MOSCOW — The 2026 World Cup is set to return to North America, thanks to a decisive vote by FIFA members who favored the United States-led bid over Morocco’s proposal. The decision reflects a preference for financial stability and logistical ease, thereby marking the World Cup’s return to the U.S. for the first time since 1994. The U.S.-led bid secured 134 votes at the FIFA Congress held in Moscow, comfortably surpassing Morocco’s 65 votes.
This recent vote differed from past selections for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, which went to Russia and Qatar respectively, as it was conducted publicly by football federations rather than the secretive ballots by FIFA’s board members.
In the proposed plan, the U.S. will host 60 of the 80 matches in the 2026 tournament, which will see an expansion to 48 teams. Canada and Mexico are set to share the remaining 20 games equally, each hosting ten. This collaborative bid was chosen over Morocco’s, which was deemed risky due to the substantial infrastructure investments required for the first 48-team format.
A key factor in swaying the vote was the U.S.-led bid’s promise of generating $14 billion in revenue, coupled with the advantage of using existing facilities, which minimizes the need for extensive construction work. In contrast, Morocco’s proposed plan involved building or renovating all 14 of its venues, demanding a hefty $16 billion for new infrastructure.
This decision marks Morocco’s fifth unsuccessful attempt to host the World Cup, leaving Africa’s sole hosting experience to South Africa in 2010. FIFA’s analysis projected that Morocco’s revenue from tickets and hospitality would reach $1.07 billion, whereas the North American bid is expected to bring in $2 billion more.
For Canada, this will be a historic moment as it hosts men’s World Cup matches for the first time. Meanwhile, Mexico will welcome the tournament back for the first time since it hosted the entire event in 1986.
The 87,000-capacity MetLife Stadium outside New York is proposed for the final. It’s just miles from where federal prosecutors spearheaded an ongoing investigation into FIFA corruption. More than 40 soccer officials and businesses indicted, convicted or pleaded guilty.
The bribery scandal put the governing body on the brink, FIFA President Gianni Infantino told the congress ahead of Wednesday’s vote.
“FIFA was clinically dead as an organization,” Infantino said, reflecting on his election in 2016. “Two years later, FIFA is alive and well, full of joy and passion and with a vision for its future.”
The North American victory suggests football officials are ready to gather for a World Cup in a country whose government has demonstrated its willingness to jail corrupt sports leaders through undercover investigations. The North America bid also had to overcome concerns about the impact of policies from the Trump administration, including attempts to implement a ban on travel by residents of six majority-Muslim countries.
The main intervention by President Donald Trump was a warning in a White House news conference, discussing the FIFA vote, that he would be “watching very closely.” It was a veiled threat to withhold U.S. support from countries opposing the bid.
FIFA now has the final say on which cities are selected to host games and whether all three countries are guaranteed a place at the tournament. Victor Montagliani, the Canadian who leads CONCACAF, wants them to take three of the six qualification slots reserved for the region.
There is also a chance to send a seventh team via an inter-continental playoff. North America will host the six-team playoff tournament in November 2025 to decide the last two places in the 48-team lineup.
Potential 2026 World Cup host cities
There will be a total of 80 matches played during the 2026 World Cup. 60 of them planned for the United States. Though there are no locations set at this time, here is a list of potential host cities for the 2026 North American World Cup.
United States (10 to be selected)
- Atlanta
- Baltimore
- Boston
- Cincinnati
- Dallas
- Denver
- Houston
- Kansas City
- Los Angeles
- Miami
- Nashville
- New York/New Jersey
- Orlando
- Philadelphia
- San Francisco
- Seattle
- Washington, D.C.
Mexico
- Guadalajara
- Mexico City
- Monterrey
Canada
- Edmonton
- Montreal
- Toronto
