This summer, 2026, there are multiple major events and celebrations happening in Metro Boston and around Massachusetts, including the FIFA World Cup 2026 in June and July, Sail Boston in Mid July, and the Massachusetts 250 and Boston 250 celebrations throughout the year. This resource page is intended to help municipalities in the Metro Boston region prepare to host large numbers of visitors, and prepare for the needs they may have, or additional demands on municipal staff they may cause.
Summer 2026 Event Information
FIFA Boston World Cup 2026: https://bostonfwc26.com/
- Boston will host 7 FIFA World Cup games between June 13th and July 7th at Boston Stadium located in Foxborough, MA.
Sail Boston (Tall Ships): https://www.sailboston.com/
- From July 11 – 16 Boston’s Port will host a fleet of tall ships and military ships.
Massachusetts 250: MA250 - A History of Possibility
- Events are being hosted all across the State in 2026 to commemorate 250 years since American gained its independence.
Boston 250: Boston 250 | Boston.gov
Transportation Resources
gov - Transportation During the World Cup: information from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) on World Cup transportation options, including public transportation
MBTA World Cup Guide: information on MBTA public transportation options, including Boston Stadium Train express service to Foxborough and other summer commuter rail service changes
Boston Stadium Express: information on express bus service to Foxborough, including opportunities to charter a bus
Neponset Valley Transportation Management Association: information and resources for employers to provide flexible working/commuting arrangements during the World Cup
Emergency Management Resources
FIFA World Cup Boston 26 Capability Readiness and Development Work Group | Mass.gov: Outlines efforts to prepare infrastructure, operations, and regional capabilities for hosting matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the Boston area.
Protecting Public Safety During the World Cup | Mass.gov: Explains how authorities are coordinating security, emergency response, and public safety measures for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Massachusetts.
Massachusetts is Match-Ready for the World Cup | Mass.gov: Highlights the state’s preparedness, infrastructure, and regional coordination efforts to successfully host matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Alert Boston Sign Up: AlertBoston | Boston.gov: The City of Boston Alerts and Notifications page on Boston.gov explains how residents can sign up for the city’s AlertBoston system to receive emergency notifications, safety updates, and other local alerts via phone, text, or email.
Public Health Resources
FIFA Work Cup Public Health Response Planning Video: This video provides an overview of how the DPH is partnering with municipalities and local boards of health to support visitor safety and community health. Topics covered include: • Planning and coordination • Health system readiness • Disease surveillance and outbreak response • Environmental risks • Contingency planning • Public information and communications
Protecting Public Health During the World Cup | Mass.gov: The Protecting Public Health During the World Cup page on Mass.gov describes how the state is preparing healthcare systems, monitoring health risks, and coordinating resources to protect residents and visitors during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Learn about the Health and Medical Coordinating Coalitions | Mass.gov explains how regional coalitions of healthcare providers and public agencies collaborate to strengthen emergency preparedness and coordinated medical response across the state.
Home Page - Massachusetts Health Data Tool The Massachusetts Community Health Assessment tool allows users to explore interactive data on health outcomes, demographics, and social factors to better understand community health needs and disparities across the state, region and individual municipalities.
Celebrate Safely This Summer: Heat and Weather Safety Tips: DPH flyer on how to celebrate safely during Summer events. Recommended to share it with participants before an event and post at venue.
Extreme Heat Preparation
Massachusetts Unhealthy Heat Forecast - Stay informed with real-time heat forecasts and community resources to help you plan, prepare, and respond to unhealthy heat in Massachusetts. Sign up the MA-DPH Community Heat Alerts here.
MAPC Extreme Heat Resource Page: Extreme Heat Resources – MAPC
Extreme heat | Mass.gov: Massachusetts Department of Public Health Extreme Heat resources page includes a resourse guide, preventing and treating heat related illness factsheet, and “what should I do during an extreme heat event?” one pager. Mass DPH also provides an “unhealthy heat forecast” for municipalities across the Commonwealth throughout the summer (starting May 1st) and public health departments, clinicians, and community-based organizations can sign up for regular email alerts.
