KC 2026 responds after fans experience delays at FIFA Club World Cup match

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Kansas City FIFA World Cup 2026 group is looking to avoid a repeat of Tuesday's long lines and delays as thousands of fans prepare to attend Saturday's match between Ecuador and Curaçao.

Many fans took to social media after Tuesday's match to complain about hours-long traffic delays, parking issues and difficulties reaching the stadium before the match. Fans are calling it the "Messi effect."

Global soccer superstar Lionel Messi drew massive crowds to Kansas City for Tuesday's match between Argentina and Algeria.

According to a KC 2026 spokesperson, transportation systems successfully moved fans throughout the region and to the stadium area. However, the biggest challenge came once fans arrived.

"We recognize that some fans experienced significant delays entering the stadium complex and understand the frustration that created," the spokesperson said in an email to ABC 17 News.

The spokesperson said delays at the stadium gates caused backups for fans, no matter how they traveled to the venue.

Typically, fans attending Kansas City Chiefs games can enter Arrowhead Stadium through eight different gates. For Tuesday's FIFA Club World Cup match, only two gates were open for thousands of fans entering the stadium. KC 2026 said FIFA controls stadium entry operations and has provided recommendations to improve the process before Saturday's match.

City leaders spent months preparing for the tournament, adding shuttle services and expanding public transit options to help move fans around the city.

At the beginning of the month, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas was encouraging people across Missouri to come experience the FIFA Club World Cup.

"If you come to Kansas City, you will find a good way to get around on transit. There's the free streetcar system, there's a fairly free bus system we have going around," Lucas said before the World Cup kicked off in the city.

Despite those efforts, many fans told ABC 17 News on Tuesday they chose to drive or use rideshare services instead.

Jeff Merritt traveled from Indiana to the Show Me State to experience his first ever World Cup match, and he said watching soccer superstar Lionel Messi play was a once in a lifetime moment.

Merritt said his time at the Kansas City FIFA Fan Festival was a great experience and praised the city for putting the event together. However, he said the challenges began once fans started making their way from the festival area to the stadium.

About two hours before kickoff, Merritt said he tried using the bus service provided to transport fans to the stadium. After waiting for nearly an hour, he said he realized the line was barely moving.

Merritt believes adding more buses could help travel.

“What we saw in our hour of waiting for the bus to the Fan Fest was like seven buses total,” Merritt said. “Seven buses times 44 people on each bus, that’s not going to move thousands of people quickly.”

Eventually, Merritt found a rideshare with other fans from Costa Rica and Puerto Rico to get closer to the stadium. Due to traffic restrictions, the group could only travel so far and had to get out of the care more than a mile west of Arrowhead Stadium.

Merritt said while he and his group were able to walk the remaining distance, he worries the long walk could create challenges for other fans.

“We had the ability to walk the mile before the game, the mile after the game,” Merritt said. “If someone doesn’t have that ability, they’re really going to be hamstrung into getting into the game.”

Merritt said he understands the security measures FIFA has put in place, including limiting access points around the stadium. Despite the transportation issues, he said he felt safe throughout his experience in Kansas City.

Ecuador vs Curaçao match is set for 7 p.m. Saturday.