for England, even though he’s a Lionel Messi fan.
In general, I echo that this put soccer “on the map” for many Americans. To see Americans able to root for different countries and not fight about it is what society should be.
- Terri Lynn, Overland Park
Opportunities needed for kids
It was indeed a pleasure and honor having you here. Just wish more of our children could have gone to a real professional game. It would have been a great chance for our young people to see it. Myself, I watched the games on TV.
- Maxine McMullen, Kansas City
Netherlands fever
We attended the Netherlands game in the rain and it was fantastic. The fans were great. I went with my three sons. My parish from my youth is St John the Baptist on Strawberry Hill, so I attended several Croatian watch parties. I was cheering for the U.S. and Croatia throughout the Cup.
- Juliana Michalski, Shawnee
Non-fan loved World Cup
I don’t have more than a passing interest in soccer, so I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the matches themselves, but I think the World Cup experience in Kansas City has been great. My wife and I have enjoyed watching people from all over the world discover Kansas City and enjoy everything our city has to offer. The World Cup has brought a lot of attention to Kansas City and the surrounding area, which will be a tremendous benefit going forward regardless of how the dollars and cents turn out.
- William Boeding, Lenexa
What will we recall from Kansas City’s World Cup experience? Opinion staffer Derek Donovan and I have a few thoughts on what made this time pretty unique: some as regular onlookers, and some as journalists. All were pretty fun, and made us glad FIFA chose Kansas City.
Fan Fest memories
I went to the Fan Festival on the grounds of the National World War I Museum and Memorial multiple times. And though I’m far from a soccer fan, I was plenty entertained. On my first visit to see the Chainsmokers, I got caught up in the energy and enthusiasm of the crowd — and the good vibes kept going all evening.
Even though it was a bummer as friends and I watched fans filter away during the final moments of Team USA’s humiliating loss to Belgium, none of us regretted trekking up the hill to experience something that’s unlikely to return to KC anytime soon.
- Derek Donovan, Deputy opinion editor
Watch party and bizarre pitches
My husband and I attended the “Ted Lasso”-themed event at the Kansas City Current’s CPKC Stadium. It was a hot day, but fans of both “Lasso” and soccer seemed to be having a great time. Once more shaded seating was opened, we enjoyed watching England versus Norway and Argentina versus Switzerland on the huge screen, watching the Missouri River roll by and feeling a nice breeze. It wasn’t my first watch party, but it was the best.
I also experienced World Cup as a journalist, as media professionals pitched me untold numbers of story ideas: from which fans were the best visitors, to the best (and worst) experience, to how far World Cup activities are from the airport. My favorite random and crazy pitches? Kansas City ranks seventh among all FIFA World Cup 2026 U.S. host cities for ride hailing service-related frustration. Here’s another one that just came in: on average, Kansas City ranks last in offering qualifying top-rated European restaurants — one every 31.45 square miles, more than 3 times the host-city average of 9.24 square miles per restaurant. Who knew?
Yvette Walker, Opinion editor
Thanks for a great summer, World Cup.
This story was originally published July 13, 2026 at 12:30 PM.
