Mexico City airport overhaul remains unfinished before World Cup opener
Mexico City’s main airport is still a work zone, with half the $500 million overhaul unfinished days before the World Cup opener.
Can a $500 million facelift prepare an aging airport for World Cup-level demand when construction crews are still laying flooring and running drills through the terminals? At Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City, the answer is far from settled. The nearly 100-year-old airport is carrying out a rapid modernization just as the city prepares to host the World Cup opener on June 11, and the scale of the task is colliding with the reality of a facility that handles about 46 million passengers a year.
By late May, the renovation was still visibly incomplete across both terminals. Thousands of passengers were moving through construction zones marked by buzzing drills, scattered pipes and unfinished flooring, a reminder that the project is not only about cosmetic upgrades but about keeping one of Latin America’s busiest airports operational while work continues around them. Juan José Padilla, the airport’s director general, said the remodel was only about half complete after 10 months of construction, well short of earlier expectations that 70% to 80% of the work would be finished by the World Cup.
The project began in May 2025 and is reported to cost about $500 million. More than 3,000 workers are involved, and the effort is overseen by the Mexican Navy, which has framed the renovation as a fully funded push to repair years of neglect and chronic strain. Planned improvements include new facades, restrooms, baggage carousels, flooring and lighting, along with added security cameras and anti-drone systems. Some reporting also says the overhaul includes expanded aircraft slots for U.S. airlines under a bilateral agreement.
The pressure is especially intense because the airport is one of the first major gateways for international fans arriving for the tournament. Even as crews continue working, the central question remains whether the renovation can meaningfully ease long-standing operational bottlenecks before the crowds arrive. If the airport is still half finished in the final days before kickoff, Mexico City will be asking travelers to absorb the strain of a global event at a terminal that is still trying to catch up with decades of wear.
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