00:00Mayor, in a few weeks, your city's going to be hosting the World Cup.
00:04What have you learned so far as mayor of a mid-sized city putting on a global event?
00:09So we're proud to be a World Cup host city.
00:11We're the smallest city in the United States with matches.
00:14We'll have six total matches, and we have four base camps,
00:17including Argentina, the reigning champions, England, the Netherlands, and Algeria.
00:22A few things that we're very excited about.
00:24First of all, we're building out a good transportation plan.
00:26We've got those plans in place for a while now,
00:28so very positive as to that.
00:30On the public safety side, we've had great coordination at the local, state, and federal level.
00:35And I think this is really a great example of bipartisanship.
00:38You have a Democratic governor in Kansas, Republican governor of Missouri,
00:42Democratic mayor of Kansas City, communities all around us,
00:45and everyone is saying we're excited about it.
00:48So I've learned a lot about how we make sure we get the infrastructure ready, the costs.
00:52And the big question now is how do we make sure this has a permanent legacy,
00:55like the 1996 Atlanta Olympics,
00:57how we make sure that people all around the world are talking about Kansas City long after.
01:02As you mentioned about the base camp,
01:05the England's national team selected Kansas City to be its base camp.
01:11How are you hosting British players and fans?
01:14Well, the first thing that we were asked by the English Football Federation related to,
01:17do we have golf nearby?
01:19So I think we have adequate golf courses for media and others.
01:24We have a good number of taverns.
01:25England has done a good setup that I think allows them to be in a more calm place than perhaps
01:30you see in some others.
01:31And so that is very exciting for us.
01:34But look, we are building out something unique for every city.
01:37It's a great opportunity for a place like Kansas City,
01:39because we don't get this abundant number of foreign travelers every day.
01:43And what we're building out is mainly listening to the teams themselves,
01:47seeing how we can build out our facilities to be as exceptional as possible.
01:50And something that's very cool about Kansas City, most people will leave you alone.
01:54Some of that is because we don't have Hollywood stars walking around all the time.
01:58At least right now, we don't have some of the entertainment pages that follow people around at airports and all
02:03of that.
02:04We think we're going to show Midwestern hospitality for everyone there.
02:08Kansas City has spent a good chunk of change to become the U.S. capital of soccer.
02:16You know, $650 million in investments.
02:19You know, how does the World Cup fuel those ambitions?
02:24So the World Cup is kind of, I mean, you never say that you're done,
02:27but I think it is a recognition of the years of effort we've put forward.
02:33It's dating back to Lamar Hunt, who was the owner of the Kansas City Chiefs,
02:37the co-founder or the founder of Major League Soccer,
02:39an investor in international soccer and domestic soccer since the 1960s.
02:44And so you've seen that, obviously, the strength of Sporting Kansas City,
02:48particularly in its early years as a leader in Major League Soccer,
02:51and now on the women's soccer side, the Kansas City Current,
02:54the first dedicated women's professional sports facility in the United States.
02:58All of that has meant that we had a good story to share with FIFA
03:01when they were looking at American markets.
03:03We have a lot of energy.
03:04We've shown fans who have a propensity for the beautiful game.
03:08And so for us, we think that this is, while an important acknowledgement,
03:11just another key step in our sports progression.
03:14Expect more investment in women's soccer.
03:16Expect more investment in professional sports
03:18outside of just the four professional American leagues.
03:21Right.
03:22And I think what you'll see long-term is more fans coming into the game as well.
03:26Kansas City is kind of any town USA,
03:28and I say that respectfully to my constituents and my neighbors.
03:32We are a place where people grew up with NFL football, Major League Baseball, and beyond,
03:36where you have seen a lot of people adopt soccer.
03:38You've seen a rising immigrant population that becomes part of that tapestry,
03:42and I think you're going to see it on hand during the games this summer.
03:45I mean, you alluded to a lot of the answers already,
03:48but I'd like for you to make the kind of direct comparison.
03:50How is, you know, European football a better answer than American football for Kansas City going forward?
03:57You know, I think there are a few reasons that European football is a better answer.
04:00First of all, when you look at the growing population in Kansas City,
04:04it comes from all around the world, but Latin America, Haiti, folks from other parts of the world,
04:09where international football is actually united everyone.
04:13So that is something that I think is great for a mayor.
04:16We're invested in more parks assets, recreation assets, relating to soccer itself.
04:20From a business perspective, it's the plan.
04:24It's the game.
04:25I mean, you might have heard there are some different plans for the Kansas City Chiefs long term is where
04:29they play.
04:29That's right.
04:30That said, Arrowhead Stadium, this great now international soccer ground.
04:33We already hosted Lionel Messi recently.
04:35We're going to have him again this summer, a number of other great teams.
04:39How do we pivot that into a real competitive space that could be the heart of U.S. soccer if
04:44you think about it long term?
04:45And so that's a little bit of the business case.
04:47And then obviously all the other business steps along the way, full hotels, cultural amenities and opportunities,
04:53making sure we're supporting our businesses.
04:55I'm excited about what comes ahead.
