They have to install playing surfaces that meet exacting standards. They have to change the names of the facilities. They have to shut down all other business (such as major concerts) for the duration of the World Cup.
Given the hoops through which the 11 NFL stadiums will have to jump in order to placate FIFA, it’s fair to ask whether it’s worth it.
Ben Volin of the Boston Globe recently took a look at that question. Said an NFL official from a team that won’t be hosting any of the World Cup games, “I know more than a few teams weren’t disappointed to lose the bid.”
That could be sour grapes, because those who won the right to host the matches are crowing about it.
“Can’t sleep,” Cowboys owner and G.M. Jerry Jones said recently, per Volin. “This is a great chance to associate with the worldwide love with soccer, and lets us put a little notch on our belt and share it with what soccer’s about, too. They’ll never be able to take away that we held those games in that stadium.”
Cowboys executive Stephen Jones echoed the sentiment: “We’ll be shut down all summer. But it’s worth it. I mean, this is about brand and, you know, being a part of something special.”
The Joneses wanted to host the matches badly enough to give up their suite for the matches.
“I think I’ve got to go someplace else, but that was a part of it,” Jerry Jones said. “We did a lot of things to make this work.”
The Cowboys, Patriots, Falcons, Texans, Chargers/Rams, Giants/Jets, Chiefs, Seahawks, 49ers, Dolphins, and Eagles will be hosting World Cup games in their stadiums.
The total revenue is projected, per Volin, to be roughly $11 billion. FIFA will pay rent for the stadiums, while keeping the revenue from sponsorships, tickets, suites, merchandise, concessions, and parking.
So how much will the teams get for hosting the World Cup? Per Volin, the terms “have been kept under wraps.”
Given that folks like Jones are not known for doing bad deals, they’ll surely be making more money to host the World Cup matches than they would have made in a normal summer.
Still, it’s a headache. Extra work, extra expenses, extra hassles.
Not to mention the P.R. bruise that comes from the perception/reality that NFL owners who are giving FIFA the surfaces it demands while stubbornly refusing to do the same for pro football players.
After the Chiefs finished last season 6-11 and missed the postseason for the first time since 2014, the club made several coaching changes, headlined by the return of Eric Bieniemy as offensive coordinator.
Bieniemy previously served in the same role from 2018-2022, winning a pair of Super Bowls with the club.
Now that Bieniemy is back, quarterback Patrick Mahomes told reporters on Thursday that the coach has had a tangible effect in the building.
“There’s a standard that you have to practice with, and you have to play with,” Mahomes said of Bieniemy’s return. “He’s going to hold you to that standard, no matter who you are. From the first guy to the 90th guy right now, he’s going to hold you to that standard. I think that’s something — it’s hard to replicate, I think that’s the best way to say it.
“He has brought in a lot of concepts and a lot of things that I’ve really liked that we’ve added in now. It’s good to have him back in the building and having that energy back. A lot of these guys haven’t had an EB. They understand it and honestly, I think it’s been cool. They’re really receptive of it. Even though it’s hard, there’s hard days. They know why we’re doing it. You can see the guys, and they want to be great, and they want to be better than we were last year.”
Even as Bieniemy is crafting a standard, Mahomes acknowledged some of his younger teammates haven’t seen the coach completely go off quite yet.
“I’m not going to say he’s taking it easy — he’s pushing the guys, but he holds them to a standard,” Mahomes said. “They haven’t had those days — it’s usually training camp when guys get tired, and they lose that will to finish and do all the exact right things, and that’s when EB’s going to hold you to that standard. We haven’t gotten there yet, but as long as you keep having good practices, we can prolong that as long as possible.
“I love it, man, I truly do. I think you can feel it in the meeting rooms. The way he carries himself, with the confidence that he carries himself with, it really focuses you in on what you’re learning and the little details of things. It’s been exciting to me, that first meeting had me wanting to run through a brick wall, it had me ready to go.”
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a torn ACL in December.
Perhaps surprisingly to some, Mahomes is already doing 7-on-7 work in Kansas City’s OTAs. Mahomes wants to be ready for Week 1, and there is a chance he’ll be able to do so.
“That’s always going to be the goal,” Mahomes said in a Thursday press conference. “I don’t want to miss games. I mean, as a competitor, as a football player, I want to be there. I know it’s still a long ways away. I can’t predict the future. So, all I can do is be great today and then continue to be great tomorrow. But I’ve gotten to where I’ve gotten to because of that mindset. The goal at the end — the very far end — is to be ready and to able to go out there and play with the guys Week 1 at Arrowhead. But I’ve got to take it day by day.”
