United 2026 FIFA World Cup bid

United 2026 (also known as the North American 2026 bid) was a successful joint bid, led by the United States Soccer Federation, together with the Canadian Soccer Association and the Mexican Football Federation, to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

2026 FIFA World Cup bid
United 2026
Canada–Mexico–United States 2026
United 2026 bid logo
Tournament details
Host countriesCanada
Mexico
United States
Venue(s)16 (selected from a proposal of 23) (in 16 host cities)

While the soccer federations of Canada, Mexico, and the United States had individually announced plans to field a bid for the 2026 World Cup, the concept of a joint bid among the three North American countries was first proposed in 2016. The joint bid was officially unveiled on April 10, 2017, under which the tournament would be held at venues in all three countries. A shortlist of 23 candidate cities were named in the official bid, with 17 in the U.S., 3 in Canada, and 3 in Mexico. Ten U.S. candidate cities will join three Canadian candidate cities, and three Mexican candidate cities, to form the roster of 16 cities that will host the matches of this World Cup. Although a joint bid, the majority of the matches will be held in the United States. Canada and Mexico will host 10 matches each, while the United States will host the other 60, including all matches from the quarterfinals onward.[1][2]

On June 13, 2018, at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow, Russia, the United bid was selected by 134 votes to Morocco's 65.[3] Upon this selection, Canada will become the fifth country to host both the men's and women's World Cup, joining Sweden, the United States, Germany, and France. Mexico will become the first country to host three men's World Cups, and the United States will become the first country to host both the men's and women's World Cup twice each. This will be the first World Cup to be hosted in three countries and the first since 2002, and the second overall, to have multiple host countries.

Background

The three soccer federations of Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. announced interest to submit a bid for the 2026 World Cup years before the federations intended to unify their efforts.

In July 2012, Canadian Soccer Association president Victor Montagliani confirmed plans for a Canadian bid, saying: "We have verbally told FIFA that when the bid process begins for the next available World Cup, which would be the 2026 World Cup, that the CSA will be one of the countries putting in a formal proposal".[4] At the time the bid was announced, Canada had hosted the men's 1987 Under-16 World Championship and the U-20 World Cups for both men and women; the country has since hosted the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup in 2015. In October 2013, Montagliani confirmed Canada's intention to bid for the 2026 tournament[5] and the Canadian Soccer Association reiterated this in January 2014.[6]

In September 2012, Mexican Football Federation President Justino Compeán confirmed plans for a Mexican bid.[7] In October 2013, Liga MX President said that Mexico was interested in joining forces with the U.S. to co-host a bid for the 2026 World Cup.[8] On December 9, 2014, the Mexican Football Federation confirmed that it was bidding for the 2026 World Cup.[9]

On May 13, 2016, at the FIFA Congress in Mexico City, USSF board member John Motta told ESPN "whatever happens, we will bid for the 2026 World Cup -- either jointly (with Mexico or Canada) or we will go it alone."[10] The United States hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup and unsuccessfully bid for the 2022 World Cup, which was won by Qatar in 2010. On April 18, 2015, Brazilian legend Pelé stated that the United States should host the 2026 World Cup.[11]

In December 2016 Victor Montagliani, CONCACAF president announced for the first time a possibility of a joint bid between the United States, Canada, and Mexico to host the 2026 World Cup.[12]

On April 10, 2017, the three bodies officially announced their intent to submit a joint bid for the 2026 World Cup.[1][13]

Bid process
Main article: 2026 FIFA World Cup

Bidding for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was postponed due to the 2015 FIFA corruption case and the subsequent resignation of Sepp Blatter,[14] then was restarted following the FIFA Council meeting on May 10, 2016, wherein the bidding process would consist of four phases:[15]

  • May 2016 – May 2017: a new strategy and consultation phase
  • June 2017 – Dec 2017: enhanced phases for bid preparation
  • March 2018 – June 2018: bid evaluation
  • June 2018: final decision[16]

With no rival bid having emerged since April 2017 the CONCACAF member federations of Canada, Mexico, and the United States sent a joint request to FIFA to hasten the bid process. Canada, Mexico, and the United States wanted FIFA to award the bid outside the traditional bidding process at the June 2018 FIFA Congress in Moscow if the CONCACAF-bid meets FIFA requirements.[17][18]

