The Kansas City Chiefs' connection to soccer goes back much further than the 2026 FIFA World Cup. 

Long before Kansas City welcomed the world's biggest soccer tournament, Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt was helping establish the sport in the United States.

“My dad loved spectator sports, and he was captivated by the fans and the singing and the chanting that he saw going on at the games,” Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said. “He saw the vision of what these matchups could look like in the new stadiums that were being built in the American Football League.”

According to a report by Matt McMullen of Chiefs.com, that vision eventually pushed Hunt into soccer. He co-founded the North American Soccer League in 1968.

He planned to introduce professional soccer to a wider American audience at a time when the sport was still far from mainstream in the country.

The NASL eventually folded, but its impact lasted. The league helped lay the foundation for the 1994 World Cup in the United States and for the creation of Major League Soccer two years later.

“He knew deep down that [the growth of soccer] would not have happened without the early days in the North American Soccer League,” Clark Hunt said. “I think you can easily say there was nobody more important to the development of soccer in this country.”

Hunt's vision also extended to Kansas City. He tried to bring the World Cup to the city in 1994, pitching FIFA officials on using Arrowhead Stadium as a host venue. The bid did not succeed, but the idea never completely disappeared.

More than three decades later, the Chiefs were part of the effort that finally brought the tournament to Kansas City.

Chiefs executive vice president and chief operations officer Matt Kenny said the organization had been involved in the process before North America was even awarded the 2026 World Cup. Once the bid became real, the Chiefs and local partners worked to demonstrate to FIFA that Kansas City could host the event.

“We showcased the city. We went all-in,” Kenny said.

That work eventually paid off. Kansas City was selected as one of 16 host cities and received six matches.  

The tournament also brought international supporters into the city, with fans from Argentina, England, the Netherlands, Algeria and other nations.

For the Chiefs, it was the latest step with the sport that started with Hunt's belief that soccer could find an audience in America.

The Chiefs' connection to soccer has not stopped with the work done by the organization. 

Patrick Mahomes embraces Kansas City's World Cup moment

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has also embraced Kansas City's role as a World Cup host. He used his platform to encourage local fans to take part in the tournament.

As supporters gathered across the city, Mahomes shared a promotional graphic for Kansas City's FIFA Fan Festival on his Instagram story ahead of the United States' Round of 16 matchup with Belgium.

“Show up, KC!” Mahomes wrote, as reported by Rodney Knuppel of Athlon Sports.  

Mahomes has long been one of the biggest sporting figures in the city. For Kansas City, that connection matters. The Chiefs helped build the city's reputation as a major sporting destination, while Lamar Hunt's early work helped give soccer a foothold in the United States.

Now the two stories have met at Arrowhead. What started with Hunt's idea more than 60 years ago eventually helped bring the biggest soccer tournament in the world to Kansas City.

What are your thoughts on the Chiefs' position in the USA? Let us know!

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Written by

Evince Das

Edited by

Rudra Dubey