“Now’s the time to start preparing”—KC2026’s biz planning push comes four months out from World Cup

Photo from a 2023 launch event for World Cup preparations, featuring Mayor Quinton Lucas and then-governor of Missouri, Mike Parson. // Photo by Belle Yennie

As of last month, the eight countries guaranteed to play in Kansas City’s World Cup group stages are set, while speculations arise of which teams will stay at nearby base camps for the duration of the tournament.

This also means that the World Cup will begin in a matter of weeks.

KC Countdown Clock. // YouTube screengrab

KC2026, the nonprofit in charge of planning and executing host city duties, continues with its now three years of preparation for the city’s 18 days of hosting. Surrounding those preparations have been concerns related to public safety and security, funding for transit operations, and housing costs—both for temporary visitors and long-term renters.

Another concern, beyond fan fest lawns and the walls of what’s soon to become Kansas City Stadium, is whether there will be sufficient support for the over 50,000 small businesses across the Kansas City metro.

During one of Kansas City’s largest national sporting events—the 2023 NFL Draft—sales dropped for many due to a variety of factors related to the event, according to previous reporting from KMBC. The NFL Draft took place over three days with an attendance of 312,000.

World Cup events in Kansas City will span 18 days, and KC2026 estimates an attendance of 650,000 new visitors.

“We are seeing outside interest and validation of what’s happening in Kansas City is our work with the small business community—local business community, through Kansas City Game Plan,” says Pam Kramer, KC2026’s CEO, at a press conference today.

KC Game Plan is an online hub that includes a readiness assessment, cultural hospitality guidelines, and a 23-page playbook that offers “to empower you with the insights, tools, and connections you need to make informed decisions and take smart action.”

Along with checklists of readiness questions business owners may ask themselves, some playbook insights take into account an authentic World Cup experience and cultural inclusivity. This includes calling a uniform a “kit,” the suggestion of decorating with “non-official country flags,” and embracing “general soccer themes like ‘welcoming the world.’”

“We’re working with Visit KC and other partners to provide hospitality training,” Kramer elaborates. “Whether or not a culture is used to tipping, what time of day do certain cultures prefer to have dinner? And how do we make sure that businesses are aware of what we know?”

Slide from KC2026’s Game Plan on acceptable non-FIFA marketing practices.

KC Game Plan’s full cultural insight and hospitality guides, along with its visitor demand forecasts, are still on the way.

Also, Kansas City won’t host activities for those 18 days consecutively—the fan fest is open only when the US Men’s National Team is playing or when matches take place in Kansas City.

KC2026 intends to maintain the economic momentum in the metro, saying “We’ll send people to other activations across the region.”

“I think the fans are willing, perhaps, to drive a little greater distance,” Kramer adds. “Our regional transit system is geared to make sure that regardless of where fans are staying, whether they’re in the city center or in one of the suburbs, that they can easily connect to everything that’s happening.”

With this in mind, as well as giving workers and neighborhoods temporary breaks from the World Cup frenzy, Kramer says that Fan Festival and Events Director Mallory Cage has also come up with “a model.”

All that’s left is for FIFA to confirm which teams are coming to the region’s base camps—which will now be announced earlier than April, as was originally expected.

Still, with as much on the way for Kansas City as there quite likely is to go, KC2026 and Kramer’s eyes are on the prize.

“The best way to present a Kansas City experience is to have our residents here authentically sharing what makes us special.”

Football term guide from the handbook.