There is an elite group of Kansas Citians literally on the front line of managing the 2026 World Cup for fans and players here—KC2026.
Many of you know them already from their community outreach programs and briefings over the recent months, or through what they call their “playbook.”
The organization is responsible for delivering the entire host-city experience—planning, constructing and implementing all aspects of what is Kansas City’s largest sports and fan event in the region’s history. Simply put, KC2026 functions as the operational delivery organization, with the city as a partner and funder.
KC2026 was first announced in May 18, 2023, after it had secured funding from Missouri and commitments of private support from key Kansas City organizations. It involved a collaboration between the city’s professional sports teams, local and state public officials and civic leaders.
Since then, the KC2026 board of directors has been leading fundraising efforts and engaging with various stakeholders, including government entities, community organizations, sponsors and volunteers.
The KC2026 roster of board of director members, officers and staff reads like a who’s who of Kansas Citians: Mayra Aguirre, president of the Hall Family Foundation; Angie Long, the co-owner of the Kansas City Current; Jake Reid, president and CEO of Sporting KC; Joe Reardon, the president and CEO of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce; John Rizzo, executive director of the Jackson County Sports Complex, just to name a few.
One of the many notable KC2026 rockstars is Kathy Nelson, president and CEO of both Visit KC and the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation, who brought the 2023 NFL Draft to the city and is a 2020 inductee to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
The organization represents an all-hands-on-deck moment for the city, and it promises smooth and transparent player and fan functions throughout the tournament.
Lindsey Douglas, COO of KC2026, joined the organization in September, 2024. She has a background in transportation and government affairs, and a good understanding of public funding. She was deputy secretary of the Kansas Department of Transportation from 2019-2022, and later worked for Union Pacific as senior director of public affairs.
She initially was hired by KC2026 to run integrated operations before being promoted to COO. “When we learned that we get to host the World Cup in Kansas City, we knew that we really needed to do this as a region,” she told KCM. “We knew that the tournament was going to be a catalyst for our community.”
Douglas says that the board set out three primary driving factors: deliver Kansas City magic, rise on the world stage, and have a lasting legacy for the community. “We do want to do everything through that vision and do everything as a region, so that everybody’s benefiting and we’re showcasing everything that our community has to offer.”
During the matches, Douglas will be working in a joint operations center helping pull together transportation, safety and security and communications to get an overall situational awareness of everything that’s happening. “I think there will be some critical operations obviously occurring at the stadium that I’m likely to be involved in on some of the match days, but then also at Fan Fest, the pedestrian movements and the operation around Fan Fest,” she says. “Just keeping an eye on things to make sure that we have that fluidity and that people are having the experience that we intend. I’ll probably be bouncing around quite a bit during the tournament, checking on those different locations.”
