Arlington is nearing its finish line for the World Cup. Eight games have been played in the American Dream City so far, with only a semifinal match to come. The festivities have brought thousands of adoring soccer fans to the city.
However, some local businesses haven’t seen their expected economic influx yet.
Michael Jacobson, president and CEO of the Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce, said that the impact from World Cup traffic has been felt tremendously at businesses serving up “quintessential Texas” in the city, but it hasn’t been as significant for others.
“People are looking for those experiences,” Jacobson said. “They’re visitors from around the world, they’ve heard about Texas their whole life and want barbecue, or maybe a great steak, and to experience things like cattle drives and things that they see as that whole Texas experience. So, if you’re a business that is not providing those things, you probably haven’t seen much.”
Some owners on Front Street said their businesses have seen normal or even reduced foot traffic to their stores during the tournament.
Beronica Jimenez opened her store, Mi Tesoro Thrift, in the downtown Urban Union roughly seven months ago.
Jimenez said her store, which sells personally sourced thrifted clothing, hasn’t seen an increase in customers, but that her regulars have been consistent in showing up.
“It hasn’t been that bad, but I was just expecting more from it,” Jimenez said.
Another nearby shop owner said her new coffee shop didn’t see much traffic, and it wasn’t from a lack of trying.
Alma Sardas officially opened her romantic bookstore cafe, Daydream Bookstore Cafe, in the Urban Union in April. Though her shop may not have a prototypical crossover with the culture of soccer, she pushed for football fanatics’ business through promotions.
One of those deals included a 15% discount for those who went to the shop wearing a soccer jersey. Sardas said it didn’t work.
“We tried to do as best as we could, but nobody cared,” Sardas said.
One common theme among business owners who haven’t seen an uptick in sales was that fans have stayed relatively isolated in the Entertainment District or in other cities.
Goldilinks Jewelry owner Alicia Zachary said she felt fans were more focused on hitting the more well-known attractions in the area, rather than exploring small businesses.
“Our experience has been that (the World Cup) hasn’t been that impactful,” Zachary said. “I feel like maybe they’re doing bigger ticket things like going to Six Flags, Netflix House or Meow Wolf, not necessarily visiting the more local neighborhoods. I think of Front Street as where the locals hang out.”
However, some of those locals aren’t showing up, Zachary said.
“I don’t have the locals really coming in as much either, because they think that there are tons of tourists here,” Zachary said.
Zachary is another business owner who put extra work and promotion behind the soccer spectacle.
Ahead of the matches, she and her daughter designed a line of earrings matching the colors of national teams for fans. But, they didn’t sell.
“It was just — it was a miss,” she said.
The World Cup advantage
Some businesses just minutes from Front Street have seen a massive uptick in business during the matches.
J. Gilligan’s Bar & Grill owner Randy Ford said that his business has seen a four or five times increase in sales on match days so far.
While tourists outside of the United States have gone to the longstanding bar and restaurant during the tournament, Ford said a large surprise has been just how many locals have come out to watch the U.S. and Mexico games on television.
“This last Sunday (in Mexico’s last match), we did four times more than we normally do, no shuttle, nothing,” Ford said.
Another local sports bar, Grease Monkey Burger Shop, is also seeing more traffic than usual during the games, owner Greg Gardner said.
Gardner said he wasn’t sure what to expect when it came to how many tourists would show up during the matches, but his business has seen a roughly 25%-30% increase in sales on match days.
“From our standpoint, we’ve definitely seen a good bump in business on the game days, being the game days that were played here and the U.S. and Mexico games on TV,” Gardner said.
He added that a unique part of the games has been just how long the traffic has lasted throughout the day. In many of the games so far, fan groups have organized fan marches multiple hours in advance of kickoff.
“It just seemed like even though those games aren’t any longer than a football game, it seemed like it was kind of a special, unique deal,” Gardner said. “People actually came early, checked out the scene around town, walked around, went early, and then spent maybe a little bit more time down there.”
Ford said a key part of his success during the World Cup is the fact that his business has been around for so long.
“There are a lot of people that do different things and have wonderful things, but some of these (tourists) are just looking for a place to have a beverage and watch TV,” Ford said. “We’re set up for that, we’ve been set up for that for 40 years.”
He added that even though the summer is normally a slower time for businesses, the tournament presented an opportunity to combat lower revenues.
“There will never be a sporting event like this,” Ford said.
Looking to the future
Officials say the World Cup has had not only an immediate impact on the city as a whole, but has set Arlington on a course for future success with out-of-town tourists.
“There’s not only the momentary success of having (tourists) spend dollars here, but there’s an investment in the future with them, which I think will ultimately be even greater than the immediate success,” Jacobson said.
Garret Martin, who will become the president of the Downtown Arlington Management Corporation in October, said the tournament served as a major test for the revitalized downtown area.
“I think we did have some recalibration in everybody’s mind on what expectations are like,” Martin said. “Were people flooding the streets of downtown? Absolutely not. Was it similar to a Cowboys game? Yeah, in terms of people finding their way down here, and in some cases, better than other games.”
Martin added that one of the largest takeaways from the World Cup has been in figuring out how to connect businesses with the fans they want to cater to.
He used the example of K-pop group BTS’s upcoming concert in August at AT&T Stadium as a time when businesses could “create an authentic experience” that connects with fans.
“Self-organization by fans is how you draw these people, and I think that is a lesson that you can take away in the future,” Martin said.
Another large point of discussion has been bridging the area between the downtown area and the Entertainment District.
Martin said the walkability established for the World Cup between the two districts in Arlington was a large positive, and that development in the space between them will help bridge the areas.
“The Caravan Court Hotel has shown how successful that real estate can be between the two districts, and how there may have been a blind eye to it in the past, but that will no longer be the case,” he said.
Martin also pointed to newer changes, like the implementation of form-based code as a tool to connect the districts, particularly at the intersection of Collins Street and Division Street.
Form-based code moves away from traditional zoning that has certain restrictions for how a piece of land is used. Instead, the city creates a list of options, such as office, retail, multi-family and mixed use, that can be developed on the land.
“We need a moment where you’re entering downtown, and it feels like downtown, and when you’re entering the Entertainment District, it feels like the Entertainment District, because they are two different places, and that’s good,” Martin said. “They definitely need to have their own vibe and character, but they need that handshake moment, and that’s what that intersection is shaping up to be.”
Gardner, whose Grease Monkey Burger Shop sits roughly a mile from the stadium, said development and improved walkability would be welcomed by his business.
“It’s walkable, but not safely walkable yet,” Gardner said. “I think if that was developed all the way down (toward the stadium), where you could pop in places and shop and do things, it would definitely tie in.”
Chris Moss is a reporter for the Arlington Report. Contact him at chris.moss@arlingtonreport.org.
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