North Texas Fort Worth has outlined a preliminary budget of more than $9 million for World Cup-related expenses.
The figures were shared with council members during a Tuesday work session on March 31, 2026, in an informal report.
The report estimates the city will spend $7,030,878 on police, fire, transportation and public works, emergency management, environmental services, parks and recreation and municipal courts.
Just over $5 million of that total is expected to be reimbursed through federal funding, according to the report.
“However, these are broad assumptions, and so the estimated costs are based on the early planning efforts of the departments involved,” the report states.
Last week, officials said more than $51 million in federal funding would be distributed among North Texas cities.
Sonny Saxton, Fort Worth’s emergency management and communications director, told council members the North Texas FIFA organizing committee is distributing those funds.
“I don’t have any concerns at this point. We are communicating with them almost daily,” Saxton told Mayor Mattie Parker on Tuesday. “They have not given us a specific award amount to help. But we’re going to communicate what those expenses are.”
The report also allocates an additional $2 million to Visit Fort Worth for advertising, including measuring World Cup visitation and economic impact, public relations, media engagement, community activation and supergraphics.
Those expenses are not expected to be reimbursed.
Drew Hays, executive director of the Fort Worth Sports Commission, part of Visit Fort Worth, said the funding will also help promote Fort Worth to international media.
“We want the media to come out, write about the Stockyards, write about Fort Worth, so that once people get here, they know what to see and do,” he said.
The tourism group has also launched Soccer Ambassador Training, a free online course for the public that includes information on team cultures and recognizing signs of human trafficking.
“This could be anyone,” Hays said. “Be an ambassador for the city, that way when the world comes here, they feel welcome.”
World Cup districts created
Fort Worth has also created four temporary World Cup districts to draw attention to areas expected to see high visitor traffic.
The districts are the Stockyards National Historic District, Sundance Square/Downtown District, West 7th Cultural District, and Near Southside District.
During a council meeting on Tuesday, members approved an ordinance change to relax signage rules for the event. The change allows narrowly tailored, time-limited signage flexibility from June 1 through July 27, 2026, exclusively for World Cup-related content and temporary displays, according to the report.
“Council wants to make sure that we’re on top of our game– pun intended– to make sure that we roll out the red carpet for all of the visitors coming here to Fort Worth to enjoy those things,” said Elizabeth Beck, the District 9 council member.
Three of the four districts are within her district.
“We’re working to make sure that you know through Visit Fort Worth and our website that people know where those small businesses are, where they can enjoy to shop and to eat locally,” Beck said.
