Atlanta

<p>Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is, by the most rigorous certification standards available, the most environmentally responsible professional sports venue ever built. It was the first stadium anywhere in the world to achieve both LEED Platinum certification (the US Green Building Council's highest standard for energy and resource efficiency) and TRUE Platinum certification (a near-zero-waste standard requiring at least 90% of waste to be diverted from landfill). Those dual certifications are not marketing language — they represent verifiable engineering achievements that no other stadium has matched globally.</p><p>The numbers behind the sustainability story are striking. Four thousand solar panels installed across the stadium's footprint generate enough electricity to power 10 NFL games per year. A 680,000-gallon rainwater harvesting cistern reduces the stadium's water consumption by 47%. The eight-panel retractable roof can open and close in minutes, reducing the need for artificial climate control. A 58-foot by 1,100-foot circular LED scoreboard rings the interior like a halo, delivering the largest continuous video display in North American sports.</p><p>For World Cup 2026, Atlanta hosts 8 matches including a Semifinal — placing it among the most prestigious venues in the tournament alongside Dallas. The stadium opened in 2017, replacing the Georgia Dome, and hosted Super Bowl LIII in 2019, establishing its credentials as a global mega-event venue. Its location 27 minutes from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport — the world's busiest airport by passenger volume — makes it the easiest major stadium in the entire tournament to reach from any international origin point.</p><p>Atlanta's broader cultural offer has grown considerably in recent years: Centennial Olympic Park, the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, the Georgia Aquarium (one of the world's largest), CNN Center, and a thriving food and music scene centred on Midtown and Inman Park complement the match-day experience.</p>