You're reading the final edition of KCUR's Soccer City '26 newsletter. Subscribe to The Early Bird to keep up with news about the Kansas City region.
Don’t tell my boss, but it’s been strange this week to not have a soccer game to watch during the workday.
With the conclusion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the crowning of a new champion, this summer of soccer is officially over. Around Kansas City, I’ve certainly noticed the sense of relief and exhaustion — like coming home from sleepaway camp.
You miss the friends you made, and can’t imagine going back to life without them; you miss the late nights and always having some activity to do and talk about. And yet, isn’t it sort of nice to have your days freed up, to have your personal space back and eat something other than junk food for once? (I’ll always remember you, Fan Festival corn dog.)
This is the last edition of our Soccer City newsletter, but soccer certainly isn’t leaving Kansas City anytime soon. In fact, we’re now back to the regular seasons for Sporting KC and the KC Current, both of which are playing games in town this next week.
So if the World Cup got you in the soccer spirit, this is the time to root for your true home teams. Plus, the tickets are actually affordable.
Much in the same way, KCUR’s journalism isn’t stopping anytime soon. That’s why I hope you subscribe to The Early Bird, our morning newsletter delivering everything you need to know about the Kansas City region.
That’s where you’ll find our continued reporting on the World Cup’s long-term economic impact, how our transportation and infrastructure is keeping up with residents’ needs, and what’s next for Kansas City. I certainly have some lingering questions.
And if you want to keep hearing about the fun events and wonderfully weird culture of Kansas City, KCUR’s Adventure! newsletter is for you. Every week, we’ll email you a new way to explore the region: must-try restaurants, local activities and festivals, places to make friends and discover hobbies. There’s so much more to do together.
Who knows — maybe we’ll see you back here in 2031, when Kansas City hosts the Women’s World Cup. Now that will be something to get excited for.
Root, root, root for the home team: Your final World Cup score updates
Second and third place ain’t bad.
Spain defeated Argentina, 1-0, in the World Cup final at New York/New Jersey Stadium on Sunday, capturing its second-ever men’s title — and becoming the first nation in history to capture back-to-back women’s and men’s trophies.
Not only did Spain spoil Lionel Messi’s hopes for a repeat championship, they completely dominated Argentina’s whole squad, who barely managed any shots on goal at all. (The oddly passive Messi lost the Golden Boot race to France’s Kylian Mbappé, who also overtook the lead for all-time World Cup scoring leader.)
For a team that mounted jaw-dropping, odds-defying comebacks in multiple knockout games, Sunday was a sad, honestly ugly showing for Argentina — resulting in one red card ejection even before extra time, and ending in Argentine players starting a brawl with Spanish players after the final whistle. Yikes.
While the silver medal landed like a lead weight for Argentina, their Kansas City co-residents England found redemption in bronze.
After falling on their faces in the semifinal, England returned to their Prairie Village base camp to lick their wounds and refocus. And they looked downright inspired in their third-place matchup against France.
The Three Lions went up 4-0 by halftime, then fought off a valiant comeback attempt by France that included two Mbappé goals. With a 6-4 final tally, the match was not only this World Cup’s highest-scoring game, but it was also England’s best finish since their 1966 championship — and immensely entertaining.
It was the kind of soccer that makes you crave more. Good thing there’s another international tournament in less than a year: The FIFA Women’s World Cup begins June 24, 2027, in Brazil.
What did international visitors think of Kansas City as a host?
During the World Cup, while KCUR’s reporters spread across the city to speak with fans, the National WWI Museum and Memorial welcomed visitors in to share their reflections on the tournament and Kansas City.
“ We came over here with a little bit of a tainted image of America because of what we see in the media back home,” Ron Zonneveld, from New Zealand, told the museum. “And sometimes that tainted image is not right. Kansas City's fantastic, actually. That's one of the biggest surprises.”
“From the airport to here, everybody's welcoming, everybody's making sure that we're comfortable,” said Amine Bayoudh from Tunisia. “If we need anything, we don't need to ask for anything.”
KCUR’s Seth Jahraus captured reactions from international visitors about their time in town.
Was hosting the World Cup worth it for small businesses?
As the smallest U.S. host city, planning for Kansas City’s matches was a significant undertaking. State and local governments spent nearly $200 million in public money on the tournament, and federal grants amounted to nearly $80 million more.
To Spokes Cafe owner Dan Walsh, whose bike-themed coffee shop has three locations across downtown and midtown Kansas City, it was all worth it. Though his sales didn’t improve much, he saw the tournament as a 30-day advertisement for Kansas City.
“I'm more interested in what this does for the next five years in terms of economic development, corporations moving here, conventions coming here,” Walsh said. “I don't think any of us thought we were going to make our fortune in the 30 days of the World Cup.”
