Scotland's Tartan Army became the first foreign force to occupy Massachusetts since the British evacuated in 1776. And drank the Bay State dry in the process. Japanese fans showed their Texas hosts how to be the perfect guests by cleaning up after Japan's draw against the Netherlands at Jerry World. The Norwegians turned the southeast corner of Boston/Gillette Stadium into a rowing machine. Our World Cup 2026 Fan Invasion Index puts a number on which host cities are the most overwhelmed by visiting fanbases.
The 2026 World Cup began in June and RotoWire is releasing projections, game previews, lineups and more in the days leading up to each match.
Fans from Europe and elsewhere are experiencing the joys of retail establishments such as Buc-ee's, Waffle House, Chick-Fil-A and hometown Kansas City barbecue for the first time.
But not all invasions are prominent on social media. The numbers tell a different story than what you may have seen on Instagram or TikTok. Our World Cup 2026 Fan Invasion Index measures each city's World Cup schedule, the highest percentage of population in each city born in the nations participating on site, flight demand and hotel pressure.
See our round-by-round predictions for the 2026 World Cup from group stages to the final.
World Cup 2026: Fan Invasion Index Cities Ranked
An estimated 1.24M international visitors are projected in the U.S. thanks to the World Cup games here. And 40% of stadium attendance will have international roots, according to Oxford Economics.
We scored each World Cup host city from 0-100 using the four data points noted above. Here is the breakdown.
Each city is scored 0–100 across four data points:
- Match schedule (35%): Who's playing, how many matches, knockout stage presence
- Diaspora population (30%): US Census ACS foreign-born population by metro, cross-referenced to nations playing in that city
- Flight demand (20%): Sojern YoY inbound flight booking data by host city (publicly cited, June 2026)
- Hotel pressure (15%): Modeled from stadium capacity x away-fan percentage vs. known metro room inventory
Breaking Down The Fan Invasion Index
Miami tops our World Cup 2026 Fan Invasion Index with a near-perfect score of 97 out of 100. Miami stands at the crossroads of North, Central and South America. South Florida has become a new home for thousands of people from Brazil. Miami/Hard Rock Stadium serves as a home-away-from-home for Team Brazil in its game against Scotland.
New York/New Jersey, not surprisingly, comes in a close second. The Big Apple and its surrounding environs are America's original Melting Pot. Any team playing at MetLife Stadium will enjoy hearty support.
In Boston, not only did the Scots drink the Commonwealth dry, their Tartan Army marched anywhere and everywhere. And enjoyed a takeover of the bleachers at Fenway Park. The Sam Adams Boston Tap Room confirmed 4x its normal weekend consumption this past weekend when the Scots were in town.
There are an estimated 7-8 million Mexican-Americans living in Southern California. Mexico, however, plays all of its Group A matches south of the border in Mexico City or at Estadio Guadalajara.
Kansas City ranks 10th overall but scores highest among "unexpected" cities. The Argentine fans who traveled to K.C. were rewarded with a Lionel Messi Masterpiece. Soccer's resident GOAT talleied a hat-trick in Argentina's opener.
Using the official rosters for each country competing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, RotoWire.com also calculated the average age for each qualifying Men's World Cup team.
