She cried softly. The crowd erupted in cheers when Kansas City was chosen. FIFA had not revealed any information, but Nelson, the president of the Kansas City Sports Commission, believed that the city, despite being the 31st largest metropolitan area in the US, had presented a compelling proposal.
“Nelson recently divulged to the Guardian that it required seven years of exertion to encounter a mere 10 seconds of bliss,” she uttered from her workplace.
This is a kind of surprising upset in sports, as Nashville, Cincinnati, Orlando, Denver, and Phoenix outperformed Kansas City. According to Nelson, even though Kansas City had a stronger bid to host the World Cup, it will be one of the smallest metropolitan areas in the American Midwest.
Speaking to The Guardian, Jake Reid, the president of Sporting Kansas City, the Major League Soccer team of the city, expressed, “There exists an inherent sense of determination among our fans and sports teams in general.” “There is a slight sensation of David versus Goliath here, but their enthusiasm is undeniable.”
The grand event itself has never been held in Kansas City, despite the fact that, according to the legend, the deceased owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, Lamar Hunt, was the one who changed the name of the NFL’s championship to the Super Bowl after witnessing his children play with a resilient toy known as a Super Ball.
In the 1970s, the Kings, an NBA franchise, and the Scouts, an NHL team, relocated to different cities before reaching a level of competitiveness to contend for a championship. Nevertheless, it was a momentous occasion when the Chiefs won the Super Bowl two years ago, securing their first NFL championship in 50 years. Throughout its history, Kansas City has been home to the Kings, an NBA team, and the Scouts, an NHL team.
The baseball team of the city, the Royals, appears destined for another losing season, having lost their seventh straight game in August. The club, which has only won one division title in the last 36 years, won the World Series in 1985 and 2015.
“As Nelson smiled, he mentioned, ‘As you gaze upon the map, we truly distinguish ourselves.’ Situated right in the center of the continental US, known as the Heartland, Kansas City had the advantage of being no more than a four-hour flight away from any other 2026 World Cup site.”
However, there seemed to be a lot more. Kansas City truly adores both types of football, American and soccer.
Lamar Hunt, the quiet Texas oilman who passed away in 2006, was deeply enthusiastic about soccer. The endeavor garnered significant attention locally, with hundreds of individuals involved and co-led by Cliff Illig, owner of Sporting Kansas City, and Clark Hunt, Lamar’s son and the present owner of the Chiefs.
The club, which was formed in 1996 when Major League Soccer brought a team to Kansas City called the Wizards, plays its home games at a 18,000-seat stadium and was renamed Sporting Kansas City in 2011. Before the formation of Major League Soccer, the team played in front of large crowds at the stadium.
In 1999, the US Open Cup, the largest domestic tournament in the United States, was designated in honor of Hunt. Hunt possessed MLS teams in Columbus and Dallas at the time of his passing.
The Heartland Soccer Association is the largest association in the US, with 30,000 players. It was influential in establishing Kansas City as a hotbed for youth soccer, when Hunt brought the Dallas Texans to Kansas City and renamed them the Chiefs in 1963.
The NWSL will be adding an expansion team in 2021, called the Current, to the league’s first soccer-specific stadium for women’s soccer, which has a capacity of 11,500 seats and is located along the Missouri River. FC Kansas City, one of the original eight teams in the National Women’s Soccer League, won two championships before folding in 2017.
Victor Montagliani, a member of the Fifa council, expressed during a press briefing following a visit to Kansas City last year, “The allure of football lies in the fact that it is not determined by physical stature, but rather by the magnitude of one’s passion.” He further added, “In all honesty, Kansas City possesses a stadium and is situated in a city that is fervently enthusiastic about the sport.”
In order to facilitate transportation for numerous foreign visitors, a new terminal is set to open at Kansas City International Airport next year, alongside ongoing projects to improve the city’s highway and public transportation systems. Additionally, efforts are being made to reinforce the existing infrastructure.
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas Jayhawks are set to play in the 2023 NFL draft, while in the meantime, Kansas City, Kansas, has been the capital of college basketball, with the Jayhawks being the NCAA champion. The Big 12 Tournament is played at the 15-year-old T-Mobile Center in downtown Kansas City.
The announcement was not as much preparing to keep the light green as it was to play the matches – perhaps seven to five and at least four World Cup matches – at the city’s 76,000-seat NFL facility.
Nelson and Katherine Holland, who headed the team responsible for assembling Kansas City’s bid, have yet to complete their work. The schedule, as well as the complete list of participating countries comprising 48 teams and their groupings, will not be disclosed until closer to 2026. However, numerous other particulars are still pending.
The announcement of host cities drew immediate attention, naturally shifting focus to the economic benefits for each metropolitan region. It is challenging to quantify such a positive outcome, but it is undoubtedly certain that the World Cup will generate millions of dollars for each host city.
“You can never compensate for such a level of advertising exposure,” Holland informed the Guardian, “It will have a lasting impact on Kansas City for the next four years, and even longer.”
Following the conclusion of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, numerous aspects of the most intricate sporting event, commonly referred to as “the nuts and bolts” by Holland, will require careful attention. One such aspect involves Fifa’s authority in determining ticket prices and availability.
Kansas City also accomplished this. As Reid stated, “We understood the importance of setting ourselves apart.” However, Kansas City is included as well – along with New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Miami – seven out of the top ten metropolitan areas in the United States will serve as hosts for the World Cup.
“I am not concerned about filling Arrowhead,” Holland stated.
The committee had found two local celebrities to provide a video message of congratulations for the selection of Patrick Mahomes, the quarterback for the Chiefs, to star in the modern family show “Stonestreet Eric Stepped Up”. (Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis was also tied up.)
Mahomes conveyed in his statement, “Kansas City, we have secured the World Cup!” In the year 2026, the city will undoubtedly make a remarkable impression. We eagerly anticipate welcoming fans from all corners of the globe to the heart of America and the stadium renowned for its deafening noise. Excitement is in the air!