KC’s World Cup experience has exceeded many expectations: ‘Seen it transform’
Kansas City had big aspirations and many fears heading into the World Cup events in the city.
From construction repairs, traffic, and safety, the worries compounded on themselves as the city approached the kickoff of its first KC match on June 16. The reality showed that there was practically nothing to fear.
Jennifer Lightsey, a KC local attending Fan Fest, was skeptical at first.
“I was like, can we handle it? Is it going to be crazy? Is traffic going to be insane?” said Lightsey.
Some anticipated tourists galore, while others anticipated the hype to be much more intense than the reality.
Elizabeth Mulkey and Gretchen Goodman, long time residents of the city, both said they didn’t see quite as many tourists flowing into the city as expected.
Others were shocked by the number of people that came through the city.
“There’s been a lot of negative chatter on social media and the news about lack of Airbnb bookings or lack of buzz around town or where are all the tourists, but I think on game days when Arrowhead’s got a game, it’s going to be nuts,” said Andrew Tate, A KC local attending Fan Fest for the first USA match.
Safety in the city
Cheryl Watters, who attended the 1994 World Cup in the U.S. knew what to expect.
“I knew the excitement and the energy that it brings, and so I wanted to come down and be part of it,” Watters said. Her family from England also came to join the excitement with her in KC.
The volume of tourists wasn’t the only main concern. The shooting on Troost and 79th Street prompted online communities to questioning the safety of the games and teams in KC, particularly England.
Although safety procedures have evolved from the last time she attended a World Cup, Watters feels very safe in KC, she expressed.
“I do feel they’ve done a wonderful job of accommodating so many people here in Kansas City,” said Watters.
Although it began slowly at first, once the games started in KC, tourists began to show up and show out.
Fans from all over
“It’s a bit of an eye-opener,” said Fan Fest attendee Ikenna Ezueka. “Growing up in Kansas City, I’m not used to seeing tourists here.”
Ja Morris, another KC native, has heard more diverse languages and team jerseys over the past couple of days, he said.
Lightsey, a Curaçao fan, was beyond excited about the small island team coming to KC.
“I love having all the countries that are here visiting. I think it’s making Kansas City just, like, come alive,” said Lightsey. “It’s so fun to see everyone excited about their country.”
The metro area has many people immigrating to the area, numerous from foreign countries. When their team comes to the city, they feel at home.
Fernando Olivares came to KC in 2022 from El Salvador. When he came to the city, he didn’t see the same love of soccer that he felt back home.
“Now that the World Cup is here, I’ve seen it transform into what I like personally,” Olivares expressed.
Martin Vasso and Nico Cinelli moved from Argentina to the KC area 4 years ago and were in high spirits when their team came.
“Messi and Argentina’s here, for us, it’s like a good thing; It’s like a big thing for us. We are so excited.”
Constanza Armadans moved to Topeka from Paraguay and she didn’t see many people from her country here for five years, she said.
“I think it will be good for the people also to see other foreigners,” she said. “It’s good that Kansas City will be on the map now and known for more people.”
The Fan Festival
The Fan Fest experience brings fans together to celebrate the love of the game. Each day the grounds of the National World War I Memorial & Museum is filled with fans of different teams.
“They welcomed everybody. It’s a little something for everybody food-wise. Even like the police, they got language barrier help,” expressed Leece Sims, a local business owner visiting Fan Fest.
Adam Billau went to Fan Fest to watch Team USA on June 12. He was expecting the festival to be hectic, but there was plenty of room to stand and places to sit, he said, relieved.
Compared to other host cities’ fan fest, fans have great reviews of the experience in KC.
Atilio & Ramona Marullo, from Philadelphia, shared that the experience KC Fan Fest was better than the one in their home city.
Art Prusmack his family are on a tour around the country to see how each city welcomes the World Cup. They have been to Fan Fests in Houston, Boston, Atlanta and here, so far.
He liked Kansas City’s Fan Fest more than Boston’s, he said. The KC festival has capacity for 20,000 more visitors than Boston’s, and opted to shut down early on June 27, reported WBZ NewsRadio. But compared to Atlanta, KC loses points because of the screen size and placement, said Prusmack.
“Atlanta’s screen was awesome, but this is a very nice spot. It’s a very nice venue,” he said.
Traffic was one expectation that lined up with reality, from overfilled streetcars to Uber rides unmoving on the highway on the way to games. Suffering from the influx of visitors, especially on game days, FIFA KC2026 has outlined a plan for improvements. The plan rehabilitated the traffic conditions after the first game.
Overall, though, people feel welcomed by Kansas City’s Midwestern charm. The city isn’t a part of the Show Me State for no reason.
Kansas City’s soccer culture
The soccer culture of Kansas City is growing from the presence of the World Cup in the city. Kansas City’s culture is also leaving an impression on the world.
“I see people in sporting gear all the time, and the Current is such a huge thing here in KCMO,” exclaimed Gus Scharnhorst, a season ticket holder for the KC Currents. “I think our soccer culture is probably making the World Cup stronger.”
Kansas City is underappreciated in creating America’s soccer culture as a whole, Avery Mitchell feels. He moved to Kansas City from Salina, KS, five years ago.
“I know it started in St. Louis and then ended up coming this way in Kansas City,” Mitchell said. “ Kansas City deserves national recognition, international recognition.”
Jeremiah Musa has been playing soccer his whole life and saw how the World Cup made people who never even kicked a ball before have an interest in the sport, Musa observed.
Soccer is growing here, and Olivares is sure that after this is done, it will continue to be more important, the college student reflected.