We still don’t know the final number of tourists, or whether the overall economic impact of the World Cup on Kansas City made up for all that money spent. But small businesses say they’ve already learned some tough lessons for the future. Hear more from KCUR’s Up To Date.
One of those lessons was already clear to Dulcinea Herrera, CEO of Cafe Corazon, who leaned into her Argentinian heritage and embraced her shop’s role at the center of the party: “You almost have to give people something that they're not going to receive anywhere, like an experience.”
KCUR’s Celisa Calacal looked into what elements brought business success during the tournament.
Kansas City bars can’t stay open until 5 a.m. anymore. Could longer hours return?
With the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup came the end of Kansas City’s temporary city policy allowing select bars to stay open and sell alcohol until 5 a.m.
Although The Blue Line in the River Market traditionally operates as a hockey bar, co-owner Letty Stegall said they saw an abundance of out-of-town soccer fans during the tournament.
“We connected with a lot of customers,” Stegall said. “If we're talking about the World Cup, we have a lot of Colombians at The Blue Line — like before they played, after they played and before they left.”
Stegall is among the business owners now asking if Kansas City can extend the late-night permissions permanently. As KCUR’s Brandon Azim reports, Mayor Quinton Lucas may be open to the idea.
Kickin’ the ball around Kansas City
- Hire these students: A class at the University of Kansas journalism school was instrumental to KCUR’s coverage of the World Cup in Lawrence. You’ve absolutely read their work in this newsletter — now read about how it came together. (KCUR)
- Cheers, chaps: Team England’s technical director wrote a thank-you note to Prairie Village for its “warmth” welcoming the squad during the World Cup. (The Kansas City Star)
- Making connections: Not only did Union Station’s City of Entrepreneurs marketplace attract more than 120,000 visitors during its five-week run, but business owners say it also helped them make connections with each other. (Startland News)
- Trafficking crackdown: The FBI in Kansas City announced it arrested 19 people on state and federal charges related to child exploitation and trafficking during the tournament, and rescued multiple children. (KMBC)
- Kansas City stays winning: Need a local connection to the World Cup champions? Don’t worry — Seville, Spain, is a sister city to KC. (Mayor Quinton Lucas)
- ‘To represent all the people that live in our city’: The day after the World Cup final, hundreds of volunteers and city employees worked to restore a three-block-long mural of international flags in Kansas City’s Historic Northeast, after years of deteriorating conditions and vandalism. (KCUR)
- 838,826: That’s how many passenger trips the KC Streetcar recorded between June 11 and July 11, and more than most streetcar systems record in an entire year. July 11 also marked a one-day record of 55,973 passengers. (KC Streetcar)
Kickin’ the ball around the continent
- Market forces: The inflated ticket market set up by FIFA and resale sites for the World Cup may have helped speculation get a lot worse than ever before, causing wild price swings before matches. (KQED)
- Manicured nails, not just lawns: NPR asked photographers to document the fashion and fingertips of women soccer fans around the country during the World Cup, and talk to them about their own love of the sport. (NPR)
- A piece of home: For communities in New York City, where 60% of residents are immigrants or children of immigrants, the World Cup offered a respite from xenophobia and a chance to proudly embrace their heritage. (Gothamist)
- Embracing error: VAR wasn’t always the villain of soccer. In fact, there was a time when fans and players really wanted it. When did that change? (NPR)
- Big names, low impact: Madonna, Justin Bieber, BTS, Shakira, Burna Boy, Coldplay, the Muppets… FIFA’s very first World Cup halftime show was jam-packed with stars in an attempt to rival the Super Bowl’s opulence. And yet… (NPR)
- ‘Fake as hell’: You’ll find plenty of good writing online about the halftime show’s lack of musical coherence, and lack of energy, but critic Olivier Lafontant makes a deeper point: “There was something so sinister about FIFA pushing the idea of diversity while bending the knee to a government working to discard the real thing.” (Pitchfork)
- Wait, you’re not a Spanish player… FIFA President Gianni Infantino had to awkwardly shoo President Donald Trump off the stage after he presented the World Cup trophy to Spain during Sunday’s final. (The Washington Post)
- See you in 2031? According to a top White House official, FIFA informed President Trump the U.S. will host the 2031 Women’s World Cup, although the news isn’t official yet. The Trump administration wants more restrictive policies against transgender athletes as part of negotiations. (Politico)
- Give me some green: FIFA plans to sell souvenir patches of the World Cup final pitch from MetLife Stadium, starting at $450 and going all the way up to $3,000. But the state of New Jersey, which actually footed the bill for that pitch and has been fighting with FIFA over host costs, wants a cut of those proceeds. (Gothamist)
- Like a Costco free sample: Major League Soccer hopes that this World Cup can be as transformative as the 1994 tournament was in creating the league. Attracting top international talent is one big goal. (NPR)
