{"id":830,"date":"2025-11-01T14:14:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-01T19:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/?p=830"},"modified":"2025-12-09T11:51:22","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T17:51:22","slug":"world-cup-kansas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
With Kansas City set to host six FIFA World Cup matches in summer 2026, leaders across KU, Lawrence and Douglas County are preparing for an unprecedented influx of visitors\u2014and a rare chance to showcase Mount Oread and River City on a massive international stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thanks to his lifelong passion for soccer, Lamar Hunt, founder of the NFL\u2019s Kansas City Chiefs, in the early 1970s designed Arrowhead Stadium with field dimensions suitable for international soccer. FIFA, soccer\u2019s international governing body, rewarded that foresight by awarding Kansas City four group-stage matches (June 16, 20, 25 and 27), a round-of-32 match (July 3) and\u2014shocking the soccer world\u2014a prestigious quarterfinal (July 11).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over the tournament\u2019s six weeks, regional planners estimate 650,000 visitors will travel through the Kansas City area, filling hotels and restaurants within a 150-mile radius. Just 35 minutes distant, Lawrence is certain to feel an impact every day of the tournament; KU and city officials hope to boost that even further by hosting an international team\u2019s base camp, with training at Rock Chalk Park and hotel rooms and meals at The Oread Lawrence, directly north of KU Alumni\u2019s headquarters at the Jayhawk Welcome Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deputy Athletics Director Jason Booker, d\u201999, says Rock Chalk Park, which opened in 2014 as the home to KU soccer, softball and track and field, offers amenities attractive to international soccer clubs, including a pristine field newly resodded last summer, multiple locker rooms, training areas, coaches\u2019 offices and the track field that could fill in as a secondary practice pitch. \u201cIt may not have been built for this moment,\u201d Booker says, \u201cbut it\u2019s perfectly suited for it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Five national teams have already toured Rock Chalk Park, and reviews are glowing. \u201cThey\u2019ve been blown away,\u201d Booker says. \u201cIt\u2019s secluded, secure, and it checks all the boxes.\u201d Also impressing the visitors, Booker says, are \u2028Kansas Athletics\u2019 supplemental services\u2014medical, training, logistics, even laundry\u2014drawn from its experience supporting 16 varsity sports programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis can be a huge boost for the local economy,\u201d Booker says. \u201cYes, there\u2019ll be some inconveniences, for sure, but we\u2019re going to be part of something that everybody will remember. We\u2019re putting Kansas, and the University, on a global stage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lawrence\u2019s base-camp bid aligns with those from KC\u2019s professional soccer franchises, Sporting Kansas City and the Kansas City Current, creating the possibility that three national teams could train within a 45-minute radius. \u201cThat\u2019s incredible,\u201d Booker says. \u201cYou\u2019d have six matches next door and three international squads based in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Dec. 5 World Cup draw will determine which teams qualify and where they\u2019ll play, and Booker says he\u2019s been told to prepare for a rush of site visits for a month afterward. \u201cTeams rank their preferred camps based on FIFA standings,\u201d he says. \u201cSome want to be off the beaten path, and Lawrence offers that balance\u2014quiet but connected.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The city, county and University more than a year ago renewed the unified command structure first created in response to COVID-19. The top steering committee\u2014which includes Chancellor Doug Girod, city and county administrators, and Lawrence Chamber of Commerce leadership\u2014guides the efforts of numerous working groups, including safety and security, transportation, economic development, housing, and culture and events. KU International Affairs, led by Associate Vice Provost Megan Greene, is conducting \u201cCulture 101\u201d awareness training across the enterprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEven if we\u2019re not a base camp, we\u2019ll see significant spillover from Kansas City,\u201d says Tricia Bergman, associate vice chancellor for economic development. \u201cWhen Taylor Swift was in Kansas City, Lawrence hotels were booked full for a week. Multiply that by five\u2014that\u2019s the level of activity we expect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The local task force Lawrence 2026 is hustling to get the word out about what\u2019s to come so businesses and citizens are not caught off guard. Ruth DeWitt, director of community affairs for Explore Lawrence, notes that all businesses\u2014but especially hotels and restaurants\u2014should ensure their websites are updated. (DeWitt says that with a brief bit of online research, she found one local hotel that advertised itself as a short drive from the Schlitterbahn\u2014a Kansas City, Kansas, water park that closed in 2018.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DeWitt also urges restaurants to consider trimming their menus and begin planning for two months of high-volume sales. Explore Lawrence is ready to provide help in the logistics required to hire and train an influx of hospitality employees, including navigating legal and ethical considerations arising from the long and late shifts sure to come, and all businesses need to be ready to adapt should Lawrence host a team, for instance, from a country where eating late dinners is customary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about being welcoming and responsible hosts,\u201d Bergman says. \u201cWe want visitors to feel at home, and we want to highlight the wonderful things available in Lawrence and Douglas County.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regardless of the details, the pace\u2014and stress\u2014will be high, and officials hope Lawrencians will find extra measures of grace when facing weeks of visitors descending upon the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s one thing to get through a graduation weekend. It\u2019s another thing to do that for six weeks in a row,\u201d DeWitt says. \u201cI always hear two sorts of reactions. People are either like, \u2018I am out of here!