A new “transportation assistance” fund would make $50 million available annually for cities hosting the Olympics and World Cup soccer matches under a bipartisan bill in Congress from Rep. Burgess Owens, R-Utah.
Owens introduced the Transportation Assistance for Olympic and World Cup Cities Act with the ranking member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash.
“As the host of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Utah knows how to welcome the world, and we’re gearing up to do it again in 2034,” Owens said, adding he’s “proud to be Utah’s top advocate” on the committee.
Utah officials are already looking toward major infrastructure projects ahead of the 2034 Winter Games, including double-tracking FrontRunner commuter rail and establishing veriports for air taxis.
Gov. Spencer Cox has said hosting the Olympics “allows us to dream big” during what he’s calling “Utah’s decade.” In 2002, federal funding helped speed up the expansion of I-15 and the TRAX light rail system.
Owens said the new bill, which tracks companion legislation in the Senate, would “give host cities across America the dependable federal partner they need while preparing to host major international sporting events like the Olympics and World Cup.”
Such support from the federal government, the Utah congressman said, “strengthens transportation planning, boosts local collaboration, and ensures the United States is ready to shine on the global stage.”
Larsen said the money will do the same for the country as a host of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with matches set for 11 U.S. locations, in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia, Seattle, and the New York City and San Francisco areas.
World-class infrastructure is needed, he said, “to ensure teams and their fans can safely travel to and from every game. That’s why we’re unlocking millions of dollars in funding for host cities — like Seattle in my home state — to improve their transportation infrastructure before the opening whistle.”
The bill, which caps the amount each “host metropolitan planning organization” could receive at $10 million, follows President Donald Trump raising the possibility in October that he might move World Cup matches as well as the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles over safety concerns.
The president, asked about friction with Boston’s Democratic mayor, told reporters then he might have to relocate soccer matches, adding that if he “thought LA was not going to be prepared properly, I would move it to another location, if I had to.”
His administration, including U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, took issue with Democratic leaders in California over their handling of protests against Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops in response to federal immigration raids.
A request for more than $3 billion in transportation improvements in LA ahead of the Olympics has apparently stalled.
Larsen played down concerns that World Cup matches could be moved, according to The Athletic.
“We do big events there all the time,” the Washington state congressman told the sports news outlet, which reported Larsen insisted Seattle is safe and bristled at what he called the president’s “empty threats.”
Earlier this year, Trump signed an executive order creating a White House task force on the 2028 Olympics with himself as its leader and included $1 billion “for security, planning, and other costs” related to the Games in his massive tax and spending cut bill.
Trump is also leading a similar task force for the World Cup, which received $625 million for security in his bill.