# @sportsgrad on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DcZgr0qkjyp
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/70249406-sportsgrad-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/2c16d5445c.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-08-23T22:00:02.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** SportsGrad (@sportsgrad) — https://gondola.cc/sportsgrad

## Caption

Meet Hector Arenas, Venue Operations Manager at the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Monterrey.

Back home in Mexico, he'd built a solid career as an industrial engineer with an MBA, ten years of experience, and a general manager role at a lending company, complete with the apartment, the car and the stable life. Then COVID hit, and he and his wife made a decision to leave their comfort zone and chase their dream. In July 2023, they moved to Australia so Hector could study a Master Of Business (Sport Management) at Deakin University.

Four months later, on a tip from his university mentor, he landed a three-month casual events contract at Melbourne Park,  and turned it into three straight Australian Opens. From there, he applied cold to FIFA, got knocked back once for being "not experienced enough," then came back a year later to win a Venue Operations Manager role at Estadio Monterrey, delivering matches at the biggest event on the planet in his home country.

Lots to look out for in this episode, including how to break into sport when you've got zero industry network in a new country, why "say yes to everything" opened every door, and how the engineering discipline of doing more with less transferred straight into running a World Cup venue.

🎙️Episode #367 of the SportsGrad podcast out now wherever you get your pods.

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 94
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- **Comments:** 5

## Tags

367

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