Kansas City prepares public transit for thousands of visitors ahead of FIFA World Cup
COLUMBIA, MO. (KMIZ)
The FIFA World Cup is about two weeks away, and Kansas City is preparing public transit for hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the world, the nation and Missouri.
KC2026 is the nonprofit that is planning events and preparing Kansas City to host the World Cup, which has matches from June 11 through July 11 with semifinals and finals in the latter half of July.
Kansas City will host free watch parties for most matches at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, located at 2 Memorial Drive. People who want to attend Fan Fest must reserve tickets on the KC2026 website.
For those traveling to Kansas City from Mid-Missouri, there are several park-and-ride options available through ConnectKC26 to get to and from surrounding areas like the Kansas City International Airport, Lee's Summit, Liberty, and attractions such as the Kansas City Zoo and Oak Park Mall for a daily rate.
"We want to make it easy. We want to make it affordable, and we're definitely looking forward to welcoming visitors, but we also want people here to engage, to participate, to celebrate and to be a part of the World Cup," Pam Kramer, KC2026 CEO, said during an online call with reporters Thursday.
The World Cup is expected to bring more than 650,000 people to Kansas City, according to a press release from KC2026. It's also anticipated to generate over $650 million in the local economy.
Cities in Mid-Missouri also hope to cash in on the World Cup. Columbia has started a campaign to attract World Cup-related visitors to the city.
Kramer said safety is a top priority, and KC2026 has a large regional team that has been planning for the past two years in anticipation of the World Cup. The team has more than 50 agencies and has been working with the local Kansas City Police Department, along with state and federal departments.
"I'm very proud of the region and the way that they've come together. We are very unique as a host city in that we have a state line running down the middle of our host city," Kramer said. "So, there's much cross-jurisdiction, collaboration and support."
With hantavirus and Ebola virus flare-ups, Kramer said there's a medical committee that is monitoring infectious diseases.
"There are plans in place for all of that, and a large part of that is communication, and making sure that we're passing along that information," Kramer said. "We've been working with embassies to communicate to folks before they arrive. So I feel really good about the plans we have in place."
Earlier this month, three people from Kansas were being monitored after having high-risk exposure to a person who was infected with Andes hantavirus, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
