In June and July, hundreds of thousands of soccer fans are expected to travel to the Puget Sound region for the FIFA Men’s World Cup. Seattle is hosting six games, and fan zones are planned in cities across the state to enjoy what’s considered to be the world’s most-watched sporting event. This has prompted important questions about the impact on people experiencing homelessness, particularly in SODO, where many individuals are currently living unsheltered.
During a recent Seattle City Council briefing, the Mayor’s Office presented their plan to quickly scale shelter solutions and expand proven models, so people can stabilize and move into permanent housing. The goal is to bring 1,000 new shelter beds online this year. A driving factor isn’t just the urgency of the homelessness crisis — staff also cited the World Cup.
“It is really important that when we are hosting so many visitors to our city that we to have places for those folks to go so that is why we’re bringing emergency legislation to you all so that we can accelerate shelter expansion and make sure more people have a safe place to call home inside surrounded by the services they need to be successful,” Chief of Staff Kate Brunette Kreuzer explained to councilmembers.
What role will KCRHA play?
KCRHA serves as the region’s backbone agency for homelessness response. We focus on system design, accountability, and regional coordination. KCRHA does not directly operate shelters or housing, and we don’t manage service provider outreach contracts in Seattle. Outreach teams play a critical role in addressing homelessness since they make direct contact with unhoused people and are often the first step on the path to stability. While KCRHA won’t have a frontline role in ensuring unhoused people have a place to go during the games, we’ve provided technical assistance to support those efforts.
KCRHA will amplify partner organizations’ plans as they become available to ensure clients have the information they need to access services and care.
With the international spotlight less than three months away, Seattle, King County, and dozens of other cities and groups in the region are prioritizing the safety for all. The City is preparing safety plans across several departments, and the King County Office of Emergency Management (KCOEM) has been meeting regularly to discuss responding to a variety of large-scale emergencies during the tournament. Below is a list of organizations and agencies who are working in the regional effort to keep the World Cup games as safe as possible.
Seattle-King County World Cup Information
Local Organizing Committee – https://www.seattlefwc26.org/
City of Seattle – https://www.seattle.gov/fifa-2026
King County Office of Emergency Management – https://www.kingcounty.gov/prepare
Sound Transit – https://www.soundtransit.org/blog/platform/sound-transit-preparing-world
Chamber of Commerce – https://www.seattlechamber.com/world-cup/
