The World Cup is coming to AT&T Stadium. Here’s what it means for Dallas-Fort Worth

The world’s biggest sport is coming to the United States’ fastest growing region.

Officials with the international soccer governing body FIFA announced Thursday that Dallas will be one of 16 host cities for the 2026 tournament.

The economic impact for the region could be in the billions, said Dan Hunt, president of Major League Soccer team FC Dallas.

The audience for a World Cup game is almost as much as the Super Bowl, so imagine having six Super Bowls in one month, said Jason Sands with the Fort Worth Sports Commission.

Unlike other high-profile events taking place in Dallas-Fort Worth recently, the World Cup is an opportunity to get global exposure, he said.

The region could see an estimated 100,000 international visitors per day during the tournament, according to Sands.

It’s not clear which tournament games will be played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, but Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones expressed confidence AT&T Stadium would host the championship game.

“When we built that stadium, we built it in mind to have great, great events and it wasn’t just American football,” Jones said.

The decision for the championship game will come in the Fall.

The World Cup coming to the Metroplex was made possible through a collaboration of all the region’s cities, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker said.

“We are truly stronger together,” she said, noting the World Cup will benefit the entire region.

Parker celebrated after the announcement, writing on Twitter, “Fort Worth, let’s show the world how to throw a party!”

This story was originally published June 16, 2022 at 5:18 PM.

Harrison Mantas

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

817-390-7040

Harrison Mantas has covered Fort Worth city government, agencies and people since September 2021. He likes to live tweet city hall meetings, and help his fellow Fort Worthians figure out what’s going on.