However the FIFA Council decided on May 8, 2017, that FIFA would have a full bidding procedure. In order to ensure continental rotation of hosting duties, only the member associations of CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, and the OFC were invited, as these continental confederations had not hosted the two previous World Cups.[19] A date of August 11, 2017, was set for submission of an intention to bid.[20]

FIFA football tournament hosting experiences

Together, Canada, Mexico, and the United States have successfully hosted 13 FIFA events, which is the most of any trio of geographically connected nations in the world.[21]

In addition, all three countries have hosted at least one Olympic football tournament. Canada played host in Montreal 1976, Mexico in Mexico City 1968, and the United States hosted twice – in Los Angeles 1984 and Atlanta 1996.

Bid committee

On July 6, 2017, a United Bid Committee was officially formed by the national federations of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, to kick off the bidding process to bring the 2026 World Cup to North America.[22][23][24][25][26]

Honorary chairman of the board

United bid committee board of directors

United bid committee executive team

  • John Kristick – executive director for the united bid committee
  • Jim Brown – managing director, technical operations
  • Peter Montopoli – Canada bid director
  • Yon De Luisa – Mexico bid director

Potential venues

On August 15, 2017, the United Bid Committee released a list of 49 stadiums in 44 metropolitan markets across the three nations which will be considered for the official bid.[30] The United Bid Committee planned to include 20–25 venues in the official bid, which was sent to FIFA in March 2018.[30] Stadiums must have a capacity of at least 40,000 for group-round matches and at least 80,000 for the opening match and the final.[30]

On September 7, 2017, the United Bid Committee announced that a total of 41 cities (with 44 venues) had submitted bids marking their official declaration of interest to be included in the final bid:[31] Almost a month later, on October 4, 2017, the list of cities was cut down to 32 with 35 venues.[32] During U.S. Soccer's annual general meeting in Orlando in February 2018, Gulati revealed that the list of cities had been cut down to 26 with 29 venues.[33]

On March 14, 2018, Vancouver, Minneapolis and Chicago all announced that they were dropping out as potential host cities. All three cities cited concerns over the financial transparency of being a host city and cited FIFA's unwillingness to negotiate financial details as reasons for their decisions; the bid committee announced the next day they had reduced the number of cities in the bid to 23.[34][35][36][37]

Cities had to submit written proposals to the United Bid Committee by January 19, 2018, before being selected by the committee.[38]

The official bid has proposed the main opening match be held in either the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City or at the Rose Bowl in the Los Angeles area, that all three host countries' teams would host their first matches on the first day of the tournament and that the final match be held at MetLife Stadium in the New York City area. The bid also proposed that the two semi-final matches would be held at AT&T Stadium in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. All of the other cities in the American portion of the bid are under consideration for quarter-final matches. The bid book proposal calls for Mexico and Canada to each host seven group-stage games, two matches in the round of 32, and one in the round of 16.[39]

A denotes stadium used for previous men's World Cup tournaments
A denotes an indoor stadium

Canada
Montreal, Quebec[37] Edmonton, Alberta[37] Toronto, Ontario[37]
Olympic Stadium Commonwealth Stadium BMO Field
Capacity: 61,004
(Bid book capacity: 55,822)
(Expandable to 73,000)		 Capacity: 56,302
(Bid book capacity: 56,418)		 Capacity: 30,000
(Expanding to 45,500 for tournament)
Canadian proposed venues

Mexico
Mexico City[37] Monterrey, Nuevo León[37] Guadalajara, Jalisco[37]
Estadio Azteca Estadio BBVA Bancomer Estadio Akron
Capacity: 87,523 Capacity: 53,500
(Bid book capacity: 53,460)		 Capacity: 46,232
(Bid book capacity: 48,071)
Mexican proposed venues

