Large international events create an operating problem that most city systems were not designed to handle. Millions of visitors arrive within a narrow period, move among airports, transit systems, stadiums, and public gathering spaces, and depend on services delivered by agencies that often draw on separate sources of information.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is testing how well cities can close those gaps. The U.S. portion of the tournament is taking place across 11 host cities over 38 days and is expected to attract approximately 5 million visitors. Managing that volume requires more than security around stadiums. Cities must also monitor traffic, weather, emergency vehicles, infrastructure, and crowd movements across a much wider area.

Houston has built an integrated application called Atlas to create a shared view of those conditions. The platform monitors ambulances, fire trucks, police vehicles, and infrastructure, while providing selected employees across emergency management, public works, police, and fire with access to the same information.

That common view became especially important around Houston’s free FIFA Fan Festival, which attracted more than 107,000 attendees during its first week. When severe weather created safety concerns, officials could monitor forecasts and potential impacts while checking whether high-water vehicles were positioned close enough to support evacuations.

The system also helps field teams respond to problems that could interrupt basic services. Officials can track inaccessible roads, fallen trees, and damaged streetlights, then communicate with crews that can clear routes or address infrastructure issues. Police can combine data, drone imagery, and other information to better understand conditions around an incident.

Houston is drawing data from local agencies, Houston TranStar, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Waze, sensors, and other sources. AI-supported analysis then ranks expected risks, such as traffic and weather, using percentages and color-coding, giving decision-makers a faster way to identify which conditions require attention.

Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is applying similar methods to passenger and vehicle movement. The airport, which covers more than 26.9 square miles, uses GIS, sensors, and predictive modeling to manage congestion. A curbside lidar pilot maps the movement of vehicles and pedestrians outside terminal buildings, helping staff determine where to deploy personnel when traffic begins to back up.

The longer-term value lies in what happens after the tournament. Houston manages more than 200 special events each year, and Atlas was designed to support those operations too. DFW also plans to connect its lidar and camera data more closely with its broader incident-response platform.

Other host cities are using geospatial technology for the public-facing side of event management. Seattle has installed digital kiosks to support information sharing and wayfinding, while New York is using LinkNYC kiosks to show matches and provide an online GIS map for residents and visitors.

Taken together, these efforts show that GIS is moving beyond static maps and departmental applications. For cities managing large crowds, it can provide a shared picture that connects on-the-ground conditions with the people, vehicles, and resources available to respond. The World Cup provides the immediate test, but the more important result may be a stronger operating system for every major event that follows.

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