EVERETT — Get ready, Snohomish County soccer fans. The World Cup is coming next summer.
Last week, Seattle FIFA World Cup 26, a local organizing committee, selected Everett as one of nine official “Fan Zones” spread across Washington state, joining Bellingham, Bremerton, Spokane and Olympia, among others. Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia are set to host 13 matches, with Everett situated between the two cities.
Specific details about the zones were lacking in the announcement last week, as well as a “Coffee Chats” presentation hosted by Economic Alliance Snohomish County on Tuesday morning. All that’s known so far is that FIFA — the sport’s governing body for international tournaments — will consider Everett an official location in Washington for World Cup events, including large match watch-alongs, Everett’s director of economic development Dan Eernissee said during Tuesday’s presentation.
Further decisions are to be made with community input over the next year and a half before the tournament begins, Tyler Chism, the placemaking program manager at the city, said Tuesday.
“This is a catalyst opportunity for us to really grow and develop into a bona-fide ‘soccer city,’” Chism said.
The 2026 World Cup is set to be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. In an expanded tournament, 48 teams are set to take part, compared to the previous 32. FIFA announced Seattle as one of the 16 host cities in 2022.
The World Cup is the most prestigious tournament in international soccer and the world’s most-watched sporting event. About 1.5 billion people watched the 2022 World Cup final live, FIFA has said. About 750,000 people are expected to travel to Washington during the tournament and generate nearly a billion dollars in economic impact, said Dylan Ordonez, who works with Seattle FIFA World Cup 26.
“We want to make sure that today’s 8-year-olds remember this in 2046, the impact of the experience of Washington hosting the World Cup,” Ordonez said Tuesday.
A number of surveys, open houses and public forums are set to take place to guide what Everett’s “Fan Zones” will look like, Chism said. Timelines for those have yet to be announced.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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