How Seattle Is Preparing For The World Cup

Though the 2026 FIFA World Cup is still more than a year away, Seattle is actively preparing for the coming economic rush.

The city will host six matches of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup at Lumen Field in June and July next year. Four of the games are in the group stage, one is in the round of 32 and the last a quarterfinal match.

A report by commercial real estate firm Colliers says the projected $1 billion in economic impact will surpass the city’s record-breaking weekend in July 2023, when two Taylor Swift concerts, a Mariners-Toronto baseball game, the Capitol Hill Block Party, the Bite of Seattle and two large conventions brought nearly 900,000 visitors to Seattle. 

The spillover will be immense. The report notes that the recently completed $800 million Seattle Waterfront project will attract soccer fans, and Seattle Center will host the fan celebration site. A light rail expansion (the East Link, a new line from downtown Seattle to downtown Redmond) will be completed soon. It is the largest transit expansion in the United States.

Almost 1,400 hotel rooms have been added since 2020, a 6.2% increase. The report also highlights soccer’s long history in Seattle specifically and the Pacific Northwest in general.

Seattle is the 15th-largest metro area in the United States. Financial website WalletHub says Washington state had the best economy in the country the past three years.