World Cup 2026 to be held in USA, Canada and Mexico
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico after their joint 'United 2026' bid bid beat Morocco's proposal to host the tournament on Wednesday.
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The United 2026, which will be the biggest World Cup ever held - with 48 teams playing 80 matches over 34 days, won 134 votes compared to 65 for Morocco by FIFA member nations, on the eve of the start of this year’s much-anticipated edition in Russia.
"Football is the only victor. We are all united in football," said US Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro said, adding "Thank you so, so much for this incredible honour. Thank you for entrusting us with this privilege."
Both Mexico (1970 and 1986) and the United States (1994) have previously hosted World Cups, while Canada hosted the Women's World Cup in 2015.
Since the 2018 and 2022 tournaments were awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively back in December 2010, widespread corruption has been exposed in the global game, including allegations of bribery and payment for votes.
A BBC Panorama documentary claimed Qatar spent £117m on their successful bid for the 2022 World Cup, which will be the first to be held in winter, while former Fifa president Sepp Blatter suggested there was an agreement in place for Russia to host the 2018 tournament before the vote even took place.
Blatter and other prominent figures have since been indicted.
United 2026’s winning bid is expected to generate $14bn (£10.3bn) in revenue and make an $11bn (£8.1bn) profit for Fifa, stated Cordeiro.
Of the 16 host cities, 10 will be in the United States while the remainder will be split evenly between Canada and Mexico.
Sixty matches will take place in the US, while Canada and Mexico will host 10 games each.
The final will be held at the 84,953-capacity MetLife Stadium, which is home to NFL sides the New York Giants and the New York Jets.
