FIFA World Cup in Kansas City: early wins and worries episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 23, 2026 · 35 MIN

FIFA World Cup in Kansas City: early wins and worries

from SportsBeat KC · host KCUR and The Kansas City Star

Two games into the FIFA World Cup schedule in Kansas City, and we’ve seen some spectacular performances, starting with Lionel Messi’s hat trick for Argentina in the opening game. The action has been top-rate.But how about Kansas City’s overall performance as a host city? On SportsBeat KC, sports podcast of The Star and KCUR (89.3 FM), columnist Vahe Gregorian and sportswriter Pete Grathoff discuss what’s gone right and wrong over the first couple of weeks.Two more group stage games this week, starting with Netherlands vs. Tunisia on Thursday — with the Orange March fanwalk set for downtown that day — and two knockout games in July remain on Kansas City’s schedule. Is the best yet to come?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.   

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jun 23, 2026

Embed this episode

Ready to play

FIFA World Cup in Kansas City: early wins and worries

0:00 35:15

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of SportsBeat KC?

This episode is 35 minutes long.

When was this SportsBeat KC episode published?

This episode was published on June 23, 2026.

Can I download this SportsBeat KC episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!