United States
Los Angeles[37] New York/New Jersey[37] Washington, D.C.[37] Dallas[37]
Rose Bowl
(Pasadena, California)		 MetLife Stadium
(East Rutherford, New Jersey)		 FedExField
(Landover, Maryland)		 AT&T Stadium
(Arlington, Texas)
Capacity: 92,000
(Bid book capacity: 88,432)		 Capacity: 82,500
(Bid book capacity: 87,157)		 Capacity: 82,000
(Bid book capacity: 70,249)
(expandable to 91,704)		 Capacity: 80,000
(Bid book capacity: 92,967)
(expandable to 105,000)
Kansas City[37] Denver[37] Houston[37] Baltimore[37]
Arrowhead Stadium Empower Field at Mile High NRG Stadium M&T Bank Stadium
Capacity: 76,416
(Bid book capacity: 76,640)		 Capacity: 76,125
(Bid book capacity: 77,595)		 Capacity: 71,795
(Bid book capacity: 72,220)		 Capacity: 71,006
(Bid book capacity: 70,976)
Atlanta[37]
American proposed venues
Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Capacity: 71,000
(Bid book capacity: 75,000)
(expandable to 83,000)
Philadelphia[37] Nashville[37] Seattle[37] San Francisco Bay Area[37]
Lincoln Financial Field Nissan Stadium Lumen Field Levi's Stadium
(Santa Clara, California)
Capacity: 69,176
(Bid book capacity: 69,328)		 Capacity: 69,143
(Bid book capacity: 69,722)
(expandable to 75,000)		 Capacity: 69,000
(expandable to 72,000)		 Capacity: 68,500
(Bid book capacity: 70,909)
(expandable to 75,000)
Boston[37] Cincinnati[37] Miami[37] Orlando[37]
Gillette Stadium
(Foxborough, Massachusetts)		 Paul Brown Stadium Hard Rock Stadium
(Miami Gardens, Florida)		 Camping World Stadium
Capacity: 65,878
(Bid book capacity: 70,000)		 Capacity: 65,515
(Bid book capacity: 67,402)		 Capacity: 64,767
(Bid book capacity: 67,518)		 Capacity: 60,219
(Bid book capacity: 65,000)

Canada

Mexico

United States

Venues excluded since start of bidding process
Rejected and uninterested venues

Venues that withdrew voluntarily
Chicago, Illinois[37] Minneapolis, Minnesota[37] Vancouver, British Columbia[37]
Soldier Field U.S. Bank Stadium BC Place
Capacity: 61,500 Capacity: 66,655
(expandable to 73,000)		 Capacity: 54,500

Venues that submitted bids but were rejected (1st round)
Birmingham, Alabama[37] Cleveland, Ohio[37] Indianapolis, Indiana[37]
Legion Field FirstEnergy Stadium Lucas Oil Stadium
Capacity: 71,594 Capacity: 67,895 Capacity: 62,421
(expandable to 70,000)
Jacksonville, Florida[37] New Orleans, Louisiana[37] Ottawa, Ontario[37]
EverBank Field Mercedes-Benz Superdome TD Place Stadium
Capacity: 69,132
(expandable to 82,000)		 Capacity: 73,208
(expandable to 76,438)		 Capacity: 24,000
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania[37] Regina, Saskatchewan[37] San Antonio, Texas[37]
Heinz Field Mosaic Stadium Alamodome
Capacity: 69,690 Capacity: 33,350
(expandable to 40,000)		 Capacity: 64,000

Venues that submitted bids but were rejected (2nd round)

The following cities were not selected as host cities bid, according to Sunil Gulati, during the 2018 US Soccer Annual General Meeting.[33]

Charlotte, North Carolina[37] Dallas, Texas[37] Detroit, Michigan[37]
Bank of America Stadium Cotton Bowl Ford Field
Capacity: 75,525 Capacity: 92,100 Capacity: 65,000
(expandable to 70,000)
Las Vegas, Nevada[37] Los Angeles, California[37]
Allegiant Stadium Memorial Coliseum SoFi Stadium
(Inglewood, California)
Capacity: 72,000 Capacity: 93,607 Capacity: 70,240
(expandable to 100,000)
Phoenix, Arizona[37] Salt Lake City, Utah[37] Tampa, Florida[37]
University of Phoenix Stadium Rice–Eccles Stadium Raymond James Stadium
Capacity: 63,400
(expandable to 78,600)		 Capacity: 48,600 Capacity: 65,890
(expandable to 75,000)

