The Soccer Tournament in Cary generates $16.2 million economic impact in 2026, officials estimate

CARY, N.C. (WNCN) — A global soccer event in Cary generated an estimated $16.2 million in direct economic impact during its fourth year in the Wake County town, officials said Thursday.

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The Soccer Tournament (TST) featured 76 teams, more than 2,000 athletes, and 159 matches during the spring 2026 event, according to a Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau estimate.

Officials said that the six-day tournament drew 57,942 attendees, with an estimated 34,488 from outside Wake County, including 23,304 overnight visitors.

“Each year, our residents get a front-row seat to a world-class soccer festival right here in Cary, while our local businesses benefit from the tens of thousands of visitors it brings,” Cary Mayor Harold Weinbrecht said in a TST news release.

The tournament — with three $1 million prizes — ran from May 27 to June 1 and touted professional clubs, former international stars, celebrity-backed teams and rising talent.

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TST, which has seven-on-seven competition, moved to Cary in 2023, with a $14.7 million economic impact by 2025, increasing by 10 percent in a year, the news release said.

The convention and visitors bureau estimated TST led to 22,385 room nights and more than $607,000 in direct local tax revenue for 2026.

“TST continues to grow every year in Cary,” The Soccer Tournament founder and CEO Jon Mugar said in the release. “We are proud of the impact the tournament has had on the community and look forward to working with Cary to make the event even bigger.”

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