WORK • Thursday Routine
BRANDON GROM • senior manager, events & entertainment • FIFA World Cup 2026
Neighborhoods you work in: Coral Gables
Neighborhood you live in: El Portal
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
Wake up, jump in my pool, take a deep breath, and battle 95 South traffic to the office in Coral Gables. Typically, a beet juice or coffee in the cup holder, while listening to a murder mystery podcast or NPR.
Given our long partnership with Adidas, all the FIFA employees are marching around the office getting tea or coffee in some form of Adidas gear, whether a Samba or Gazelle or Stan Smith shoe, or past FIFA merch. There are footballs everywhere and lots of references to The Beautiful Game. If you’re not drinking the coffee here, you’ve got your hands full with a morning beverage from Facade and likely one of their cinnamon rolls — one of the best I’ve ever had.
What’s on your agenda for today?
Extensive planning for the Final Draw for the 2026 World Cup, which takes place December 5. It’s the largest event outside the actual tournament, and is effectively the world’s biggest TV show in terms of broadcasters. (More than 200 million tuned in for the 2022 Qatar Final Draw, so it will be even bigger across the US, Mexico, and Canada.) The Final Draw is how the qualifying national teams are allocated into groups and then seeded, so we know the starting matches of the tournament. It sets the stage for the storytelling that leads up to the tournament.
Any bar or restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Looking to finally check out Bar Bucce, a new Italian market by the people behind Macchialina. I’ll also follow my favorite pop-up smash burger, Chote Burger, anywhere it goes.
How about a little leisure or culture?
Just got back from Puerto Rico for night 14 of Bad Bunny’s residency at El Choli. It was like a love letter to the island.
Any weekend getaways?
My mom lives in Venice on the west coast of Florida, about a three-hour drive from Miami. Whenever I visit her, I stop at the Culver’s off exit 107 in Naples — it’s a fast food staple from the Midwest that we don’t really have here. There’s a great farmer’s market in downtown Venice every Saturday, and it’s where I bought a gold earring cast of a shark’s tooth. Venice Beach is known for shark teeth; it led me to Aaron the jeweler, who made me a custom earring of a stingray.
What was your last great vacation?
We recently did a tour of southern Spain that started in Madrid where we spent just eight hours on a layover, but made sure to go to Sala de Despiece for lunch. My friend, who I always consult for travel tips, told me about it years ago and I always try to go when I’m there. The food is phenomenal and the staff wear rubber aprons — it’s a very unique vision of a dining experience. We then went to Sevilla, Granada, Cadiz, and Torremolinos by car. We were lucky enough to get reservations to The Alhambra in Granada, an architectural masterpiece and the most beautiful building I’ve ever been in.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
I love to try new scents and recently took a tour at Bal Harbour and landed with The Hedonist from Ex Nihilo.
What store or service do you always recommend?
Either Dan at Hairbox or Martin and Drew at Beauty Shop Miami for all your hair needs. Sana Skin Studio for facials.