ATLANTA — The City of Atlanta is preparing for an estimated 500,000 people expected to visit the city for the World Cup, with just 95 days to go before the international event arrives.
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With international conflicts making headlines and an international event coming to Atlanta in just over three months, officials say the focus is on making sure fans from around the world can move around the city smoothly and safely.
“The city is ready. We are excited, we’re ready to welcome the world,” one official said.
In 95 days, Atlanta will be home to a different type of football, welcoming an estimated half a million people from places ranging from Spain to Uzbekistan.
“We’re right now getting into more of the operational mode and also the fan experience mode,” said Dan Corso, President of the Atlanta Sports Council.
Thursday morning, city and state leaders went through those preparations, including repaving roads and developing transit plans for the expected crowds.
Officials with MARTA say they are also updating their payment system to accept nearly every form of payment, except cryptocurrency.
Organizers are also lining up volunteers to help direct visitors throughout the city, regardless of the language they speak.
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“We’ve got volunteers, over 3,000 volunteers ready to go. Most of them are bilingual, multilingual,” Corso said.
Security is also a major focus as the event approaches.
“The good thing is, we’ve been preparing for this process for about two years,” said Atlanta Police Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr.
Hampton said Atlanta police traveled internationally to Germany and England to study how those countries handle large soccer matches.
“One thing I will share is the use of mounted patrol. So our horses will be front and center,” Hampton said.
Atlanta police say officers will also move to 12-hour shifts during the tournament.
However, there are still questions about funding, as a federal security grant meant to help pay for the preparations has not yet been released from Washington, D.C.
“That’s something that’s happening in Washington, D.C. We’re hopeful that the funds will be released. But again, we will continue to do what we need to do,” Hampton said.
For now, every indication is that Atlanta remains on schedule for kickoff, though officials say there is still plenty of work to do in the final 95 days before the city welcomes the world.on
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