When Alison Grove talks about soccer, she doesn’t talk about which team she roots for. She doesn’t talk about fandom or the excitement of a match. She doesn’t talk about competing or athleticism — though she’s familiar with both, having played through high school and on a club team in college at American University.
Instead, she speaks of diplomacy, people finding common ground, despite their differences.
“Sports are a common language, an international language,” she says. “That goes a long way to bridge cultural divides, whether that’s fandom or political differences. It can play a key role across that entire spectrum.”
Grove knows a thing or two about bringing people together. A principal at Grimm and Grove Communications, she’s the woman behind the volunteer operations for some of Philly’s largest events, stationing clappers around the city for the Republican National Convention, connecting volunteers, funders, the tourism committee and others for the DNC. She was there, rallying volunteers when people started crowd surfing their babies to be blessed by Pope Francis during his 2015 visit.
But 2026 is a unique beast. The RNC and DNC lasted four days. The World Meeting of Families was a week. The World Cup matches in Philly will run from June 14 to 27. It’ll also be running during the semiquincentennial, a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The event is expected to bring more than one million tourists to Philadelphia and generate $1 billion for the city.
If successful, Grove and her volunteers will play a key role in making sure Philadelphia is remembered as the City of Brotherly Love — and not the one that beheaded a hitchhiking robot or threw snowballs at Santa.
Applause please!
When Grove first began mobilizing volunteers ahead of the 2000 Republican National Convention, Philly — and the world — was a very different place. Then-Mayor Ed Rendell was eager to play host to events that would put the city on the national stage, bidding on both the DNC and the RNC.
Back then, Philadelphia didn’t have the reputation for hosting successful, large scale events that we do today. When people thought of Philly, they were more likely to think of things like our disastrous centennial celebration in 1976, when then-Mayor Frank Rizzo endeavored to scare away tourists. Those who did show up to Philly in July were greeted with the nation’s first ever outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease. Philadelphia, the city that loves you back!
Everyone knew Philly’s RNC had to be a success. L.A., with its palm trees and glitzy Hollywood reputation, was hosting the DNC. Many figured they’d outshine Philly. “We knew we could not fail,” Grove says. “We had to impress the world.”
Grove, fresh off a job at the Chamber of Commerce, was hired by Philadelphia 2000, the committee responsible for bringing the RNC to Philly, to recruit and train 10,000 volunteers — a tall task in a largely Democratic city. This was 2000, pre-cellphones, pre-social media. She hit up malls and put up ads in the Inquirer to reach people. “It was very old school,” she recalls.
Still, she had an innate sense of what drove volunteers to come out and a knack for building personal relationships. Some were there because they were political junkies, but most were there because they loved Philly and wanted to see the city succeed. People also responded to Grove’s willingness to jump in and do whatever was needed.
“She really has a way of tapping into people’s best sense of self and saying, come on this journey with us,” says Meg Kane, host city executive and CEO for Philadelphia Soccer 2026. Grove and Kane first met when Kane was working at Vault Communications. They later worked together when Kane was working on communications for the Papal visit and Grove was, once again, rallying volunteers. “She truly believes that every role is important. Every volunteer role is important.”
Nearly 13,000 people ended up volunteering for the RNC — about 5,000 more than needed. Grove deployed them to the airports, to hotels, to the First Union Center (now Xfinity Mobile Arena), anywhere people might be showing up, and instructed them to clap for people as they arrived. It might seem small, or even a little silly, but visitors felt seen, energized, like the political celebs they were here to support. Angela Val, now president and CEO of Visit Philly, was then one of the clappers.
“Alison really was focused not only on the volunteer requirements for these large events, but how could these volunteers be ambassadors for Philadelphia? How can we make sure that everyone feels welcome?” Val says. “I was a clapper many times till my hands hurt.”
To this day, RNC volunteers still approach Grove in parking lots to tell her their work 25 years ago is “still the single greatest memory,” she says. She remembers watching venerated CBS news anchor Dan Rather commend Philly’s volunteers on live TV, “for the welcome that Philadelphia showed,” she says. “I still get goosebumps when I think about that.”
Her role at RNC was a springboard for Grove, and she went on to chair volunteer programs for the papal visit in 2015 and the DNC in 2016. So, she was a natural fit when, in 2019, Philadelphia Soccer 2026 — the group responsible for bidding to host 2026 World Cup matches — was looking for someone to lead the bid process. She joined the committee as senior director of strategy operations and partnerships..
What makes a good volunteer?
Philly needs about 3,300 volunteers for the World Cup, stationed everywhere from the airport, train stations and transit hubs to the FIFA Fan Festival at Lemon Hill in Fairmount Park and the tournament itself, which will take place at Lincoln Financial Field and Chester’s Subaru Park. Others will be scattered throughout Old City and stationed at popular tourist spots like the Rocky Steps. Philly will host five matches, between June 14 and 27.
