Dallas’ convention center could become FIFA’s “International Broadcast Center” during the 2026 World Cup. The city may need around $6 million to get the venue ready for the tournament.
The Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center will house about 2,000 journalists covering the tournament. FIFA will have 24/7 access to most of the facility for about a month and a half while the world cup takes place, according to city officials.
Dallas is one of 11 cities across the country to host some part of the tournament. While actual matches will be played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Dallas will host the FIFA Fan Festival at Fair Park and the broadcast center.
The entire event could bring around $2 billion in economic impact to the North Texas region, according to city officials.
“All eyes are going to be on Dallas and so we want to make sure the convention center is in tip-top shape in order to take care of everybody,” District 2 Council Member Jessie Moreno said during Monday’s Ad Hoc Committee on Professional Sports Recruitment and Retention meeting.
But FIFA’s agreement with OVG360 — the firm managing the city-owned convention center — comes with some stipulations. That includes fixing a roof, taking care of a climate control issue in one of the center’s garages and making sure broadcast equipment can be brought into the venue.
As a result, the city is budgeting around $15 million to take care of those stipulations. Convention center officials said some of those costs were already anticipated — after those budgeted expenses, the city may need to spend around $6 million to take care of FIFA’s requests.
City officials also told the committee they are looking at the human rights aspect of the event. That includes mitigating issues like human and labor trafficking and considering the city’s homelessness population.
“We have a consultant who is with us from now all the way through the World Cup and working in collaboration with Houston on state level to put together what our human rights framework is,” Visit Dallas Sports Commission Executive Director Monica Paul said.
District 5 Council Member Jaime Resendez wanted to know how the city could “ensure the rhetoric around immigration in our city, particularly the recent comments around deporting undocumented individuals” aligns with FIFA’s human rights standards.
Paul said that issue would be discussed with FIFA and the other Texas host cities.
“We want to be seen as a welcoming city, a very inclusive city,” Paul said. “We want to be able to welcome all the teams that may be here…or fans that are coming here to experience the World Cup.”
Recendez’s question comes after intensified rhetoric from conservative politicians around immigration. President elect Donald Trump has promised mass deportations during his new administration.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson has said the city will help with those plans. In a recent interview with FOX, Johnson said migrants are “a strain on our resources.”
When asked if Johnson would “deport them,” he responded with this:
“Of course we support that, of course we would stand by President Trump in an effort to get rid of people in our country illegally who have violent criminal records or who commit violent criminal acts here,” Johnson told the host.
The FIFA World Cup will last 39 days, feature 104 games with 48 teams played in 16 host cities in three countries around the world.
The city council is scheduled to vote on the contract to bring the broadcast center to the convention center during its December 11 meeting.
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