With the 2026 FIFA World Cup less than a month away, authorities in Mexico are working around the clock to complete a $500 million renovation of Benito Juárez International Airport, the country’s busiest airport.
Passengers arriving at the airport are currently navigating through a large construction zone, with drilling, exposed pipes and unfinished floors. At the same time, banners and giant decorations promoting the World Cup are displayed throughout the terminals.
Airport authorities told The Associated Press that more than 3,000 workers are putting in up to 20 hours a day to finish one of the biggest renovation projects in the airport’s history.
Engineer Luis Ibarra, 28, said he does not mind the ongoing work, noting that the airport has long struggled with flooding, leaking roofs and severe overcrowding.
Adm. Juan José Padilla, the airport’s general director, said the first phase of the project is now more than 90% complete.
He said the work has been more difficult than expected because parts of the airport are over 50 years old and some original blueprints are missing.
“We are facing years of neglect,” Padilla said, referring to decades of underinvestment at the airport, which serves around 120,000 passengers every day.
The modernization project began in May 2025 and is being financed entirely by the airport, which has been operated by the Mexican Navy since 2023.
Project coordinator Capt. Arturo Flores said the upgrade includes new terminal exteriors, improved restrooms, renovated baggage claim areas and replacement of nearly 100,000 square meters of flooring and lighting.
The redesign has also created an additional 30,000 square meters of waiting space for passengers.
The second phase of the project is scheduled to start in August, after the World Cup, and continue through December.
Security is also being upgraded. The number of surveillance cameras will increase from 2,200 to more than 4,000, with artificial intelligence used to identify suspicious vehicles, luggage and individuals.
Padilla said an anti-drone system will also be installed soon.
Earlier this month, Mexico’s foreign ministry announced an agreement with the US Department of Transportation to enforce a 2015 bilateral aviation agreement.
Under the deal, Mexico will increase the number of landing and takeoff slots available to airlines. The number of slots had been reduced from 61 to 43 per hour during the previous administration and was later raised to 44.
Padilla said the number of slots for both domestic and international airlines will soon rise to 46 per hour.
The airport overhaul is one of the major infrastructure projects of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The initiative follows a controversial effort by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to shift traffic from Mexico City to a newly built military-operated airport, a plan that failed to attract significant airline and passenger interest.