Dallas approves $15 million spending to serve as media hub for the 2026 FIFA World Cup
DALLAS – The Dallas City Council voted Wednesday to approve a contract that will bring the International Broadcast Center for the 2026 FIFA World Cup to the city.
An estimated 3,000-5,000 broadcasters and other staff from around the world will be based in the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in downtown Dallas.
The contract includes a $15 million commitment from the city for upgrades and renovations to the convention center to meet the technical needs of the broadcast center.
There were questions about spending millions of dollars on a building that will be demolished later this decade. Dallas is in the midst of a massive construction project to tear down and redevelop the convention center and surrounding neighborhood.
Councilmember Chad West asked Rosa Fleming, the director of the city's Convention and Event Services, about what economic return the city would see from the investment. Fleming said the part of the convention center that will host the broadcast center already has other events scheduled before it is slated to be torn down, for which the city would need to spend $8.5 million anyway. The additional money is to support the technical needs of broadcasters from around the world.
Fleming also said they anticipate the money will be recouped in fees paid to use the convention center, as well as the hotel occupancy taxes that will come from the thousands of hotel rooms that will be filled for months by broadcasters coming for the 2026 World Cup.
Fleming, alongside Dallas Sports Commission executive director Monica Paul, also said they are in discussions with FIFA to base other parts of the World Cup operations in Dallas, with announcements coming in January or February. Those include so-called base camps, which are facilities for teams to use as their base during the World Cup and hold practices. They also said a volunteer center and ticket center will likely be based in Dallas.
