World Cup 2026 In The U. S.

In 2026, the World Cup will have some format changes and will be held in three countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Located in North America – the Mexicans are also part of Central America – the USA, Mexico, and Canada will be the first countries that, as a trio, host an edition of the World Cup.

There is a plausible reason for this: in 2026, the World Cup will have 48 teams. Therefore, a larger structure is needed to receive teams and fans, in addition to the increased demand for stadiums, matches, and financial transactions.

In total, 16 cities will host games in the next World Cup: two in Canada, three in Mexico, and 11 in the United States, the third most populous country in the world. Below you can check the cities:

The World Cup 2026 Cities

Canada: Vancouver and Toronto.

Mexico: Guadalajara, Monterrey and Mexico City.

United States: Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Dallas, Atlanta, Houston, Boston, Philadelphia, Miami, and New York.

To help with the transportation logistics of the selections, the 16 cities were divided into three different zones. This is the division established:

West Zone: Vancouver (CAN), Seattle (USA), Los Angeles (USA), San Francisco (USA) and Guadalajara (MEX).

Central Zone: Kansas City (USA), Dallas (USA), Atlanta (USA), Houston (USA), Monterrey (MEX), and Mexico City (MEX).

East Zone: Toronto (CAN), Boston (US), Philadelphia (US), Miami, and New York (US).

The World Cup will happen again in June, in the North American summer. Unlike in 1994, stadiums in the United States today are much more modern and technology will help in acclimatizing the space against the strong heat. The different time zones and the great distances will be another puzzle for the organization of the tournament.

In addition, there will be an increase in the number of selections: there will be 48 countries. This will be the first time that the Cup will have three venues – until then, except for Japan and South Korea in 2002, all were played in only one country.

When in the States, don’t forget to watch the matches and honor your country. To go to the stadiums and return home safely, remember to rent chauffeured transportation and ride with all the comfort and luxury you deserve. Count on Vegas VIP Limousines for that!

How Will the World Cup Happen?

When it announced the expansion from 32 to 48 teams, in January 2017, FIFA announced that there would be 16 groups of three countries. The top two from each group would advance to a knockout with 32 ranked.

It is important to know that the format of the 2026 World Cup is not defined yet. It could be 16 groups with three teams, it could be 12 groups with four teams each, or even two groups with 24 teams.

Which Teams Would be Classified?

The division of vacancies of the continents looks like this:

• Asia: 8 (4 more compared to the last World Cup)
• Africa: 9 (4 more)
• Central America, North America, and the Caribbean: 6 (3 more)
• South America: 6 (2 more)
• Europe: 16 (3 more)
• Oceania: 1 (1 more)

In addition to these places, there will still be two extra places in the Cup for those who qualify through the world play-off. This final part will have a total of six teams: one from Asia, Africa, South America, and Oceania, in addition to two from Concacaf. 

Hypothetically…

But who would qualify for the 48-team World Cup? Let’s take the 2022 World Cup and expand to 48 teams, which is the most possible scenario so far. If the 2022 World Cup already had the 48-team format, these would be the countries classified:

• Africa: Algeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, and Tunisia.
• Asia: Australia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.
• North and Central America: Canada, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, and the USA.
• Europe: Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, Portugal, Ukraine, and Wales.
• Oceania: New Zealand.
• South America: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Uruguay.

In this hypothetical scenario, there would be two debuts in the World Cup 2026: Mali and North Macedonia.

The World Cup of 1994 in the United States

The United States competed with Brazil and Morocco for the right to host the Cup. The announcement of the winner of the dispute took place in 1988, on July 4, the date of American independence. The economic power had the challenge of filling its stadiums in a tournament that, initially, could not attract the local population, given the low popularity of the sport there. But the stadiums were full, and the 1994 World Cup ended up being a success in terms of organization and attendance.

The final between Brazil and Italy on July 17, made it to the pages of history for two reasons: first, it brought together two of the only three teams that had won three editions of the World Cup. Therefore, one of them would end up becoming a four-time champion, surpassing her rival. Secondly, it was the first time that the final of a World Cup would end on free kicks from the penalty spot. The game ended 0-0 in normal time and overtime. Brazil’s victory came after three Italian mistakes: a save by goalkeeper Taffarel, and two more kicks out of range by Italian stars Franco Baresi and Roberto Baggio.

Striker, a smiling dog dressed in the colors of the American flag, was the mascot of the 1994 World Cup, but it ended up not being very successful. The public criticized it for considering it too obvious but it won praise for its simplicity. The idea was that the player-dog represented the effort and self-improvement of the American people.

Two players shared the artillery, each with six goals: the Bulgarian Hristo Stoichkov and the Russian Oleg Salenko. The difference is that the first distributed its mark throughout the tournament, helping its team to go far, while the second concentrated almost all of them in the same match.