The event in June, 2026.
You have to wonder what FIFA, the governing body of international football or soccer, is going to do with its crown jewel event, the 2026 Men’s World Cup that is scheduled to be played in Canada, Mexico and the United States. Once upon a time, not too long ago, FIFA officials were probably dreaming of American greenbacks, Canadian loonies and Mexican pesos flowing into the business. Now FIFA is staring at an economic mess because of the trade wars that have erupted in North America. On April 10th, 2017, the United States, Canada and Mexico announced that the three countries would bid for the 2026 World Cup and President Donald Trump expressed support for the bid. FIFA waived its no co-hosting rule and awarded the event to the united bid on June 13th, 2018.
As of now, there are sixteen cities or markets hosting 2026 World Cup matches. Mexico will get three contests, while Canada gets two, one in Toronto, which is the economic capital of Canada, and one in Vancouver, which is Canada’s gateway to Asia. Eleven American cities will host contests, Santa Clara, California, Los Angeles, Seattle, Arlington, Texas, Houston, Kansas City, Atlanta, Foxboro, Massachusetts, Miami, Philadelphia and the championship game scheduled for East Rutherford, New Jersey on July 19th, 2026. FIFA has navigated through the Qatar Men’s World Cup and has awarded the 2034 Men’s World Cup to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia but has not faced a situation before where one of the host countries has started a trade war against its two nation partners. FIFA is not the one sports entity that is dealing with the trade war. The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League all have business in Canada. The trade war will impact sports.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
FIFA President Gianni Infantino