Pennsylvania has just shown the rest of the country what a non-host-city DMO strategy looks like for the 2026 World Cup. Governor Josh Shapiro, in partnership with Visit PA and Philadelphia Soccer 2026, announced three free, public Fan Zones in Pittsburgh, Reading, and Scranton — none of which are hosting actual matches.

The Fan Zones will run during select tournament dates and will offer large-screen broadcasts, live entertainment, interactive soccer experiences, food and beverage programming, and (in Reading) Spanish-language broadcasts to serve the local audience. The state is funding the activations as part of a broader $50 million investment from the FY 2025–26 budget to support tourism marketing, events, and infrastructure for the World Cup, NFL Draft, PGA Championship, and MLB All-Star Game — all hitting Pennsylvania in 2026.

Visit PA also rolled out a partner program called Visit PA Playmakers, designed to extend the marketing reach of the FIFA window into communities that won’t see a single match.

What this means for DMOs

Most U.S. DMOs are watching the World Cup happen to someone else. Eleven U.S. host cities will absorb the spotlight in June and July. The other 50+ major metros — and every smaller community in their drive radius — risk being economically irrelevant during the largest single tourism window in American history.

Pennsylvania’s playbook is the most coherent state-level answer we’ve seen: turn non-host cities into satellite venues. Pittsburgh isn’t hosting matches, but it can host fans. Reading and Scranton don’t have stadiums, but they have public squares, breweries, hotels, and Spanish-speaking communities tied to participating national teams.

For DMOs in non-host cities, the model is replicable. The four moves: 1) Lock in viewing partners (a public square, an arena, a brewery district) before competitor cities do, 2) Bid for state or county tourism dollars to underwrite production cost, 3) Build a multilingual hospitality package targeting the diaspora communities of competing teams, and 4) Coordinate with the closest host-city DMO so visiting fans know your destination is part of the tournament experience even if your stadium isn’t.

The opportunity isn’t just June and July of 2026. It’s the data and audience capture during a five-week window where international travelers are mobile across regions. Every email signup, hotel booking, restaurant reservation, and event RSVP captured during the World Cup is an asset DMOs can re-market against for years.

The cost of doing nothing is real. The cost of running a credible non-host activation is modest. Pennsylvania just put a price tag on it: roughly $50M total across multiple events. Smaller DMOs can scale a version of the same playbook for $50K to $500K and still come out economically ahead.

Photo by Peter Glaser on Unsplash