Greensboro plans huge LeBauer Park soccer watch party for World Cup

Downtown Greensboro’s biggest World Cup crowd may be measured less by the match than by what it does for nearby restaurants, bars and parking decks. LeBauer Park was set to host a free public watch party Friday at 6 p.m., two hours before Team USA met Paraguay at 9 p.m., and organizers said they expected thousands to show up.

The gathering was built around a 26-foot-tall projector making its debut at the park, along with the GMA/FirstPoint Screen at the Price/Bryan Performance Pavilion. Jack Gentry Jr., executive director of Downtown Parks Inc., said it would be the first event of its kind at LeBauer Park, a sign that the city is trying to turn World Cup energy into real foot traffic in the center city.

The setup was designed to be festive and practical. Organizers said the park would include food trucks, a water station, a misting station and Parks and Recreation support, all meant to keep people comfortable in June heat. Attendees were told to bring blankets, water, sun protection and fan apparel, and to leave chairs, coolers, pets, tents, alcohol, tobacco and vape products, open flames and other restricted items at home. Alcohol was allowed only if purchased on site.

The scale of the site gives Greensboro room to test that downtown strategy. LeBauer Park’s Price/Bryan Performance Place is a 17,000-square-foot lawn that can hold up to 4,000 people, making it one of the city’s largest open gathering spaces. Greensboro Downtown Parks, Inc. manages the park as part of its broader effort to activate free public space downtown, and the park itself already carries the amenities that make long events workable, including restrooms and open lawn space.

The USA- Paraguay watch party was only one part of Greensboro’s broader World Cup play. A second free public watch party was planned for Norway vs. France on June 26 at 3 p.m., with registration encouraged ahead of time.

That event carried extra local weight because Greensboro was named Norway’s Team Base Camp city in March 2026, with UNCG serving as the team’s training facility. City officials said Norway chose Greensboro for UNCG’s facilities, downtown proximity and access to Piedmont Triad International Airport, and the Greensboro Sports Foundation estimated the Norway-related tourism and fan spending would add $4.2 million to the local economy. Another estimate put the broader impact at more than $5 million, underscoring how a soccer crowd at LeBauer Park could ripple far beyond the lawn.