​USA fan Nick Paganelli celebrates after USA wins the 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 32 soccer match between USA and Bosnia and Herzegovina at the America First Field in Sandy on Wednesday, July 1, 2026.
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Tess Crowley, Deseret News
During this year’s FIFA World Cup, watch parties at Real Salt Lake’s home stadium in Sandy attracted 90,000 Utah soccer fans eager to share in the excitement of the international tournament hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada.It’s the type of experience that Steve Starks, CEO of the Larry H. Miller Company and vice chairman of Utah’s Olympic organizing committee, wants to make available throughout the state during the 2034 Winter Games.“It’s a reminder that sports bring people together. It’s a common language between cultures and nations,” Starks said of the America First Field events, describing crowds showing up in U.S. Men’s National Team kits as well as team apparel from Mexico and other countries.
Ivonne Beltran, 13, smiles after Mexico scores during the 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 32 soccer match between Mexico and Ecuador at the America First Field in Sandy on Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
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Tess Crowley, Deseret News
“Patriotism was on full display during the World Cup. But it was patriotism in a way that was uniting, that was joyful. It wasn’t patriotism in a political way that divided people,” he said. “We were all here having a shared experience.”“It’s hospitality. It’s convenience. It’s friendliness. It’s (being) bilingual. It’s all the things that Utah did so well in 2002 and we can build on that. And we can build on what the World Cup just reinforced. This is already part of Utah’s DNA.”Steve Starks, vice president of Utah’s Olympic organizing committeeJust like the World Cup, Starks said, the Olympics can unite people in powerful ways.The Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games is already focused on using the privately funded $4 billion event to bring together Utahns, going so far as dropping Salt Lake City from the name when a new logo was unveiled last year.The intent is to ensure residents up and down the state engage in the Games, not just those living near the competition sites that are all located within an hour of the Univer