U.S. Cities Welcome 20,000 World Cup Fans, Turning 36 Base Camps Into Cultural Exchanges
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 22
U.S. Cities Welcome 20,000 World Cup Fans, Turning 36 Base Camps Into Cultural Exchanges
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 22
Summary
Greensboro’s embrace of Norway has become a template for the World Cup’s U.S. base-camp boom, with more than 20,000 ticket requests for one open practice and local bars, homes and hotels draped in Norwegian colors.
More than three dozen U.S. cities are hosting teams the tournament dispersed nationwide, from Chattanooga housing Spain for a month to Lawrence rallying around Algeria and Spokane celebrating sightings of Egypt’s Mo Salah.
Teams often chose smaller, lower-key cities themselves—White Sulfur Springs has fewer than 3,000 residents, Chattanooga under 200,000—giving fans unusually close access through airport welcomes, hotel stakeouts and public practices.
The hospitality carries extra weight as the first U.S.-hosted World Cup in more than 30 years unfolds amid immigration and foreign-policy tensions, with residents and visitors casting the event as a people-to-people reset of America’s image.