The world’s biggest sporting event has officially arrived on American shores, with soccer matches and fan festivals underway in cities across the continent.
But no one is doing the FIFA World Cup quite like Philadelphia.
Philly’s FIFA Fan Festival—one of the official watch parties that have been a staple of the tournament experience since the 2006 competition—is the biggest in the country. The weekslong event at Lemon Hill in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park features large outdoor screens, live entertainment, and charm bracelets that have gone viral. So far, the festival has welcomed a staggering 250,000+ visitors—and counting.
“Our CEO keeps calling it ‘the Coachella of Soccer,’” said Lauren Lambrugo ’91, the chief operating officer of FIFA World Cup ’26 Philadelphia. After earning a Fordham degree in political science and economics, Lambrugo has worked in public health and government, where she discovered her passion for all things operations.
Fordham Magazine caught up with her to discuss the World Cup gig, the games, and the planning behind the soccer party of a lifetime.
The Philadelphia Fan Fest is the only one hosting free programming every day for the entire length of the tournament. Why so ambitious?
I could say the Jesuit values of service to others I learned at Fordham. I mean, that’s been my whole career. But I also love challenges. I never, never shy away from a challenge. I love to learn. I just went for my MBA a few years ago. That constant learning and pushing myself is important to me, even at this stage in my career. This was something new and different. I think if I take a step back and actually think about the bigger picture, it is awe-inspiring and it’s slightly daunting. We want to make sure we have the best fans and visitors have the best experience possible.
How did you get involved with planning the World Cup in Philly?
I was recruited. I spent many years as the chief operating officer for Montgomery County, PA, so I have a love of all things operational. I met a lot of people, some of whom were very heavily involved in the World Cup from the bidding process, so I was recruited once it switched to the implementation aspect of the tournament.
The scale of an event like this is massive. What are some of the projects you’re directly working on?
Public transportation is a huge issue we work on, so we’ve been working through those challenges—making sure that folks can get to the stadium and the fan fest, and get home safely. Safety and security is a big one. I’m learning things like how many mounted police you need. Then planning a fan festival that’s 39 days and remains free to the public with a wonderful fan experience. All of those big buckets.
Are there any unique challenges, like those that we wouldn’t necessarily think of?
The stadium [in Philadelphia] is wonderful, but it was built for American football games, and the field is not quite the right size for a soccer pitch. We dealt with that last summer, removing seats from the corners. “Clean sight” is something I never thought I’d be managing—it means all brands for the Philadelphia Eagles that don’t also support FIFA have to be covered.
And the fan marches have been something to watch—that’s where I’ll end up. Watching those fan marches as they come into the stadium, it’s just going to be so interesting and so exciting. I’m so thrilled to be in the middle of it.
You’re also representing the USA not just for the tournament but for the 250th anniversary of the country. In Philadelphia no less!
No pressure!
What are you most excited about in terms of bringing the world to Philadelphia for this event?
It is the largest sporting event, just historic numbers. It’s the largest World Cup, even, with 48 teams—it’s insane, right? For me, the excitement really is about bringing these visitors and residents together and showing off how Philadelphia does fandom. How do we embrace sport, and how do we show visitors, and in particular international visitors, what Philly is all about.
Our tagline is “Welcoming the world with a Philly Phlavor.” We’re using local food trucks, we’re doing a vendor village. We’re highlighting community talent for performances—really showing and embracing everything that we all love about Philly, so that folks want to come back.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
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