Illustration by Ruby Taylor
You’ve got your itinerary ready, your team colors packed, and you’re about to embark on your trip to the FIFA World Cup 2026™. Here’s how Atlanta is planning a seamless journey to ensure your time in the city is easy, entertaining, and exciting!
Welcome to Atlanta (Where the Flyers Fly)
Before you set foot on Georgia red clay, you’ll touch down at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest and most efficient airport, serving some 105 million passengers a year and linking more than 150 U.S. destinations and 75 global cities. FIFA World Cup 2026™ attendees will experience an updated Plane Train with additional cars shuttling passengers between concourses. You’ll also enjoy just-unveiled concessions, such as the Village Retail Market, which highlights Black entrepreneurs, and Atlanta’s popular Antico Pizza Napoletana. One-thousand works of art, 300-plus restaurants and retail boutiques (including a James Beard Award–winning eatery, One Flew South), and 12 airport lounges—including nine Delta Sky Clubs—are ready to greet you.
Catch the Train
MARTA is Atlanta’s public transit system, connecting destinations around the metro area by a network of trains and buses. Ongoing multimillion-dollar upgrades at the Airport Station and Five Points Station make it easier for you to travel safely and quickly through Atlanta. During the FIFA World Cup 2026™, extra transit ambassadors will be on hand to guide you through the stations and onto your final destination. Additional trains, buses, and mobility-equipped vehicles will be deployed to get you where you need to be.
Illustration by Ruby Taylor
Eat, Sleep, and Be Merry
A large concentration of newly opened hotels has cropped up near the stadium, such as Signia by Hilton Atlanta, Hotel Phoenix Atlanta, Origin Hotel Atlanta, and Moxy Atlanta Downtown (complete with L.A.-based breakfast hotspot, Eggslut). These, plus established hotels like the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Hilton Atlanta, and Westin Peachtree Plaza, afford 13,000 hotel rooms within walking distance of Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Explore South Downtown, a new development with a dozen locally owned retailers and restaurants (don’t miss the fried chicken at Delilah’s Everyday Soul) and Smorgasburg Atlanta, a weekly outdoor food festival. In Downtown Atlanta, satisfy your appetite with the nearly 300 dining options available, and be sure to hit up the entertainment district, including the $5 billion Centennial Yards development adjacent to Mercedes-Benz Stadium and State Farm Arena. There, you’ll find a jaw-dropping 80,000-square-foot immersive sports experience, Cosm, where you can watch FIFA World Cup 2026™ games on vibrant, wall-to-wall screens. Nearby, The Center brings new life to the former CNN Center. An interior revamp of the atrium makes an 11-concept food hall shine. There’s also a large-scale central bar and retail pop-ups that feature local small businesses. Be sure to save a few hours to explore World of Coca-Cola, the Georgia Aquarium, Chick-Fil-A College Football Hall of Fame, and the recently renovated and always impactful National Center for Civil & Human Rights, a 10-minute walk away.
Experience a Fan Festival Like No Other
The FIFA Fan Festival™ will take place at Centennial Olympic Park, transforming the public greenspace into a vibrant celebration of global soccer and Georgia’s culture. This is the gathering spot for Atlanta matches, which will be broadcast on the big screen alongside special guest appearances. Soccer podcast sensations Men in Blazers will also record live shows here. A full slate of music, Southern cuisine, and daily entertainment for all ages will keep fans busy and engaged. The park’s 22 acres, created three decades ago in honor of the 1996 Olympics, will feature daily fountain shows at the iconic Olympic Rings Plaza.
Illustration by Ruby Taylor
Get Out and Explore
Pending FIFA approval, neighborhoods across the state will celebrate soccer’s biggest tournament. Decatur WatchFest ’26 will kick off a 34-day-long party with a free, ticketed Big Boi concert June 11. On July 19, it will conclude with another free concert, this one by Decatur residents the Indigo Girls. Additional free pre- and post-match concerts will take place nightly, along with family-friendly activities and games shown on three big screens. The historic Old Fourth Ward neighborhood is hosting a three-day festival starting June 12. Don’t miss the 10,000-person viewing party, youth soccer pick-up games, live entertainment, and art and history tours. Buckhead, which hosted the official Atlanta draw in December 2025 at Buckhead Village District, will continue the fun at the Uptown development close to the Lindbergh MARTA station—on non-match days, you’ll find activities and entertainment on the field. And all over Georgia, communities will offer special experiences in celebration of the FIFA World Cup 2026™; check with local leaders about what’s planned.
Take a Seat in our Spectacular Stadium
On game day, enter the world-class Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which will be renamed Atlanta Stadium for the summer. Check out the one-of-a-kind retractable roof before enjoying fan-friendly pricing, unmatched hospitality, and premium amenities on every level. The games will be played on a fully constructed FIFA regulation field, which includes a special blue and-rye grass mix that is mowed six days a week. The field feeds into a state-of-the-art irrigation and drainage system that was installed two years ago in preparation for the tournament. Be sure to explore the largest art collection in the Southeast on display throughout the venue. You can also participate in activations around and near the stadium, including at the adjacent Home Depot Backyard.
