The North Central Texas Council of Governments, through its role as the metropolitan planning organization for the Dallas-Fort Worth area, plans for more than 8.5 million travelers each day.
That number could reach up to 10 million a day with an influx of visitors for the FIFA World Cup, which will play nine games at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, known as Dallas Stadium for the event, between June 14 and July 24.
“Transit is the backbone of this particular plan because of the magnitude of international guests we are going to have and the propensity of transit in their home country,” said Michael Morris, director of transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
NCTCOG, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, Trinity Metro, the Texas Department of Transportation, Trinity Railway Express, and the cities of Dallas, Fort Worth, and Arlington will work to move fans.
“Any major sporting event requires months of collaboration with partners across multiple sectors, including transportation,” said Monica Paul, president of the North Texas FWC Organizing Committee.
What happened
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is working on numerous projects as part of the $12 billion DFW Forward project. That includes a new Terminal F, expansions to terminals A and C, and a renovation of the Rental Car Center.
“DFW is not the host, but we are the vessel that brings people in, shows them the North Texas hospitality for our international and national guests,” said Mohamed Charkas, executive vice president of chief infrastructure and development for DFW Airport.
Charkas said the airport hopes to debut nine new gates in Terminal C, a $3 billion project, as early as May 20.
The bottom line
Paul said the economic impact for North Texas will range between $1.5 billion and $2.1 billion, which is accounted for by the incremental tax dollars that visitors are bringing into the area from hotel tax, rental car tax and sales tax. During a speaking event in Westlake on April 21, she said there will be 100,000 visitors per day during the day games are played and more than 30,000 people daily at the FIFA Fan Festival, which will run 34 days at Fair Park.
Paul said the 1994 World Cup is still the highest-revenue-producing FIFA event ever, with $100 million in profit. Dallas hosted six games that year, including a quarterfinal.
Zooming in
Morris said the NCTCOG plan includes starting to monitor road conditions five hours before game times. There will be 125 transit vehicles in motion in the region.
The World Cup start times for games in Arlington are at various hours, which could impede traffic, Morris said.
Trinity Metro Chief Operating Officer Reed Lanham said train rides will run every 30 minutes to accommodate the expected increase in ridership. Trinity Metro will also have buses on lease at a cost of $5.54 million to transport matchgoers if the trains get full.
Last year, Trinity Metro saw an increase of 12% in ridership compared to 2024, with 872,329 passengers, according to previous reporting. Richard W. Andreski, Trinity Metro president and CEO, said a case study around the Grapevine Main Station showed sales tax revenue grew at twice the pace within walking distance to the station compared to the rest of Grapevine.
Jeff Strawn, Grapevine’s CFO, said sales tax makes up 48.5% of the fiscal year 2025-26 budget, paying for police, street maintenance and parks and recreation.
What they're saying
Caroline Mays, TxDOT senior director of Planning and Modal Programs, said work is underway along I-30 near AT&T Stadium and along SH 360 to CentrePort Station, near DFW Airport. She said an accelerated timeline includes signage, trash pickup and fixing potholes.
Paul noted that the region will host the NCAA men’s basketball Final Four in 2030 and the women’s Final Four the next year. There are also eyes on the Women’s World Cup games in 2031.
Marty Wieder, executive director of the Arlington Economic Development Corp., said there are bigger goals.
“I think it also helps us play up to Roger Goodell and the NFL,” he said of hopes of another North Texas Super Bowl bid. “But one day, somewhere down the line, we’re going to have a chance to bring the Olympics to North Texas.”
