Eight years in the making, World Cup has arrived. Is Kansas City ready?

from SportsBeat KC · host KCUR and The Kansas City Star

North America was awarded the 2026 FIFA World Cup eight years ago. Four years later, Kansas City was named one of the event’s 16 host cities.Now, it’s here. The world’s biggest sporting event begins Thursday with the first game in Kansas City on June 16. Are we ready?In this week’s episode of SportsBeat KC, the sports podcast of The Star and KCUR (89.3 FM), sports columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam McDowell share their thoughts.Ticket sales, hotel prices, safety and security have been the big topics leading up to the event. How is Kansas City responding? Also, how will Team USA fare in the global tournament?And if Argentina, looking to win its second straight World Cup and fourth overall, is the Chiefs among base-camp teams training in the region, what KC sports entities do England, Netherlands and Algeria resemble?SportsBeat KC is the sports podcast of The Kansas City Star and KCUR, hosted by Blair Kerkhoff. It’s produced by Hannah Wise, Suzanne Hogan, and Gabriella Lacey, and edited by Jeff Rosen and Scott Chasen.

What this episode covers

North America was awarded the 2026 FIFA World Cup eight years ago. Four years later, Kansas City was named one of the event’s 16 host cities. Now, it’s here. The world’s biggest sporting event begins Thursday with the first game in Kansas City on June 16. Are we ready? In this week’s episode of SportsBeat KC, the sports podcast of The Star and KCUR (89.3 FM), sports columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam McDowell share their thoughts. Ticket sales, hotel prices, safety and security have been the big topics leading up to the event. How is Kansas City responding? Also, how will Team USA fare in the global tournament? And if Argentina, looking to win its second straight World Cup and fourth overall, is the Chiefs among base-camp teams training in the region, what KC sports entities do England, Netherlands and Algeria resemble? SportsBeat KC is the sports podcast of The Kansas City Star and KCUR, hosted by Blair Kerkhoff. It’s produced by Hannah Wise, Suzanne Hogan, and Gabriella Lacey, and edited by Jeff Rosen and Scott Chasen.