Four football matches can change the history of a city. Under that premise, the mayor of Monterrey, Adrián de la Garza, lists what has been done to host the 2026 Football World Cup and the two million tourists expected to visit the capital of Nuevo León during the event. It starts with a security strategy to reduce violence levels; a bus service called Regio Ruta, to compensate for the unfinished Metro project; urban improvement works in tourist corridors and areas such as Barrio Antiguo and the Independencia neighborhood —famous for being the “barrio bravo” of Monterrey—, and a program of activities parallel to the matches. Without modesty, he boasts that he did prepare for this event, and he did so since June 2024, when it was confirmed that he had won the election that made him, for the third time, the municipal president of Monterrey.
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De la Garza is not from Morena, the party that governs at the federal level; nor from Movimiento Ciudadano, the group to which the state governor, Samuel García, belongs. He is a PRI member, and Monterrey is the nerve center of a metropolis where eight other municipalities with diverse governments converge. This political geography has determined that the BBVA Stadium, where three group stage matches and one round of 16 match will be played, is located in the municipality of Guadalupe —governed by MC—, and that a good part of the hotels, restaurants, bars, cultural centers, and tourist attractions are located in Monterrey. All this has made FIFA the coordinating axis of a mandatory coordination between politicians from rival parties who must guarantee services, transport, mobility, communications, logistics, and, above all, security.
The World Cup in Monterrey also fuels the political game. Adrián de la Garza is the opposition pre-candidate for the governorship of Nuevo León in 2027 and, at the same time, was the one who defeated Mariana Rodríguez, the wife of Governor Samuel García and a powerful influencer who wanted to leverage her social media capital to govern the capital and support the MC political project in the state, in the 2024 elections. In turn, De la Garza lost the 2021 gubernatorial elections to Samuel García, who is now in the eye of the storm due to corruption accusations against him. The mayor of Monterrey does not rule out running for the state again in June 2027, but he states that today he prefers to focus on making sure the World Cup leaves Monterrey with much more than just four football matches.
Question. How is Monterrey preparing for the World Cup?
Answer. We are not preparing, we are prepared. We made a strategic plan; since the transition, we were already planning and took on the task that everything necessary for the World Cup remains as a legacy for the people of Monterrey. That was our main projection. Work was done on security, urban image improvement, mobility, and infrastructure.
Q. What will happen on each of the days when there is a game in Monterrey?
A. There is an activation from the first day of the World Cup in the basement of the municipal palace, in Plaza Zaragoza, where people can gather, watch the game, listen to live music; not only to celebrate the games but also to showcase a bit of Monterrey’s culture. We connect Plaza Zaragoza with Barrio Antiguo, which is almost the heart of the city, a tourist place with cultural and gastronomic offerings. And we have a very emblematic neighborhood, which is the Independencia neighborhood, parallel to one of the busiest avenues, and what we did was renew the urban image. Visitors will see it as a magical Mexican village nestled in a modern city. We have painted the facades of almost 100% of the houses, renewed public lighting, and sports spaces.
Q. Regarding security, what is Monterrey’s responsibility and what is the state government’s?
A. There is coordination with the state, the federation, and the municipalities. In fact, there is a table we started in October 2024, right after we took office; the operation is called Monterrey Seguro and this has allowed a considerable reduction in crime rates. Security in Monterrey has been constantly improving and for the World Cup, we must continue this coordination to guarantee the safety, peace, and tranquility of the people who live in the city and those who visit us. We made a strategy called ESCUDO, based on intelligence, installation of cameras, information sources; training and education of police officers, salary increases, career plans, hiring and training more personnel, and technological tools.
Q. What can Monterrey gain from the World Cup?
A. The World Cup should be something more important for Monterrey than just the football games. It is very important, of course, to go watch the games, to be in the World Cup atmosphere, but it is a great opportunity to be a global showcase, to let people know what Mexico is made of, that you can come to vacation, but also come to invest, to make commercial, industrial, and service relationships. We will take advantage, for example, that Japan is coming to play in Monterrey, and also Korea, which are economic and technological powers.
Q. So, do you believe these four matches can really change Monterrey’s history?
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A. They will change its history! We will do things so that it gives continuity to a good history for Monterrey. Nuevo León has its ups and downs, but we will make sure there is good continuity in the story.
Q. The question is unavoidable in the political context: how is the coordination with Governor Samuel García going?
A. We have coordination for the World Cup issue, especially with a coordinator, which is FIFA, which has an important representation in Monterrey. For the World Cup, Monterrey made its commitments, which are already fulfilled, we are ready. We have had constant meetings attended by the governor, the mayors, and the federation. Of course, it is not unnoticed that there are political and social issues in the state of Nuevo León, but this does not mean that at least in the FIFA matter, there is no commitment, coordination, and delivery of commitments. It is known that the state has had some problems. For example, it did not deliver the Metro, or it will not deliver it, and it was very important for mobility. It is a commitment it could not fulfill with the World Cup and with the citizens of Nuevo León. But that is why we are making the Regio Ruta, to fulfill that commitment.
Q. What is the Regio Ruta?
A. In Nuevo León, public transport is the responsibility of the state, not the municipalities. However, we saw that mobility was a challenge because the state has left much to be desired in public transport. The truth is that there is no good mobility in Monterrey due to the lack of efficient public transport, and we took on the task of making an urban route that serves to transport people from the north to the south, passing through the east, west, and center of the city. Free, efficient transport, with air conditioning, WiFi, and security.
Q. How is your relationship with Samuel García regarding the World Cup?
A. Institutionally: he is governor and I am mayor, and of course, we have an institutional and responsible relationship; well, at least I can speak for myself. Regarding security, for example, we started working in October 2024 and the results are there, crime rates have dropped considerably. Sometimes we cause discomfort with statements because the state does not pay the contributions that correspond to the municipality, and we have publicly pointed that out, but regardless of that, the relationship is institutional.
Q. So politics will not affect the World Cup?
A. In the case of Monterrey, we have a very clear plan, we will make the World Cup a success in the city and we will make world powers look at us beyond football. We have to put aside any political differences.
Q. And after the World Cup, everything will be politics heading towards 2027, right?
A. The political contest will heat up, but I am very clear that I have a responsibility to Monterrey and I will not get distracted now, and that indirectly also helps. If we work to solve people’s problems, not with improvisations, but on the contrary: I told people before starting the administration what we were going to do and everything we committed to we have already executed. That characterizes us and that is why people have trusted me on three occasions (2015, 2018, and 2024). We will see what happens in ’27; if we continue with the same brand of seriousness, direction, and certainty, then I could be a candidate for governor and governor of the state. But today I will not get distracted.
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