Netherlands and 2026 FIFA World Cup: What to know about Dutch team’s time in KC

The Netherlands will base its 2026 FIFA World Cup operation in the Kansas City area, with the Dutch national team training in Riverside and playing a group-stage match at Arrowhead Stadium.

Thousands of orange-clad fans, a royal visit and a downtown fan-walk are all part of the buildup.

Here are some main things to know ahead of the Netherlands’ official arrival in KC on Tuesday:

• The Netherlands will face Tunisia in its final group-stage match at 6 p.m. on June 25 at Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium, with Dutch fans planning an orange fan-walk from the Power & Light District to the FIFA FanFest at the World War I Memorial and Museum. It’s expected that the fan-walk will be led by the supporters’ double-decker “Orange Bus.”
• King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands plan to attend matches in the U.S. on June 20, watching the Netherlands play Sweden in Houston before flying to Kansas City for the Curacao-Ecuador match at Arrowhead Stadium that evening.
• Curacao, an island nation within the Kingdom of the Netherlands located 40 miles north of Venezuela, is the smallest country by area and population ever to qualify for the World Cup, with 171 square miles and about 160,000 residents.
• The City of Riverside is giving away 120 tickets — 60 pairs — to a Netherlands training session at 10:30 a.m. on June 10 at Riverside Stadium, with 20 winners drawn from each of the city’s three wards.
• KC Current season ticket members, Current Club members and Teal Rising Alliance members can also enter a separate drawing for tickets to watch the Dutch practice, with entries limited to one per account and registration closing Friday.
• The Dutch football association estimates about 5,000 fans will travel from the Netherlands for the team’s games, with another 5,000 North Americans with Dutch roots also planning to attend.
• Daniel Oordt, known as the “Oranje Suit Fan” for his head-to-toe orange outfit, is a commercial pilot who has attended nearly every Dutch national team match since November 2015, totaling close to 100 games.
• The Netherlands, ranked seventh by FIFA with a population of about 18.4 million, has played in three World Cup finals and lost them all by one goal or in extra time, most recently in 2010.
• The Overland Park Convention Center will serve as a makeshift consular services center for international visitors needing help with lost passports or other documents, with appointments required through each nation’s embassy or consulate website.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.

This story was originally published June 3, 2026 at 12:55 PM.

Blair Kerkhoff

The Kansas City Star

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Blair Kerkhoff has covered sports for The Kansas City Star since 1989. He was elected to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2023.