Home Field Advantage: Seizing Philadelphia’s Greatest Moments

FIFA World Cup 2026™ and America250

Philadelphia holds a unique place in the American story. It is the city where the nation's founding ideals were debated, defined, and declared-a place where history continues to inspire the future. And for those of us at Comcast, it's more than a historic place. It's home.

This year, Philadelphia is at the center of several extraordinary global moments including the 250th anniversary of American independence and FIFA World Cup 2026™. Together, they represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity to show the world, once again, what makes this city special. Through targeted investments and partnerships, Comcast has helped to support making both moments worthy of Philadelphia's place in history.

Bringing the World Cup to Philadelphia

Philadelphia will host six FIFA World Cup 2026™ matches this summer, and for soccer fans across the globe, the city will become a destination unlike any other. From the moment we began working to bring the World Cup here in 2019-when Comcast co-chaired the bid process-we knew this would be a defining chapter for our hometown.

Today, Michelle Singer, Comcast's Senior Vice President of Political Engagement, and Dan Hilferty, Comcast Spectacor Chairman & CEO, together co-chair Philadelphia Soccer 2026, the host committee responsible for planning and executing the city's World Cup experience. For years, they have worked alongside public, private, and civic partners to prepare for the scale of the tournament, supporting the planning, fundraising, and coordination necessary to welcome fans from around the world. Through their leadership, Philadelphia is expecting up to $770 million in economic impact, benefiting the region long after the final match is called.

On the broadcast side, Telemundo, which is part of the Comcast family of companies, is the exclusive Spanish-language home for the tournament and will air all 104 matches live, including a historic July 4th game right here in Philadelphia. Overall, Telemundo will deliver 700 hours of World Cup programming from June 11 through July 19, with 92 matches airing free over-the-air, the most FIFA World Cup matches ever broadcast on a U.S. network in any language. Every match will also stream on Peacock and the Telemundo app.

Earlier this year, Comcast NBCUniversal and Telemundo62, in partnership with the U.S. Soccer Federation's Soccer Forward Foundation, launched the Vamos World Cup Initiative.The initiative provided a total of $600,000 in funding to nonprofits across the U.S. that use soccer to create opportunity, build leadership and move communities forward. Here in Philadelphia, local nonprofits JT Dorsey Foundation and Safe-Hub were among the 17 organizations nationwide that received grants and was awarded during Telemundo's Tu Momento. Tu Jugada-a multi-city mobile experience tour that brought youth clinics, fan experiences, and the excitement of the world's biggest sporting event directly to Northeast Philadelphia.

Lemon Hill, one of Philadelphia's most beautiful public spaces, will serve as the site of the official FIFA Fan Festival, welcoming tens of thousands of fans who may not have match tickets but still want to enjoy a worldclass gameday experience. Comcast expanded its network to the Lemon Hill, providing new connectivity to the area to support city operations with Comcast Business services, including multi-gigabit, symmetrical Internet from America's smartest and most reliable converged network. WiFi hotspots will support attendees celebrating all the World Soccer events that will be held there. Xfinity WiFi hotspots have also been permanently installed in the park and will be available for customers, delivering an added benefit for Xfinity Mobile devices that will enjoy speeds up to 1 Gig with WiFi PowerBoost when they auto-connect to those hotspots.

Comcast has also invested in the restoration of Lemon Hill through our partnership with Philadelphia Soccer 2026 and Fairmount Park Conservancy, helping ensure the space is safe, welcoming, and ready with the support of our employee-volunteers. Our teammates have gone even further, signing on as official FIFA volunteers, dedicating eight days of personal time to help make the match-day and Fan Fest experiences exceptional for every guest.

Beyond Fan Fest, we are supporting Fairmount Park Conservancy's revitalization of FDR Park in South Philadelphia-a 348-acre transformation that will create opportunity in surrounding neighborhoods long after the final match.

And at Building 21, in partnership with the U.S. Soccer Foundation, we opened a new mini-pitch so Philadelphia kids have more safe places to play.

America 250 & Where It All Began

Two hundred and fifty years ago, Philadelphia set a new nation in motion. As a founding partner of Philadelphia250-the Philadelphia Visitor Center's initiative to commemorate this milestone-Comcast is helping this Semiquincentennial honor this legacy by delivering lasting benefits to communities, through partnerships including:

• Welcome America, the beloved 16-day citywide festival that this year coincides with the World Cup-and is sponsored by Comcast, NBC10, Telemundo 62, and NBC Sports Philadelphia-will fill neighborhoods with free events open to every resident and visitor, offering a living expression of what this anniversary truly means.

• Philadelphia250's Block Party Bonanza brings Semiquincentennial celebrations to neighborhoods across the city by supporting 250 free community block parties with themed kits, activities, and grocery gift cards.

• The Museum of the American Revolution's The Declaration's Journey, which explores the history and global impact of the Declaration of Independence through rare documents, artwork, and artifacts and shows how it influenced independence movements in more than 100 nations.

• The Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts presenting A Nation of Artists-an exhibition that brings together three collections to celebrate 250 years of American creativity across two Philadelphia institutions.

• ArtPhilly's What Now Festival, a five-week multidisciplinary showcase running May 27 to July 2, that spotlights Philadelphia's artists as interpreters of this complex and exhilarating American moment.

• The Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) production of 1776: The Musical, performed by students across the School District of Philadelphia.

• The Rosenbach Museum & Library is preserving irreplaceable artifacts that tell Philadelphia's story for generations to come.

• The Belmont Mansion serves as a historic landmark and Underground Railroad museum.

• The Philadelphia Funders Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial is providing funding to dozens of local organizations dedicated to honoring Philadelphia's role in our nation's founding and how to continue its legacy.

Over the past decade, Comcast has provided millions in cash and in-kind support to organizations celebrating America's 250th anniversary-and we look forward to continuing to support what comes for the next 250 years.

Bringing Us Together

This summer will be remarkable not because of any single event or investment, but because of what all of it represents together: a city and nation founded on the ideals that all people are created equal, opening its arms to the world through sport, art, history, and music. Our community of neighbors, volunteers, artists, students, and fans are a special part of celebrating our legacy and making this a defining moment that our city will always be proud of.

Comcast NBCUniversal is honored to be part of every chapter of that story-through broadcast, streaming connectivity, and community investments. Philadelphia has always been a place where people come together around big ideas. This year, the world is joining us. We couldn't be more ready or more grateful to call Philly home.

Dalila Wilson-Scott, EVP and Chief Impact & Inclusion Officer, Comcast Corporation and President, Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation