ACP meeting: World Cup will be an opportunity to show off Atlanta

The 2026 FIFA World Cup was the major topic of discussion during the March 14 meeting of the Atlanta Committee for Progress (ACP), according to people who attended the meeting.

Michael Russell, CEO of the H.J. Russell & Co. and the 2025 ACP chair, sat down after the private meeting, which was held at King & Spalding’s headquarters.

“The city wants it to have a broader impact on the whole community,” said Russell, who added top business, civic and government officials are trying to figure out “how can FIFA be impactful in a positive way throughout the city.”

Russell said it’s hard for people to comprehend what an impact the World Cup will have on Atlanta. Eight matches will be held at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, including one of the semifinal games.

“We are going to have all these people here for 35 to 40 days,” Russell said. “Just like the Super Bowl, a lot of people will come to the city but will not be going to the matches.”

Rich McKay, also an ACP board member, agreed. McKay is the CEO of the Atlanta Falcons as well as AMBSE — Arthur M. Blank Sports and Entertainment — which includes the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“It was a great ACP meeting,” McKay said. “We spent most of our time on FIFA. We are going to really spend more time and effort with it.”

McKay compared the event to when Atlanta hosted the 1996 Summer Olympic Games, using that event to attract business opportunities and international attention.

“The FIFA World Cup can be a transformational event for the city to showcase all the great attributes that we have,” McKay said. “You are going to have a lot of out-of-town visitors over a long period of time, which is a great opportunity for us. The opportunity is endless.

There’s no question it’s an opportunity for us to show off our city and our state.”

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who helps coordinate ACP quarterly meetings with its executive director Kathy Waller, had an obligation right after the March 14 gathering, so he didn’t have time to talk about what was discussed.

But Russell said the mayor, business and civic leaders are working with the Showcase Atlanta initiative, which is being co-chaired by Dickens, Arthur Blank and Carol Tomé, CEO of UPS.

Most of the attention between now and the summer of 2026 will be on logistics and marketing. Russell said that, unlike the Olympics in 1996, there would be no plans for major investment in Atlanta’s physical infrastructure since the stadium is already built.

“I certainly feel the city is focused on it and is putting the proper attention on FIFA,” Russell said. “The city is working closely with the Metro Atlanta Chamber and the Falcons.”

At the December 2024 ACP meeting, much of the focus was on MARTA and how fixing the transit agency was going to be a top priority in 2025.

Russell said MARTA was not a major focus of the March meeting, even though the mayor did tell the highly influential group of business and civic leaders that the permitting issues for the Five Points MARTA station were being addressed.