KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For more than a decade, one of the most influential figures behind Kansas City’s World Cup push has worked largely behind the scenes.
Now, in an exclusive conversation you’ll see only on FOX4, Sporting Kansas City owner Cliff Illig is sharing the vision, pressure and moments that helped bring the world’s biggest sporting event to the Midwest.
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The interview is part two of FOX4’s “World Cup Owners Series,” where we sit down with the leaders responsible for bringing the global game to Kansas City.
The conversation began with how Kansas City’s World Cup dream became reality.
“Enough of the pieces had come together that we felt like we really had a shot…and that we would have the opportunity to not only make a bid but actually represent the middle of the country,” Illig said.
FOX4 asked Illig whether there was ever a moment he thought Kansas City might not be selected as a host city.
“Until that day down at Power and Light – where the host cities bids were actually announced and I was there with Clark Hunt and a number of other people for that and we were just incredibly surprised,” Illig said.
For Illig, the moment Kansas City officially secured its place on the world stage validated years of work.
“We had no idea – it was that moment that really brought it all together,” Illig explained. “It was a moment of joy, it was a moment of recognizing that all that hard work actually paid off.”
That work stretched across more than a decade and involved hundreds of millions of dollars invested into soccer across the region.
We asked how much Kansas City’s soccer infrastructure factored into the successful bid.
“I think it was huge,” Illig said. “We’ve spent somewhere around – all of us in Kansas City have spent somewhere around 650/700 million dollars over the last 15 to 18 years on soccer infrastructure. We made that a big part in the way that we presented Kansas City for the bid. It’s a big part of our claim to the label of soccer capital of America…”
That infrastructure is now becoming part of the World Cup experience itself.
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Sporting Kansas City is transforming its training facility into Argentina’s base camp, while Children’s Mercy Park will host visiting World Cup teams for practices during the tournament.
For Illig he never envisioned those facilities one day hosting the reigning world champions.
“No – I can honestly say we did not go that far with our vision,” Illig said. “But at the same time we’ve always believed what we want to do needs to be world class.”
Illig believes Kansas City’s successful bid ultimately came down to more than facilities and financial investment.
“During one of the visits FIFA made here, there was a press conference and one of the press media people asked does Kansas City – a little city have any chance at this?” Illig recalled. “And the guy who was running the evaluation for FIFA said it’s really not about the size of the city – it’s about the size of the heart of the city.”
As questions continue surrounding hotel bookings, flights and whether Kansas City will meet lofty tourism expectations, Illig remains confident the event will deliver.
“We’re going to see a significant return on the event – even if we don’t hit a 600 or 650 thousand visitor number,” he said. “I think all games here will be sold out.”
When asked directly whether the World Cup would be considered a success in Kansas City, Illig gave a firm answer.
“It will be a successful event,” he said.
The conversation also turned toward one possibility that has soccer fans around the globe dreaming of a potential quarterfinal showdown between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi at Arrowhead Stadium.
“You put all this work in to getting the World Cup here and you said you’re going to every game?” we asked.
“Yeah I’m going to every game…” Illig responded.
Then we really shifted to the possibility of this once-in-a-generation matchup.
“Well, if the bracket works out, Portugal and Argentina could play in the Quarterfinal here in Kansas City,” Illig explained.
“Both Ronaldo and Messi – this will be their fifth World Cup for both of them…and so there’s a chance this’ll be their last World Cup. They could be on the field together and I would say on a global basis that may be a game that drives more broadcast interest than the final.”
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As Kansas City prepares to welcome the world, Illig said what matters most to him isn’t just attendance numbers or global headlines, it’s how the region feels when it’s all over.
“I’m wanting this to project a very strong sense of pride of who we are in the Midwest, how we do things and that we have every right and opportunity to be a global destination,” Illig said. “I’m very hopeful that the pride index for people in this region goes up fairly significantly as a result of the World Cup being here.”
Many are keeping their fingers crossed that we get that epic quarterfinal match – what a day that would be here in Kansas City.
Next up, we hear from the Chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs, Clark Hunt.
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