Venues that were contacted but submitted no bids
Calgary, Alberta[37] Green Bay, Wisconsin[37] Montreal, Quebec[37] San Diego, California[37] Toronto, Ontario[37]
McMahon Stadium Lambeau Field Saputo Stadium SDCCU Stadium Rogers Centre
Capacity: 35,400
(expandable to 46,020)		 Capacity: 81,441 Capacity: 20,801 Capacity: 70,561 Capacity: 54,000

Proposed provisional match schedule
Proposed provisional match schedule[37]
Group A
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Canada 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 A2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 A3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 1
Canada vs.A2BMO Field, Toronto (Canada Stadium 1)
Day 5
A2vs.A3United States Stadium 3
Day 10
A3vs. CanadaCanada Stadium 3
Group B
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 B1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 B2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 B3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 2
B1vs.B2MetLife Stadium, New York City (United States Stadium 1)
Day 6
B2vs.B3United States Stadium 9
Day 10
B3vs.B1United States Stadium 6
Group C
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 C1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 C2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 C3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 2
C1vs.C2United States Stadium 3
Day 6
C2vs.C3AT&T Stadium, Dallas (United States Stadium 7)
Day 10
C3vs.C1United States Stadium 5
Group D
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 D2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 D3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 2
D1vs.D2United States Stadium 9
Day 6
D2vs.D3MetLife Stadium, New York City
Day 10
D3vs.D1Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta (United States Stadium 10)
Group E
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Mexico 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 E2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 E3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 1
Mexico vs.E2Estadio Azteca, Mexico City (Mexico Stadium 1)
Day 6
E2vs.E3United States Stadium 4
Day 11
E3vs. MexicoMexico Stadium 2
Group F
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 F1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 F2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 F3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 3
F1vs.F2Canada Stadium 2
Day 7
F2vs.F3United States Stadium 6
Day 11
F3vs.F1MetLife Stadium, New York City
Group G
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 G1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 G2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 G3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 3
G1vs.G2United States Stadium 5
Day 7
G2vs.G3Canada Stadium 3
Day 11
G3vs.G1United States Stadium 8
Group H
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 H1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 H2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 H3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 3
H1vs.H2AT&T Stadium, Dallas
Day 7
H2vs.H3United States Stadium 5
Day 11
H3vs.H1Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
Group I
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  United States 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 I2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 I3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 1
United States vs.I2Rose Bowl, Los Angeles (United States Stadium 2)
Day 8
I2vs.I3Mexico Stadium 2
Day 12
I3vs. United StatesAT&T Stadium, Dallas
Group J
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 J1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 J2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 J3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 4
J1vs.J2Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton
Day 8
J2vs.J3United States Stadium 8
Day 12
J3vs.J1United States Stadium 3
Group K
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 K1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 K2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 K3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 4
K1vs.K2United States Stadium 6
Day 8
K2vs.K3Canada Stadium 2
Day 12
K3vs.K1United States Stadium 9
Group L
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 L2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 L3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 4
L1vs.L2Rose Bowl, Los Angeles
Day 8
L2vs.L3United States Stadium 3
Day 12
L3vs.L1Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton
Group M
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 M1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 M2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 M3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 4
M1vs.M2Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
Day 9
M2vs.M3Mexico Stadium 3
Day 13
M3vs.M1Rose Bowl, Los Angeles
Group N
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 N1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 N2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 N3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 5
N1vs.N2Mexico Stadium 3
Day 9
N2vs.N3Rose Bowl, Los Angeles
Day 13
N3vs.N1United States Stadium 5
Group O
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 O1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 O2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 O3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 5
O1vs.O2Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Day 9
O2vs.O3United States Stadium 9
Day 13
O3vs.O1United States Stadium 4
Group P
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 P1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to knockout stage
2 P2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 P3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played on 2026. Source: FIFA
Day 5
P1vs.P2United States Stadium 8
Day 9
P2vs.P3United States Stadium 4
Day 13
P3vs.P1Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta

