Anyone who has worked on major sporting events such as the Super Bowl, MLS Cup, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup, Olympics or Paralympic Games knows well the pent-up angst that precedes the opening whistle or cauldron lighting. It’s a gnawing, pit-of-the-stomach aching that at any moment something unwanted is about to throw shade on the proceedings.
Think back to concerns about venue construction delays for the 2004 Athens Games, or feverish discussions about human rights, women’s rights, anti-LGBT policies and corruption prior to Russia’s World Cup 2018 or Qatar’s in 2022. In fact, early media coverage about Brazil’s World Cup 2014 and 2016 Summer Olympics, focusing on costs and construction safety, made many experts worry whether either would actually stage.
The hard truth? Every global mega-event held during the last three decades has experienced intense pre-event scrutiny derived from welcoming the world and billions of eyeballs.
Remember stray dogs in Athens, body parts awash on the famed Copacabana Beach in Rio or last-minute preparations for Milan’s Olympic hockey arena earlier this year?
In offering up that journalistic overture, it’s only right to investigate North America’s upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026 and ask one simple question: “Will everything be OK?” That is to say, once the first kickoff happens in Mexico City on June 11, will everyone’s various concerns go away and successfully allow fans to focus on the teams, athletes, colorful spectators and 103 amazing games to come?
Most grizzled and/or cynical sport veterans will think so, but others — perhaps rightly so — will remain concerned the world’s wars, oil economies, human rights and fast-moving (and sometimes career-killing) social media options will detract from the Super-Bowl-sized spectacles staged in 16 stadia.
So, let’s start with three World Cup 2026 issues, the ones currently generating spectator tension. They are:
- Ticket prices
- Security risks (and costs)
- Geopolitical unrest
Most may think they know these topics well but probably aren’t investigating their corresponding relationship to the question framed above. Will logical worries vanish once the first game starts in Mexico’s Estadio Azteca?
First, tickets were (and remain) expensive and hard to secure. We both tried to get seats through FIFA lotteries, ticket releases, charity-linked pools, industry connections and other “clickable” options.
In most cases, we struck out. One of us ultimately got lucky (nabbing three for France vs. Norway), but the process was clunky at best and poor at worst. We understand hundreds of millions wanted tickets, but it was tough getting any (shout-out to the economic concepts of limited supply and huge demand).
Further, the secondary market continued showing vast multiples compared to original face-value prices. Additionally, and this was wild: Of the three tickets secured in the lottery, none had been released a month before the selected game.
Our verdict: This is a legitimate concern for fans and organizers alike, but as the market settles down (with fans accepting hard realities or celebrating their ticket procurements wildly), we predict this topic resolves itself.
Second, security risks and costs. This one is significant and undoubtedly painful for cities, stadium operators and local/state/federal police departments. At last check, host cities were facing combined budget shortfalls of more than half a billion dollars.
It has led to concerns about safety, not to mention congestion forecast for those trying to enter and exit venues. A lack of proper security also increases the risk of terrorist attacks, fan dissatisfaction and budget overruns … even after the games have started. By the time certain world leaders announce they are attending the July 19 final at New Jersey’s Meadowlands, we believe journalists and influencers will have feasted on this issue (but not changed anything).
This feisty challenge should move into the background for most fans once the Cup begins. We also believe FIFA executives and local governments will continue addressing this matter in private (away from the media), although we all should expect something unusual somewhere.
Third and finally, the geopolitical landscape has shifted considerably since FIFA awarded North America the Cup in 2018 in Moscow. We’ve stumbled through a horrific pandemic, and few can dispute that diplomatic relations between the three host countries are arguably at an all-time low. There’s also conflict raging in the Middle East and, as this column was written, gas/oil prices were bothering almost everyone.
These environmental issues may well affect fan experiences and invite civil unrest, opportunities for protest and punitive measures from various authorities. This tension, not unprecedented, leaves us hoping “sport” and the “power of sport” moves fans and industry executives past their current concerns. We also know “hope” is not a strategy.
Thankfully, fans, unlike historians, tend to look back on mega-events with rose-colored glasses. They discuss the epic upsets and heroism of the great players. They see and remember epic goals, saves, touchdowns, home runs and dunks.
In most cases, they never linger on the management obstacles, nor how each was overcome. But know this: Behind the scenes right now, there are more than a few folks with uneasy stomachs.
Rick Burton is the David B. Falk Emeritus Professor of Sport Management at Syracuse University and co-host of “The NIL Clubhouse” podcast. Norm O’Reilly is the dean of the University of New England’s College of Business and partner with the T1 Agency. They are co-authors of numerous sports business books including “Business the NHL Way” (UTP/Aevo) and “The Rise of Major League Soccer” (Lyons Press).
