How Seattle is getting ready to host the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup

With the official schedule for the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup now set, Seattle-area organizers are in the thick of final preparations for the tournament.

Several of Seattle’s parks, Lumen Field, and Sea-Tac Airport are in the middle of renovations in anticipation of the 750,000 fans the city expects.

“I think people recognize that this is the biggest event on the planet, that this tournament is larger than it’s ever been with 48 teams,” Jon Scholes, the President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association told KUOW. “Sports in Seattle is a great mix.”

Heading into the new year, you may notice the streets of Seattle look a little different as well. The Downtown Seattle Association is waiting for the final OKs to install up to 30 8-foot-tall digital kiosks across downtown.

"It’s just a matter of really getting to an agreement through permit applications with the city on specific locations,” Scholes said. “And then making sure that we can get power to them without tearing up 200 [feet] of sidewalk to do that.”

The kiosks are designed by the Ohio-based company IKE Smart City, and were approved by the city council earlier this year. They’ll display advertising, transit information, and business recommendations.

RELATED: Seattle considers smart kiosks ahead of FIFA World Cup. Privacy advocates say that could be risky

Scholes says the kiosks will remain after the World Cup wraps up in July.

Seattle parks get an upgrade

Commuters and tourists passing through Seattle’s Westlake Park may also notice changes. Westlake Park closed in October for a $3.7 million redesign led by Seattle Parks and Recreation and the Seattle Parks Foundation.

Rebecca Bear, the president of the Seattle Parks Foundation, says the nonprofit began conversations with the local organizing committee years ago, and started thinking then about where improvements could be made in the city’s parks.

Bear started talking with city leaders about a vision of the “front door” of Seattle — the spots people could take the train from Sea-Tac airport when coming into the city.

Westlake Park stood out as a key spot to work on, given its proximity to Pike Place Market, the waterfront, and its role as a key transit hub for downtown.

“As we looked at the park, it was really clear that there were a number of non-functioning aspects of the park,” Bear said. “And that if we were to make some simple changes, we could actually really beautify the park.”

When Westlake reopens in the spring, the space will have improved lighting, new landscaping, an ADA accessible stage, and seating. The renovation will also remove the park’s fountain, which has been out of commission for more than a decade, Bear said.

FIFA provided a $150,000 grant for the Westlake Park project last year, Bear said, but a majority of the funding came from the city.

The Seattle Parks Foundation is also working on projects at Lake Union Park and the Occidental Promenade. Those developments are also projected to be completed ahead of the World Cup, but Bear says the tournament has only served as a “catalyst” and is not the sole reason improvements are being made.

“The reason we’re making the changes is because they needed to happen, because the parks were really needing renewal,” Bear said.

The goal, Bear said, is to create spaces that can be used by the community long after the World Cup leaves town.

Turf transformations at Seattle U

While Lumen Field will host all six of the matches slated to happen in Seattle during the tournament, teams will need plenty of other turf to practice.

When FIFA formally reached out to Seattle University about using Championship Field in 2023, the school was already thinking about renovating their pitch, according to Nathan Gregory, the director of facilities planning and real estate at the school.

Originally built in 1994, the last improvements to the playing surface were almost two decades ago.

“We could have done it regardless of FIFA,” Gregory said. “It was kind of on track for around the right time when we thought we would do it anyway.”

The university’s proximity to Lumen Field, in addition to the field’s locker rooms and accommodations for media, made them a strong candidate in the eyes of FIFA scouts.

FIFA representatives signed an initial contract with Seattle U in May 2023, and conducted a formal pitch inspection in July of the following year.

“There was a ball bounce test,” Gregory said. “Their turf expert came out and held a regulation soccer ball a certain distance off the grass, and checked how high it would bounce.”

FIFA also tested the field drainage, and a tool to measure cleat traction.

That testing confirmed the need for upgrades Gregory knew were needed, like replacing the field’s subsurface drainage. Up to eight inches of the field needed to be scraped off the field, and a sand layer needed to be replaced. New turf was needed as well. Construction wrapped up in August, and teams started using the new pitch that month.

Gregory declined to answer the total cost of the project, but said FIFA did not pay any portion of the renovations. Matching funds from Washington state covered half of the field upgrade, and Seattle University paid the remaining portion.

Gregory expects to get more information from FIFA about which teams will use Championship Field to practice in February. After that, the university will go over their security approach and make any needed adjustments with FIFA.

“It is sort of being the center of the universe for a little bit,” Gregory said. “So it’s kind of an exciting thing.”