Head coach Andy Reid said that the Chiefs are going to keep Mahomes out of team drills until the quarterback receives further medical clearance. But the head coach also noted how hard Mahoems has worked just to get to this point.
“I like what I’ve seen,” Reid said. “This is good for him, getting out there and throwing — it’s good rehab, continued rehab, so he keeps a feel with the receivers. He’s doing partial practice. But it’s important. It’s important to keep his timing up.
“He’s busted his tail to put himself in this position. Most guys wouldn’t be able to do this. But he’s put himself in that position. I know we’ve had good communication with the doctors, and they keep a close eye on it — what’s real and what’s not real. And then we listen to them.”
Mahomes is wearing a brace on his knee to help protect him as he’s on the field. He said that’s not entirely unfamiliar to him, because it’s something he previously wore in college.
“[I]t’s just kind of getting adjusted to it,” Mahomes said. “Obviously, I’m not running and cutting and doing all of that stuff in it yet. That’ll be another adjustment period at some point. But it’s good to get these reps now, so I can kind of speed that adjustment period along.”
But running and cutting consistently will be Mahomes’ next steps, he said.
“I’ve started that stuff,” Mahomes said. “But, until I’m able to protect myself and go out there and be there they’re going to keep me safe and not let me have the opportunity — as much as I want to be out there. But I think if I can continue to do the stuff the right way, that’s the hope, for me at least. All I can do is execute this next checkpoint of getting that cutting, being able to protect myself. … Then they’ll let me go out there and be a part of the team drills. And that’ll progress into games.”
Still, Mahomes has made enough progress that playing Week 1 doesn’t seem far-fetched. That may surprise some, but it doesn’t surprise him.
“Yeah, I mean, I wanted to play,” Mahomes said when asked if he thought he’d be this far in his rehab at this point. “I don’t want to miss games as much as possible. I know it’s not in my control. It’s in God’s control at some point. But I’m going to give myself a chance by the way I work to be the best I can be.
“And so, I’m in a good spot now compared to where some people thought [I might be]. But I thought I was going to be here. So, it’s just doing what I’m supposed to be doing every single day. And hopefully, that gives me the chance to be out there with the guys whenever we start the season.”
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid spoke to the media on Thursday for the first time since wide receiver Rashee Rice was ordered to spend 30 days in jail last week.
The jail term was part of Rice’s sentence for his involvement in a 2024 car crash and he was ordered to serve it now after violating his probation for testing positive for THC. The wideout will miss the rest of the team’s offseason program as a result of the sentence.
Rice was also suspended for six games last season following his plea deal and Reid said that the team has been in touch with the league. He also said that Rice needs to treat this moment as a learning experience for the future.
“As far as Rashee goes, we’re aware of the situation, the league’s aware of it, we’ve talked to the league, we get it,” Reid said. “As far as any further ado to that, there’s been no talk about anything further. We’re moving forward, just normal as we go here. When he gets back, we’ve got to get him caught up and doing what he needs to do. And then, make sure he gets it. It’s not an easy thing he’s going through. Life lessons are important, but we’re all given chances to learn, and so he’s in that position now.”
Reid answered a followup question about conversations with the league to say that the Chiefs “don’t know” if there will be any further discipline for the wideout.
Rice also had his knee operated on recently and Reid said they think the wideout will be ready to go when training camp gets underway this summer. They’d like to have Rice on the field the rest of the way as well, but his history makes that less than a sure thing.
The rash of 2024 burglaries targeting NFL players (including Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce) has resulted in more arrests.
Via ESPN, authorities in Argentina recently apprehended three Chilean citizens in connection with the crimes: Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, Bastian Jimenez Freraut, and Pablo Zuniga Cartes.
The men are currently in Chile, awaiting extradition to the United States.
The crime ring also is tied to the 2024 burglary at the home of Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
The burglaries allegedly included tracking the travel of athletes, along with technology that bypassed alarm systems and jammed WiFi networks. The group allegedly stole millions in cash, jewelry, and other property.
The three men arrested in Argentina are among seven who were charged in February 2025, in connection with the burglaries. Three others are awaiting trial for the Burrow burglary. Another pleaded guilty in March 2026 to interstate transportation of stolen property.
