It was a pep rally to welcome global visitors to Fort Worth.
Cheerleaders and band members from O.D. Wyatt High School announced their arrival at the Fort Worth Central Station Friday morning with cheers and music to mark the start of a transportation plan for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“We have been talking about this. We have been planning for this. We have been preparing,” said Anette Landeros, chief strategy officer at Trinity Metro, Fort Worth’s transit agency. “I know all of you in this room are ready to make sure our city shines.”
Cheerleaders and band members from O.D. Wyatt High School perform at the Fort Worth Central Station on June 5, 2026. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Rich Andreski, president and CEO of Trinity Metro, said he was excited that the agency’s transportation plan launched on Friday, June 5 — just nine days before the first of nine World Cup matches in Arlington.
“Today, we welcome the world,” he said. “Trinity Metro has been hard at work putting together a transportation plan, and today is the day we launch. Connecting our region, connecting our city is about more than moving people; it’s about amplifying, it’s about connecting, and that’s what we’re here to do today.”
Trinity Metro is the best way to get around the Fort Worth area during the World Cup, he said. The agency has created an ambassador corps to welcome visitors who need information about the city and transit services.
“We have buses, we have trains. No need to hit that rental car counter at DFW Airport. Just go right to TEXRail, hop on board and ride downtown,” Andreski said.
Michael Morris, North Texas transportation director, talks about how people will be transported during the FIFA World Cup games, (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Michael Morris, transportation director for the North Central Texas Council of Governments, said he had been working on the regional transportation plan for years.
“We have had probably 100 meetings, going over all the details,” Morris said. “We had 150 people walk through from downtown Fort Worth and this station, and downtown Dallas (and) Victory Station, going to experience all the transit elements for us to make any final refinements.”
Morris said the city of Fort Worth, Trinity Metro and many other regional partners have worked hard to refine transportation plans since regional leaders made the pitch to FIFA World Cup officials.
“We’ve won nine events, more than any other community in North America,” he said.
Morris said there are redundancies in the transportation plan to ensure mobility and officials tested 20 different scenarios.
Trinity Metro has leased 40 charter buses and added extra trains to the Trinity Railway Express to help transport the large crowds who are expected to visit North Texas for the games. Special Cowtown Shuttles offering expanded service to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and shopping areas in Fort Worth and Arlington will also debut for the tournament.
A map with information about the new Cowtown Shuttles is on display at the Fort Worth Central Station. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
In addition, the Trinity Railway Express has been upgraded with additional cars to move people to CentrePort Station, south of DFW Airport. From there, buses will transport passengers to Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, dubbed Dallas Stadium for the duration of the games.
“We are prepared,” Morris said.
On game days, officials from various agencies will work together to handle issues that might arise, Morris said.
Minnesota’s Northstar rail service trains, shown here at the Fort Worth Central Station, are being used during the FIFA World Cup. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Morris said the Regional Transportation Council bought two passenger rail train sets to add railcars for passengers and new software to update the GoPass app for users. Trinity Railway Express cars were refurbished.
“We have new 911 capabilities with international languages in case someone has an emergency,” Morris said. “These legacy items will be for all of us to use way past FIFA.”
Next week, Morris said, RTC members will consider how to close a $40 million gap to fund the TEXRail extension into Fort Worth’s Medical District and Near Southside area.
“We’re so grateful,” Landeros replied, referring to the RTC agenda item.
Transit leaders and city officials cut three ribbons outside the Fort Worth Central Station on June 5, 2026. (Eric E. Garcia | Fort Worth Report)
Monica Paul, executive director for the Dallas Sports Commission and president of the North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee, said the transportation plan and 5,000 volunteers will aid visitors.
“This is what we need the next few weeks as we kick off this World Cup,” she said.
Mitch Whitten, president and CEO of Visit Fort Worth, said, “Thanks to all of you, Fort Worth is truly ready to say, ‘Howdy, World.’” He said Trinity Metro will help visitors enjoy their experiences as they visit Fort Worth destinations, including the Stockyards.
Mayor Pro Tem Carlos Flores said he has confidence in the Trinity Metro team to move people around the region for the games.
“It will be a lot of fun for all of us,” he said.
Disclosure: Mitch Whitten is a Fort Worth Report board member. At the Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org/2026/06/05/we-welcome-the-world-world-cup-transportation-plan-launches-with-fanfare/”>article</a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.<img src=”https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”>
<img id=”republication-tracker-tool-source” src=”https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=592104&ga4=2820184429″ style=”width:1px;height:1px;”><script> PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https://fortworthreport.org/2026/06/05/we-welcome-the-world-world-cup-transportation-plan-launches-with-fanfare/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } } </script> <script id=”parsely-cfg” src=”//cdn.parsely.com/keys/fortworthreport.org/p.js”></script>