As North Texas welcomes the world for the 2026 FIFA World Cup™, communities across the region showed up in force: 29 cities collected 153,690 pounds of litter this year — more than double the participation of any previous year — through the North Texas Community Cleanup Challenge (NTCCC).

The City of Lewisville won the overall competition. The City held 85 events with 931 volunteers. It will be honored at its City Council meeting on Monday, August 3.

“Congratulations to the City of Lewisville on being named our Community Cleanup Challenge champions,” said Monica Paul, President of the North Texas FWC Organizing Committee. “I’m incredibly proud of the dedication and hard work demonstrated by all our participating cities throughout this challenge. Together, they’ve made a meaningful impact in helping protect and preserve our region’s environment.”

The annual competition, organized by the North Central Texas Council of Governments, brings together cities and counties across North Texas in a friendly but impactful effort to keep public spaces clean and vibrant. Each year, participating communities compete to collect the most litter while engaging residents, businesses, and civic partners in environmental action — this year with the added goal of ensuring North Texas puts its best face forward for visitors from around the world.

2026 NTCCC By the Numbers:

• 29 cities registered for the NTCCC
• 10,246 bags of trash picked up between March 1 and May 31
• 153,690 lbs. – or almost 77 tons – of litter collected
• 8,320 volunteers at 317 events

More information about this program is available at communitycleanupchallenge.com. 

"This year's winners went above and beyond to keep North Texas beautiful, and it's a privilege to celebrate what they've accomplished," said Susan Alvarez, Director of NCTCOG's Environment & Development Department. "Our partnership with the North Texas FWC Organizing Committee helped bring even more communities into the challenge this year. Every participant played a part in creating a cleaner, healthier region, and that impact will last for years to come."

The NTCCC is a program of the Stormwater Public Education Task Force, a subcommittee of the Regional Stormwater Management Coordinating Council, administered in partnership with the North Central Texas Council of Governments.