Knockout stage

 
Round of 32Round of 16Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
                  
 
D14 – Match 49 – CAN Stadium 2
 
 
Group A winner
 
D19 – Match 65 – Edmonton
 
Group B runner-up
 
Match 49 winner
 
D14 – Match 50 – USA Stadium 8
 
Match 50 winner
 
Group C winner
 
D25 – Match 73 – Los Angeles
 
Group D runner-up
 
Match 65 winner
 
D15 – Match 55 – USA Stadium 9
 
Match 66 winner
 
Group F Winner
 
D20 – Match 66 – Dallas
 
Group E runner-up
 
Match 55 winner
 
D15 – Match 56 – New York City
 
Match 56 winner
 
Group H Winner
 
D29 – Match 77 – Dallas
 
Group G runner-up
 
Match 73 winner
 
D16 – Match 57 – USA Stadium 4
 
Match 74 winner
 
Group I winner
 
D21 – Match 69 – New York City
 
Group J runner-up
 
Match 57 winner
 
D16 – Match 58 – CAN Stadium 3
 
Match 58 winner
 
Group K winner
 
D25 – Match 74 – USA Stadium 5
 
Group L runner-up
 
Match 69 winner
 
D17 – Match 61 – Atlanta
 
Match 70 winner
 
Group M winner
 
D21 – Match 70 – Los Angeles
 
Group N runner-up
 
Match 61 winner
 
D17 – Match 62 – USA Stadium 6
 
Match 62 winner
 
Group O winner
 
D34 – Match 80 – New York City
 
Group P runner-up
 
Match 77 winner
 
D15 – Match 53 – MEX Stadium 3
 
Match 78 winner
 
Group E winner
 
D20 – Match 67 – Mexico City
 
Group F runner-up
 
Match 53 winner
 
D15 – Match 54 – USA Stadium 3
 
Match 54 winner
 
Group G winner
 
D26 – Match 75 – USA Stadium 8
 
Group H runner-up
 
Match 67 winner
 
D14 – Match 51 – MEX Stadium 2
 
Match 68 winner
 
Group B Winner
 
D19 – Match 68 – USA Stadium 9
 
Group A runner-up
 
Match 51 winner
 
D14 – Match 52 – USA Stadium 6
 
Match 52 winner
 
Group D Winner
 
D30 – Match 78 – Atlanta
 
Group C runner-up
 
Match 75 winner
 
D16 – Match 59 – USA Stadium 5
 
Match 76 winnerThird place
 
Group J Winner
 
D22 – Match 71 – AtlantaD33 – Match 79 – USA Stadium 4
 
Group I runner-up
 
Match 59 winnerMatch 77 loser
 
D16 – Match 60 – Dallas
 
Match 60 winnerMatch 78 loser
 
Group L Winner
 
D26 – Match 76 – USA Stadium 6
 
Group K runner-up
 
Match 71 winner
 
D17 – Match 63 – USA Stadium 8
 
Match 72 winner
 
Group N Winner
 
D22 – Match 72 – USA Stadium 4
 
Group M runner-up
 
Match 63 winner
 
D17 – Match 64 – Los Angeles
 
Match 64 winner
 
Group P Winner
 
 
Group O runner-up
 

General facilities

Support

Football confederations

FIFA members

Public opinion

On October 24, 2017, a survey of adults in Canada, Mexico, and the United States showed a broad support for Canada–United States–Mexico bid to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup. It found that 77% of North American residents are in favor of hosting the first-ever 48-team FIFA World Cup, and 81% of respondents across the three countries agree that hosting the tournament would be good for their specific country. Also, nearly six in 10 (57 percent) of those surveyed say they would be interested in attending FIFA World Cup matches if the games were played near where they live or work.[60]

U.S. House of Representatives

On April 20, 2018, Representatives Darin LaHood and fellow co-chairs of the Congressional Soccer Caucus Kathy Castor (FL-14), Don Bacon (NE-02), Ruben Kihuen (NV-04) introduced a resolution to recognize and support the efforts of the United Bid Committee to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States.[61] The U.S. House of Representatives adopted this resolution on April 25, 2018.[62]

Other government officials

Toronto city councillors Mark Grimes and Cesar Palacio support the bid, as well as Mayor John Tory.[63] Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante supports it.[64]

U.S. President Donald Trump,[65] Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau,[66] and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto[67] also all support the bid for 2026 FIFA World Cup.