Philadelphia Soccer 2026 received over 26,000 applications, about 50 percent of which were from people outside of the state — including some international applicants. Between October and December, FIFA held volunteer tryouts at their hub in the Fashion District, seeking folks to help visitors navigate Philly, offer recommendations of things to do, work within the stadium, and assist with opening ceremonies.
It’s a fairly large commitment. “Those volunteers will have gone through almost a year’s worth of preparation starting with the application process, then coming in for their assessments, tryouts, then general training,” Grove says. “Getting their [volunteer] uniforms is a big deal. It’s a 10-piece Adidas kit. It’s not just handing out t-shirts.”
Grove looks for volunteers who are enthusiastic, friendly, reliable, flexible and willing to jump in and help wherever someone may need a hand. But she also looks for people who love Philly. That might mean a local who bleeds green, is invested in the city’s arts or food scene, or a Revolutionary War history buff.
“The people that are volunteering at these events are not there necessarily to meet the Pope or see a World Cup match or meet a future president. They’re there because they’re proud of their city,” Grove says. “They want people to feel welcomed. They want people to leave with a positive feeling about Philadelphia.”
Jenkintown resident and long-time volunteer Jim Clark first worked with Grove during the RNC and began volunteering more frequently in 2006, after retiring from the Environmental Protection Agency. He admires Grove’s willingness to make time for every volunteer, recalling a time when she — fresh from the Amtrak station and luggage in tow — stopped to thank him and talk about his experience volunteering.
“She’s the most open, humble person,” Clark says. “Our city is shining. Our city is looking great, and it doesn’t work if Alison isn’t there.”
A great 250th?
Planning for the World Cup and the semiquincentennial feel well underway now (as it should — events for the 250th have already kicked off; the World Cup Games are only six months away). But there has been a lot of anxiety around the 250th.
The pandemic put on hold a planning process that, at the federal level at least, was already mired in scandal — America250, the federally created, government-funded backed committee in charge of planning, devolved into infighting, sexism and accusations of fraud. Over the past year, Philly boosters like Val and Kathyrn Ott Lovell, President and CEO of Philadelphia Visitor Center Corporation, have taken charge of the local planning process.
On the World Cup end, Kane, Grove and other members of Philadelphia Soccer 2026 had all had experience working on Philly’s mega events. But they hadn’t bid on an event through masks and over Zoom, which they had to because of Covid.
When they finally had their in-person site visit in the fall of 2021, Grove played a key role. That felt like one of the first wins. Another: when Kane and Grove stood alongside each other in LOVE Park, watching the livestreamed announcement of World Cup host cities. Second, before Philly was announced, Groves’ phone started blowing up. The livestream in LOVE Park was delayed. Grove’s children were calling and texting her because they’d heard Philly was selected.
“That was a very joyful moment,” Kane says. “[Grove] works so hard when she has a vision for something, she sees it through. When she hits a roadblock, she finds a way around it.”
Grove has also worked to make sure the World Cup feels connected to broader, 250th celebrations, advocating to get information about other 250th events displayed in and around the World Cup’s Philly volunteer campus, where visitors and volunteers might see it. The two organizations are also working together to coordinate logistics — making sure events don’t overlap so visitors can attend as much as possible, synching up security and making sure volunteers are up to speed about everything going on.
“Alison has been a really great connector to make sure that we don’t just focus on the World Cup, that there is a 250th celebration as well,” says Val. “She always has had a very good vision of who needs to be in the room to get those heads together, to say, what do we need to do here?”
“Company’s coming.”
Volunteers will play a critical role in making Philadelphia’s semiquincentennial a successful event. The process of recruiting volunteers for the World Cup is nearly finished, but there are still ways for Philadelphians to get involved in 2026.
Grove will be coordinating with SEPTA’s and the airport’s ambassador programs, which include about 800 and 100 people respectively. She’ll also be working with the Philadelphia Visitor’s Phambassador program, a group of volunteers who’ve signed up to hype Philly at all things 250th. About 1,000 Phambassadors will be deployed to help supplement World Cup volunteers. (They’re hosting a Pham Camp in January for folks interested in joining).
Regardless of whether you officially volunteer or not, Grove and her colleagues believe this year, every Philadelphian will need to play the role of “host.” That might make some want to flee the city, opting to stay in shore homes, rather than navigate crowds. But Grove hopes residents stick around to experience the once-in-a-lifetime experience that is hosting World Cup matches during a year that coincides with one of the nation’s major birthdays.
“Stay and enjoy the experience. Be a part of the experience,” she says. “This is not going to be a massive disrupter to your life. We learned a lot during the papal visit where residents thought it was going to be so overwhelming. They went to their shore houses, or they took trips.”
She also encourages everyone to be a bit more patient, a bit more kind and to take a moment to stop and help give someone directions or recommend a place to eat.
“Whether you are an official volunteer or not, what we like to say is company is coming. You want your company to feel welcome, to feel assisted, if there’s a need,” Grove says. “You don’t have to be wearing a volunteer uniform to help someone out.”
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