Santa Clara committee lays out 2026 events plan linking Super Bowl and FIFA to local watch parties, festivals

Santa Clara staff presented a prioritized plan for 2026 economic development and community engagement events focused on using the Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup to drive local participation and tourism.

The committee reviewed branding already adopted by the City — the slogan “where the mission meets the moment” — and a list of prioritized event buckets that include watch parties and sports experiences, live music and performances, night markets and festivals, a stadium event program at Levi's Stadium, and a revival of the STEM Bowl. Staff also outlined place-making activations such as corridor art, a business lighting campaign, an aerial slogan/landfill display and a rotating FIFA “clock.”

The plan matters because the city expects the 2026 sports calendar to draw regional and international visitors and wants events that benefit residents and local businesses. Staff said public-facing activations should run primarily between the Super Bowl and the FIFA tournament, with smaller activations now through July and possible carryover later in the year.

Staff reported that earlier outreach and activations drew community interest: the Art & Wine festival attracted more than 35,000 attendees overall and about 580 people visited the city’s engagement booth, where a visual survey asked visitors to pick between football and soccer themes. The city also deployed the new branding at the recent Parade of Champions, where athletes including Brandi Chastain and current Earthquakes player DeJuan Jones appeared, and staff said the branding booth and scheduled athlete appearances helped generate excitement.

City-led watch parties are modeled in staff estimates on a 10,000-person, four-hour event with large screens, sound, food trucks and required licensing; staff said licensing to show FIFA matches is not guaranteed and recommended partnering with venues and organizations. Staff said the city would support a maximum of three watch parties and provide permitting, public safety coordination, infrastructure and marketing assistance if licenses and partnerships are secured.

Night markets and rotating food-crawl concepts scored strongly in committee and public surveys. Staff proposed a partner-led model for night markets that would use a currently vacant Downtown Commerce Plaza (the “900” building and adjacent parking) for vendor tents, turf, string lighting and seating; staff modeled one night-market scenario at about 50,000 attendees and said partners could apply for community grants.

The committee discussed opening Levi's Stadium for community events — ideas included a youth soccer tournament (a “youth cup”) culminating at the stadium, concerts, movie nights or drone shows — and staff said the city would lead coordination with the facility, secure public-safety permits and pursue sponsorships. Staff also proposed reviving the STEM Bowl, an event held roughly a decade earlier, to showcase local education and innovation alongside the global sports calendar.

Staff outlined place-making activations to extend impact beyond 2026: a business lighting campaign using city brand colors, corridor art celebrating Santa Clara sports legends, and an aerial slogan visibility project on or near the old landfill parcels visible from the airport approach and stadium corridors. Staff described the FIFA clock campaign as a rotating installation; Communications Manager David Knight said, “We will see it pop out for any additional community events that we have planned, and then we'll continue rotating it from there.”

Committee members and community stakeholders were asked to join event-specific steering committees to advise on programming, vendor recruitment, volunteer coordination and sponsorship outreach. Staff said these steering groups would be advisory and would help corral volunteers and business participation; meetings and breakout workshops were scheduled immediately following the presentation.

Formal committee business during the session included approval of minutes from the Sept. 22, 2025 meeting. The minutes were moved, seconded and approved unanimously.

Next steps identified by staff include forming steering committees for prioritized event buckets, initiating licensing applications for public showings, targeted sponsorship outreach to offset costs, and circulation of logo and brand use guidance to steering committee members and partners. Staff asked attendees to sign up on event cards for specific roles (marketing, vendors, sponsorships, volunteers) and said a short timeline exists for events planned between the Super Bowl and FIFA.