On March 13, 2018, Canadian Minister of Sport Kirsty Duncan announced in Ottawa the Canadian federal government officially threw its support behind the North American bid for the 2026 World Cup, with the promise of up to $5 million in immediate help should the unified bid win.[68]

Marketing

The bid is branded "United 2026", the logo of the bid is a ball with the number 26 representing the year "2026" with the colors of the flags of Canada, Mexico, and the United States and the slogans are: "United As One" (Spanish: "Unidos Como Uno", French: "Unis Comme Un"). and "Football For All" (Spanish: "Fútbol Para Todos", French: "Football Pour Tous").[69]

Opinions

On December 28, 2017, during a sports business conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, FIFA president Gianni Infantino considered the United bid to be a positive message.[70]

Criticism

U.S. President Donald Trump's executive orders regarding immigration from certain Muslim-majority countries had been touted as a potential risk, with FIFA president Gianni Infantino saying:

It is obvious when it comes to FIFA competitions, any team, including the supporters and officials of that team, who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup.[71]

However, assurances were later given by the government that there would be no such discrimination.[72][73]

Infantino himself is embroiled in many controversies. In July 2016, he was suspected to have broken the FIFA code of ethics, and was interviewed by the investigatory chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee.[74]

The investigation was focused on three areas: "several flights taken by Mr. Infantino during the first months of his presidency, human resources matters related to hiring processes in the president's office, and Mr. Infantino's refusal to sign the contract specifying his employment relationship with FIFA".[75]

Even though a document was leaked which showed illegitimate spending of funds by FIFA[74] the matter concerning expenses and governance was not investigated.[75] The document revealed that Infantino had billed FIFA for personal expenses such as £8,795 for mattresses at his home, £6,829 for a stepper exercise machine, £1,086 for a tuxedo, £677 on flowers and £132 on personal laundry. In addition to that he billed the FIFA governing body for an external driver for his family and advisors while he was away.[74]

When Infantino accepted special treatment by the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosts Russia and Qatar, the question of a potential conflict of interest was raised. The hosts had organized private jets for Infantino and his staff related to visits in Russia and the Gulf state.[74] The investigatory chamber was of the opinion that no violation had occurred. In addition to that, the chamber found that "human resources matters, as well as Mr. Infantino's conduct with regard to his contract with FIFA, if at all, constituted internal compliance issues rather than an ethical matter."[75]

While the investigatory chamber discharged Infantino, this did not stop criticism. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, a former German football champion, criticized Infantino for not fulfilling his promises regarding transparency, democracy and governance. "So far this has not succeeded in my eyes," he complained.[76]

U.S. President Donald Trump warned the countries that intended to support the Morocco bid to host the 2026 World Cup, tweeting: "The US has put together a STRONG bid w/ Canada & Mexico for the 2026 World Cup. It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid. Why should we be supporting these countries when they don't support us (including at the United Nations)?"[77]

References
  1. "USA, Mexico, Canada announce bid to host '26 WC". April 10, 2017. Archived from the original on April 11, 2017.
  2. Carlise, Jeff (April 10, 2017). "U.S., neighbors launch 2026 World Cup bid". Archived from the original on April 11, 2017.
  3. "World Cup 2026: Canada, US & Mexico joint bid wins right to host tournament". BBC. June 13, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  4. Ben Rycroft (July 6, 2012). "Canadian Soccer Association to bid for 2026 World Cup". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on September 4, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  5. Squizzatoa, Daniel (October 10, 2013). "The race is on: Canada continues to plan on bid for 2026 World Cup". mlssoccer.com. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
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  7. "Mexico to bid for 2026 World Cup". ESPN. Press Association. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  8. "Report: Mexico would team up with USA to host 2026 World Cup tournament". Major League Soccer. October 9, 2013. Archived from the original on October 9, 2013.
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  10. Chaudhary, Vivek (13 May 2016). "United States, Mexico in talks for joint 2026". ESPN FC. Archived from the original on 16 May 2016.
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