The FIFA World Cup 2026 Atlanta Host Committee held its second virtual media panel of the year on Feb. 12, featuring local officials involved with transportation logistics.
Guests included Rhonda Allen, Deputy General Manager of MARTA; Georgia O’Donoghue, Vice President of Operations at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and COO of the Atlanta World Cup Host Committee; William Pate, President and CEO of the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau; and Ricky Smith, General Manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Chris Raimondi of AMB Sports Entertainment moderated the discussion.
This month’s event focused on mobility and visitor experience, particularly concerning airport operations, public transit, and how fans will arrive and move through the city.
“Atlanta has a storied history of hosting these major sporting events and doing it well,” O’Donoghue said. “Our public-private partnership, as well as our connectivity … has really set us up for success this summer, and we are ready to welcome the world.”
Pate said Hartsfield-Jackson was ready to receive soccer fans from around the world.
“Eighty percent of the U.S. population can get to Atlanta in two hours, so we’re very accessible,” he said. “We’re also number two in the country in international [nonstop flights].”
Smith detailed Hartsfield-Jackson’s capacity for an influx of travelers and accommodating guests so they can have a safe experience. “We see the airport as kind of the living room for the city,” he said.
Smith also said that Hartsfield-Jackson is currently expanding Concourse D to assist with the extra travelers.
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Pate listed MARTA’s advantages, especially when it comes to traveling from the airport. “You take that train in the airport, and it takes you 20 minutes to be right in the middle of our convention district,” he said.
Allen highlighted MARTA’s new “Better Breeze” tap-to-pay system and stressed the push to encourage visitors to take the MARTA to attractions around the city, such as the High Museum of Art or Buckhead’s shopping district.
“Whether you’re coming in from the airport and going to Doraville to a watch party or you’re going to Decatur or West End, we invite you to try MARTA, and we look forward to having you with us,” Allen said.
Unlike with previously hosted sporting events, such as the Super Bowl or the 1996 Olympics, travelers will have the opportunity to enjoy Atlanta and the state as a whole during non-match days, whether it be exploring neighborhoods or driving to Savannah.
“We’re very used to hosting international visitors and large domestic crowds for our championships,” Pate said. “And so we will definitely be ultra prepared as everybody comes and we’re going to ensure they have a great experience while we’re here.”
“We’re 123 days out from our first match, and I will tell you we are right where we should be in our planning,” O’Donoghue said.
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Atlanta will host eight World Cup matches this summer, including a semi-final on July 15. In December, the world learned Atlanta would host teams including Cabo Verde, Haiti, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Spain. Since then, O’Donoghue added, the match dates and times have been revealed.
“Those match times allowed us to push forward a lot of our operational planning, specifically around our footprint and venue operations, our mobility and transportation, fan festival, safety and security, and many more,” she said.
The committee will submit its final transport and mobility plan at the end of February.