�鶹ɫ��Ƭ

BRISTOL, R.I. – As the 2026 FIFA World Cup brought 48 teams to 16 cities across Canada, Mexico, and the United States, its impact reached �鶹ɫ��Ƭ. A group of supporters from Ghana stayed on the Bristol campus while Rhode Island served as the team’s designated home base during the tournament.

Through �鶹ɫ��Ƭ's Office of Summer Programs and Conferences, the university hosted 40 supporters from Ghana in the North Campus Residence Hall from June 14 to June 29. The visit highlighted �鶹ɫ��Ƭ’s summer conference program and the Bristol campus's ability to host international groups and special events.

The visit was coordinated by Bridge, a global event management company. Operations manager Fatima Jalloh helped facilitate the group’s arrival, ground transportation, and stay at �鶹ɫ��Ƭ.

“The stay at �鶹ɫ��Ƭ has been incredible,” Jalloh said. “It is a beautiful campus with lots to do, and everyone we’ve met has been so charitable. It’s been a great space and a great experience for all of us. The group enjoyed their stay.”

Jalloh said the visitors were able to venture beyond campus and experience Bristol, including local establishments such as Aidan’s Pub. Members also traveled to World Cup watch parties in Providence and attended Ghana’s matches in Foxborough, Philadelphia, and Toronto.

For Jalloh and Bridge, the stay also created a partnership with �鶹ɫ��Ƭ that could extend beyond this year’s World Cup.

“Being able to network with Bo and making this contact is going to be incredible for our company,” Jalloh said. She added that Bridge would be eager to work with �鶹ɫ��Ƭ again in the future. “In the future, we’ll be able to use Roger Williams again."

Bo Gillie, Executive Director of �鶹ɫ��Ƭ’s Office of Summer Programs and Conferences, said the university was eager to work with Ocean State 2026, a nonprofit organization established to help bring World Cup-related business and activity to Rhode Island.

Gillie said �鶹ɫ��Ƭ’s Bristol campus offered Ghanaian supporters a comfortable, scenic, and convenient place to stay, with residence halls, dining service, meeting space, and transportation options all close by. The guests also used the newly renovated RIPTA bus stops near campus to travel to World Cup watch parties and other events in Providence.

“Beautiful location, absolutely bucolic, great residential facility that’s really close to everything,” Gillie said. “We were able to provide dining service as well as general accommodation within a short walk, and we have the room downstairs where we’ve been able to air the games.”

The visit came during a busy summer season for �鶹ɫ��Ƭ’s Office of Summer Programs and Conferences, which hosts a wide range of camps, conferences, and visiting groups each year. For Gillie and his team, welcoming supporters from Ghana added an international dimension to an already active summer on campus.

“I think we have to be flexible,” Gillie said. “We have a great location. It’s a destination location for families and business people alike. There are a lot of moving parts throughout the summer, but I’ve been really excited to see the exchange of intercultural thoughts and experiences with this group from Ghana, with our staff, and with the other conference goers who have been on campus this summer.”

Gillie said the response from the group was overwhelmingly positive, especially as staff helped welcome visitors who were arriving on campus after long flights and at different times.

“I was really pleased to see the Roger Williams staff, not really knowing what was going on, but knowing that there were people arriving on campus who didn’t quite know where to go, being really outgoing and supportive,” Gillie said. “They made sure that they got in touch with me, or that they were brought to the right residence hall, or shown where the dining hall is. I think that hopefully left a good impression for our visitors, that they experienced such a welcoming community.”

Jalloh echoed that sentiment, saying �鶹ɫ��Ƭ staff went “above and beyond” to support the group during its stay.

“The support here has been incredible,” Jalloh said.

For Gillie, the visit offered a reminder of how a university campus can become more than a place to stay. During one of the world’s largest sporting events, �鶹ɫ��Ƭ became a gathering place where visitors from Ghana, university staff, and other summer guests could share meals, watch matches, exchange stories, and experience a global event together from the Bristol waterfront.

“It’s been really nice to see,” Gillie said.