"I think you come in and you expect Midwest cows walking down the street." That's Jake Reid, vice president of the Kansas City World Cup host committee, summing up what international visitors will probably assume before they arrive — and why they'll be wrong.
Kansas City is the smallest of the 11 US cities hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup (June 11–July 19). It is also, improbably, the base of operations for three of the tournament's top seeds: Argentina, England, and the Netherlands. The reigning champions, the nation that invented the game, and the perennial nearly-men of world football — all setting up camp in Missouri.
Why Kansas City, specifically?
Geography is the honest answer. KC sits dead centre in the continental United States, which matters enormously when teams are flying between group-stage venues that can be thousands of miles apart. England, for instance, will train at Swope Soccer Village — formerly Sporting Kansas City's training ground — while flying to Dallas, New York, and Boston for their group matches. A coastal base would make that travel circuit a genuine headache.
The facilities are the other factor. Over the last 15 years, the city has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into training complexes and stadiums. Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman visited the KC Current's training facility in April and declared it the "best option" for his squad. The Dutch will base themselves there. Argentina, meanwhile, chose the quieter Kansas side of the metro, with Messi and company kicking off their title defence on June 16 against Algeria at Arrowhead Stadium — home of the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs.
Argentina were the first team to publicly confirm Kansas City as their base camp, back in February. That decision was followed quickly by England and the Netherlands. When the defending champions make a call that decisive, others tend to notice.
650,000 visitors, and hotel bookings are already lagging
Visit KC projects around 650,000 people will pour into the city during the tournament. An early May report from the American Hotel and Lodging Association flagged that hotel bookings are running behind expectations — which is either a logistical problem or an opportunity for anyone still trying to sort accommodation.
For those who do show up, the city has a genuine offer. Arthur Bryant's and Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que — a legendary joint operating out of a gas station that made the late Anthony Bourdain's list of "13 places to eat before you die" — will likely become pilgrimage sites for visiting fans. The 18th & Vine District has live jazz. There's even an Oz Museum about an hour's drive into Kansas, if the football schedule permits a road trip.
Kyra Carusa, a forward for the KC Current, put it plainly: "Sports culture in Kansas City is contagious. It's exciting. It's everywhere."
The city has thriving men's and women's professional sides in Sporting KC and the Current respectively, and a fanbase that understands football — both kinds. The Chiefs have won three Super Bowls recently, and Arrowhead Stadium, where six World Cup matches including a quarter-final will be played, is one of the loudest venues in American sport.
One regular at Joe's Bar-B-Que had a simple message for the arriving Europeans: "Come prepared. It's going to be much bigger portions than anyone in Europe is going to be used to."
That probably applies to Kansas City itself, too.
