Miami has never shied away from the spotlight — from hosting more Super Bowls than any other city to transforming Art Basel and Formula 1 into global spectacles.
But as Mayor Francis Suarez puts it, next summer will be "seven Super Bowls" crammed into a single month. With as many as 1 million visitors expected for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Magic City is bracing for its next legacy moment. The question is whether it can keep pace with the hype.
"We're very accustomed to having large events… After the World Cup, we are gonna have the G20. So it's gonna be the largest and biggest and most significant event in the world at that time. So it's something that we are accustomed to, and we will be prepared," Suarez told Fox News Digital. "We're the best city on the planet, and we're gonna have an opportunity to showcase that."
"I think it could not come at a better time, and I think Miami will 100% be ready. It's coming in at a time of year that Miami needs the business," Breakwater Hospitality Group CEO Emi Guerra – the mind behind institutions like Regatta Grove, Pier 5 and The Wharf – told Fox News Digital. "I believe hotels will be ready to go. I believe restaurants and bars and anything that has to do with hospitality, we're ready to go."
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Miami-Dade County projects the 2026 FIFA World Cup will bring between 600,000 and 1 million visitors to the area, with an estimated $1.5 billion economic impact. Seven matches, including the third-place final, are set to take place at the Hard Rock Stadium between June 11 and July 19. The second phase of ticket sales is scheduled for the end of October.
Miami has become one of America’s fastest-growing cities in recent years. Despite challenges with congestion and housing affordability, Suarez said it’s balancing the immediate demands of hosting World Cup visitors with the long-term infrastructure needs of a rapidly expanding city.
"We have the problems of prosperity. When you're doing well, there's a lot of demand... It puts pressure on housing prices, it puts pressure on transportation, and I think it's incumbent on us to continue to be creative, to leverage opportunities that we have," Suarez said, noting city plans for 2,500 new housing units and a recently announced $880 million investment in the West Little River neighborhood providing low rent for Miami’s cops, firefighters and teachers.
"Certainly the private sector is helping with micromobility like scooters. We're also developing what's called transit-oriented ways on our transit nodes," he added. "And we're also developing neighborhoods that are what we call 15-minute walkable neighborhoods, where you can live, work and play in a very small area. So we're thinking outside of the box and trying to find ways to continue to make the city more affordable for everyday workers."
"We really rise to the occasion as a city," Guerra agreed, "and I think a lot of us that have been in the business for a while know the steps that we need to take to accommodate the mass[es] of people that do come and the demand that comes along with it."
The city leaders see this not just as another major event, but an opportunity to boost Miami’s standing on the hospitality and world stage.
"We learned a lot from Copa América… You're gonna see a Super Bowl-like security, if not more, for the World Cup," Suarez said. "We have millions of dollars of in-kind services that we're providing for the World Cup, meaning that we are ramping up both on security, on fire rescue… We're working with the World Cup committee and also with the World Cup itself on legacy projects that will stay beyond the World Cup itself… They reinvest back into the community so that there's a legacy, right? There's something that it leaves behind."
"But I think what's often missed, because it can't be studied, is what is the indirect economic benefit long-term for Miami?" the mayor expanded. "When you think about people that were thinking about going to Miami, now [they] visit Miami and decide, you know what? This is a great place to live."
"I think, really, it does give us an opportunity to put Miami on the map again in front of the world. It really allows people that see or hear about Miami that maybe haven't come, but are amazing soccer fans. They get to come into town, and they get to experience what they've seen in the movies and or on TV, or seen in the press," Guerra also noted.
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With limited stadium capacity, Suarez and Guerra stress accessibility for everyday Miamians and anticipate criticism about affordability and inclusion – but they pitch watch parties and pricing strategies as answers.
"There's 3 million people in the metropolitan area, plus whoever travels from across the world to come here… and this opportunity of having a FanFest, which is going to be almost a month long in our 'Central Park,' if you will, is gonna be a way that we connect everyday Miamians to the events," Suarez said.
"Our venues specifically are primarily cleared towards locals and residents and people that return business," Guerra said. "So even though it is out-of-towners coming in for these big weekends, we really stay true to our brand, which is to offer quality product at an affordable price at our venue specifically. And this World Cup will be no different."
Breakwater has plans to retrain and hire more staff, stock up on infrastructure like barricades and food and drink supplies and keep prices between $12 and $14 for cocktails.
"We do not charge a cover for people to come in and enjoy our facilities. You're welcome to come, and we hope everybody comes in and has a drink and a bite to eat," Guerra continued. "Just because there's a million people coming into town, we're not gonna shun our locals away. We still keep our specials intact. We still do what we do. We still welcome everybody."
Local leaders are already looking beyond the final whistle, watching for metrics and other success markers like that ensure a net-positive for the community.
"We may never see a World Cup again in my lifetime… So it really is a watershed moment. It is a generational opportunity… Now you can build a company here. Now you can scale a company. You can change the world from Miami," Suarez said. "I think our legacy will be becoming a truly great global city."
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"And I think there's going to be more announcements to be made in the future about FIFA and Miami," Mayor Suarez noted.
"This really does allow us to keep the foot on the gas and keep going," according to Guerra. "All this soccer-driven tourism, I really hope that that stays and that our residents and our locals really embrace that soccer fandom and that soccer culture, because I think Miami could use it."
