James_May-June_2026_web - Flipbook - Page 9
s the summer of
2026 approaches, many in the
Georgia tourism industry
could not
help but
reflect on the summer of 1996. That
was when Atlanta hosted the Olympic games, perhaps the greatest
achievement in the world for a city.
Fast forward 30 years and Atlanta is a host for another international
event, the FIFA World Cup soccer
competition. “This is really much
bigger than the Olympics,” emphasizes consultant Mark Zimmerman,
a former general manager of the
Georgia World Congress Center.
The Olympics put Atlanta in
the big leagues as a host of major
international events, where it's remained in the three decades since.
“We had a lot of people who moved
to Atlanta after the Olympics from
around the world,” Zimmerman
says. “I think the same thing will
LAKE LANIER ISLANDS RESORT
happen when people come here
for the World Cup and see all the
games on television.”
It’s also no secret that Georgia’s
investment in the World Congress
Center has been a contributing factor to the success in landing major
events. He cites statistics for one
month as an example of the giant
facility’s powerful effect on Georgia. “In February 2026, the economic impact on the state of Georgia
was $152.6 million with 130,000
attendees to the World Congress
Center,” he says.
In a year, the impact is more
than $1 billion. A huge advantage
of the World Congress Center is
its direct MARTA access from the
busy Hartsfield Jackson International Airport. And it has helped
to attract new hotels downtown,
including the Signia by Hilton on
Northside Drive.
“Having a new hotel within
walking distance of the World Congress Center is fabulous and fan-
tastic,” Zimmerman says. “It’s right
there by the Center and Mercedes
Benz stadium.”
A short distance away is the
new development, Centennial
Yards, constructed in an old railroad gulch, that is becoming a
center of hotels, restaurants and
concerts. “After the trade shows
close, people like to go out nearby
and have fun,” Zimmerman notes.
“They want to go have dinner and
all that is within walking distance
from the World Congress Center.”
Success Breeds Success
Atlanta is competing to host
the 2028 Democratic National
Convention, 40 years after it hosted
the1988 convention. That conclave
was a big first step towards bringing the city into the national and
international arena of large, high
profile events.
There is also a cumulative
effect of the continuous growth
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