04:57And actually, I'm not nervous.
04:58I think Kansas City is ready.
05:00A contingency can always happen.
05:02But during this Bloomberg experience, I've talked to mayors from Cape Town, South Africa that's had a World Cup,
05:07mayors from Brazil and beyond, and I think all said that it does provide a lift long term.
05:12And so we're looking forward to that for us, too.
05:14Are residents open to that message?
05:17Residents are.
05:18I mean, I think that you always have different buckets in terms of what your residents are talking about.
05:23Sure.
05:23There will always be the bucket of residents who are against everything.
05:28My predecessor called them cave people, citizens against virtually everything.
05:32I think that, though, most people, most people, obviously international football fans are thrilled, right?
05:39Those involved in sports are thrilled.
05:40But I think a lot of other people, your lady in her 60s who is wondering in some ways what
05:45the commotion is all about,
05:47is excited to see this for Kansas City.
05:49It's excited for Kansas City small businesses to test out our public transportation and infrastructure system,
05:54for our hoteliers to be in a great position, and frankly, for people who make a little bit of money
05:59this summer.
05:59I think there is a ton of upside, and the joy of the American World Cup perhaps is compared to
06:05some other places.
06:06You are not seeing us having to build new giant stadiums.
06:09You're seeing fairly modest infrastructure investment.
06:12You are actually seeing something where we're able to lay out what works in a lot of our communities
06:16to help welcome all of our visitors around the world.
06:19Can you talk a little bit about the transit investments?
06:22As I'm sure you know, New Jersey has looked at some pretty serious upcharges for getting fans to the game,
06:29and that's on a special transit service.
06:31Is Kansas City thinking about that approach?
06:33We are absolutely not thinking about special upcharges for transit.
06:36There will be a different transit system than our regular Kansas City Area Transit Authority.
06:41That being said, the Kansas City streetcar system, fixed rail that takes you now from the downtown area of the
06:47city
06:47to other hotel districts, is free.
06:49It will continue to be free.
06:50That has been, frankly, something that's transformational in public transit in the United States.
06:54It will remain as transformational as we have our guests here.
06:58We will have special shuttle service that runs from the airport out to Arrowhead Stadium, back into the core of
07:03the city.
07:04That will be a modest price, but nothing like the totals we're seeing in the New Jersey area
07:09and certainly not the sort of thing that you're hearing other communities talk about.
07:13We realized when we got the World Cup matches, we made a promise.
07:15We made a promise not just to FIFA, but to our constituents in the world.
07:19We're going to have a city that continues to work for them each day, but also works for our guests.
07:24I want to sidestep to politics for a moment.
07:28You know, President Trump's efforts to redistrict, to push states to redistrict their congressional seats
07:34have opened the potential for you to pursue a seat.
07:38And I know that last month you said that you weren't going to pursue that.
07:42Are you hearing from residents that maybe you should?
07:45You know, look, I have people who come to me with questions as to either why I didn't take that
07:50jump
07:50or a lot of people believe that this is an incredibly important moment in the United States
07:55in terms of the changes we can make.
07:57I agree with that, too.
07:58I currently serve as the chairman of the Democratic Mayors Association nationally,
08:02leading our efforts from our biggest cities to some very small ones.
08:05I continue to be involved with the Democratic National Committee.
08:08And I think that my voice is probably stronger through 26 and 27 as a mayor, as a mayor of
08:13a World Cup city,
08:14rather than with respect, knocking doors in the towns of western Missouri.
08:19I love government.
08:20I love public service.
08:21I think this is where I can have an impact now.
08:23I wish more people did that.
08:25And, you know, I'm young for politics.
08:26I'm 41 years old.
08:28Heck, I have like 38 years until I run for president.
08:30And the same age as recent ones.
08:33You know, you have a privileged perspective as chair of the mayoral committee.
08:38As Democrats are hoping to retake both the House and the Senate,
08:42what is the message that you think the Democrats need to focus on in order to win it?
08:46I think for Democrats, the message is a simple one, right?
08:49Affordability and competent governance.
08:50What does affordability mean, though?
08:52It can't just be buzzwords.
08:53It is lowering the price of gas, looking at the Serrani conflict that, by and large,
08:58the American people do not support.
09:00It seems to be at an aimless point now.
09:02I think pulling us out of that is something the Democrats can speak to.
09:06Some check on the administration and connection with it is key.
09:09On affordability, it's not just building more housing, which we need to do,
09:13but it's also working to increase salaries.
09:15We need to make sure we're developing more jobs in the United States,
09:18something we have seen progress on in Kansas City,
09:21not just in construction, but in manufacturing and others.
09:25I think we need to continue that work, importantly,
09:27and I think Democrats are poised to do it,
09:28rather than the chaos that we're seeing from Republicans right now.
09:32On days that we're talking about lowering the price of health care,
09:35lowering the price of fueling up the gas tank,
09:37Republicans are talking about proposals to build a giant ballroom at the White House.
09:41I think that is a night and day difference.
09:43Democrats need to speak to the facts on that.
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