Keeping fans safe in a warming world: a growing challenge for outdoor events | NOAA Climate.gov: This is an archived article from NOAA’s Climate.gov website that shares information on things to consider when planning outdoor sporting events for athletes and fans. Things to consider include: “duty of care”/understanding responsibility to ensure safety, understanding your fans/audience, understanding your venue, implementing heat safety strategies, connecting with a meteorologist before the event, and organizing a tabletop exercise.
Heat Illness Prevention Campaign | Occupational Safety and Health Administration: OSHA provides resources and guidance on protecting workers from extreme heat and heat-related illnesses. As part of the resources, they provide a hand-out/guide: Plan and Respond to a Heat Emergency Safety in Five provides a short guide for a 5-step, 5-minute conversation that employers can have with workers on workplace safety issues. This can be helpful when preparing municipal staff who will be setting up for, staffing, and cleaning up after outdoor events.
Outdoor Event Weather Safety: Wind, Lightning & Heat Guide: Occupational Health, Safety and Environment Blog (OHSE) provide a useful guide in considering outdoor events and weather safety, including heat and how to use wet-bulb temperatures to evaluate the risks to both workers and participants.
Examples of Municipal Websites on Keeping Cool:
MAPC’s work has found that residents, community-based organizations, and institutions rely on municipal websites as trusted sources of information. Designing a standalone extreme heat page can help community members navigate local resources before, during, and after heat events.
The Elements of an Effective Municipal Heat Relief Website - This guide is designed to help municipalities design an effective extreme heat website. It is organized around six essential elements and includes local and national examples. If you’re interested in establishing or updating your own municipal heat web page, contact Public Health at [email protected]
Keeping Cool in the Heat | Boston.gov City of Boston’s Keeping Cool in the Heat Resources page provides residents and visitors with multi-lingual tip sheets on how to stay cool during extreme heat and public cooling locations including libraries, Boston Centers for Youth and Families, and splash pads.
--> Please note that if you’re interested in establishing or updating your own municipal heat preparedness web page, contact MAPC at SRon @ mapc.org
Business Support
Neponset River Regional Chamber – FIFA World Cup 26: https://www.nrrchamber.com/fifa-world-cup-info.html
The Neponset River Regional Chamber of Commerce has pulled together a collection of resources for business in relation to preparing for the FIFA World Cup 26 in Boston. Their site includes general information on the event as well as guides for businesses that would like to be involved with or prepare for the event and the visitors it will bring. This information is helpful for businesses both in and around the Neponset region.
Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce – FIFA World Cup 2026: https://bostonchamber.com/fifa/
Meet Boston – FIFA World Cup 2026 Partner Toolkit: https://www.meetboston.com/events/festivals-and-annual-events/fifa-world-cup-2026/partner-toolkit/
April 8 World Cup webinar with Meet Boston and MA Office of Travel and Tourism (link includes webinar recording and presentation slides): https://www.meetboston.com/kickoff/
Business Engagement Toolkit (links to PDF document)
FIFA Boston 26 has published a toolkit for businesses to use as they prepare for the event. This guide includes a general overview of the event, business strategies to maximize the opportunity, projected visitor and business impacts, tools for managing the impact and next steps.
Community Celebration Playbook (English) (links to PDF document)
Community Celebration Playbook (Spanish) (links to PDF document)
FIFA Boston 26 has published this playbook to provide guidance on hosting a community celebration or watch party during the world cup. There are specific requirements for when and how events or businesses are allowed to show games taking place during the world cup. It is important that businesses make sure they are getting the necessary approvals from FIFA if they are planning to show a game. This guide details the approvals process, and is available in both English and Spanish.
Boston26 Community Celebration Playbook (March 2026 Version 2): Community Celebrations Playbook, v2 (ENG)
Questions?
Gwendolyn Hellen-Sands, [email protected]