\u2019 or it\u2019s, \u2018Put me in the mix!\u2019 It\u2019s just absolutely night and day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If Lawrence is selected as a base camp, plans call for a national team\u2019s entire entourage to stay at The Oread Lawrence, which would be fully booked for the delegation. Daily practices would take place at Rock Chalk Park, on the western edge of town, with team charter flights in and out of nearby Forbes Field in Topeka. \u201cOur proximity to everything\u2014Kansas City, the airports, KU\u2019s resources\u2014is a huge advantage,\u201d DeWitt says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For KU\u2019s Booker, who has logged four hectic years helping prepare Rock Chalk Park and the entire Kansas Athletics enterprise for site visits, the conclusion feels tantalizingly close, yet remains so far away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cKansas City will be hosting six Super Bowls next door. It\u2019s hard to grasp the magnitude of that, but I think we and all of our partners are as organized and prepared as we can be,\u201d Booker says. \u201cNow we\u2019re just ready to find out who\u2019s coming. I get asked about it five, six, seven times a week, and that\u2019s been going on for two years. I always say, \u2018We won\u2019t know until January 2026,\u2019 and now that\u2019s almost here. When you plan for something this long, you kind of just want it to get here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Booker pauses, then adds with a chuckle, \u201cBe careful of what you wish for, though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Chris Lazzarino, j\u201986, is associate editor of Crimson & Blue.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Top photo illustration by Chris Millspaugh<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":817,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,17],"tags":[46,73],"class_list":["post-830","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-university","tag-lawrence","tag-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n
Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"508\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Chris Lazzarino\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Chris Lazzarino\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Chris Lazzarino\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bace5b41e514faa0992191ef43cc840a\"},\"headline\":\"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1138,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Lawrence\",\"Sports\"],\"articleSection\":[\"News\",\"University\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/\",\"name\":\"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00\",\"description\":\"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/11\\\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg\",\"width\":900,\"height\":508},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/world-cup-kansas\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/\",\"name\":\"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"Crimson & Blue\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KU Alumni\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/07\\\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2025\\\/07\\\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png\",\"width\":1272,\"height\":239,\"caption\":\"KU Alumni\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bace5b41e514faa0992191ef43cc840a\",\"name\":\"Chris Lazzarino\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Chris Lazzarino\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/kualumni.org\\\/stories\\\/author\\\/chrislazzarino\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","description":"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup","og_description":"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.","og_url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/","og_site_name":"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","article_published_time":"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00","og_image":[{"width":900,"height":508,"url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Chris Lazzarino","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Chris Lazzarino","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/"},"author":{"name":"Chris Lazzarino","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/bace5b41e514faa0992191ef43cc840a"},"headline":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup","datePublished":"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/"},"wordCount":1138,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg","keywords":["Lawrence","Sports"],"articleSection":["News","University"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/","name":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg","datePublished":"2025-11-01T19:14:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-09T17:51:22+00:00","description":"The city hopes to make Rock Chalk Park the training base for a national team and its entourage.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Kansas.jpg","width":900,"height":508},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/world-cup-kansas\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lawrence, KU prepare for 2026 World Cup"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/","name":"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Crimson & Blue","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization","name":"KU Alumni","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png","width":1272,"height":239,"caption":"KU Alumni"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/bace5b41e514faa0992191ef43cc840a","name":"Chris Lazzarino","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf5a2e81cf741b202a63fc8594a72034eac3cedbc8cbe2c9806ff3fb6cf5d56b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Chris Lazzarino"},"url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/author\/chrislazzarino\/"}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/830","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=830"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/830\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=830"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=830"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=830"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/11\/2026-World-Cup-Lawrence.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n