FIFA Tours Potential 2026 World Cup Host Cities

FIFA is finishing up the second leg of its inspection tour for cities to host the 2026 World Cup — the first with 48 countries competing and three co-hosts: the U.S., Mexico, and Canada.

Between Oct. 21 and Nov. 1, a delegation led by CONCACAF president and FIFA vice president Victor Montagliani is visiting Kansas City, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Monterrey, San Francisco, and Seattle.

• Backers of Denver’s bid say the $45 million dollars it’d take to host the World Cup would come from private investments, corporate sponsorships, tickets sales, and funding from FIFA and the federal government.
• The projected revenue from hosting five matches is $360 million, per the Boston Consulting Group.
• Qatar, host of the 2022 World Cup, expects a $20 billion economic boost from the event.

FIFA is assessing each city’s facilities, with a focus on infrastructure and sustainability. The first round of visits included Atlanta, New York, Miami, and several other eastern U.S. cities.

The competition will take place in 16 cities across North America’s three biggest nations — 10 of them in the U.S., with three cities each in Canada and Mexico.

FIFA says the remaining cities it’s eyeing will be visited by the end of November, and the final selection will likely be made by the first or second quarter of 2022.