Insider Notes: USA's joint bid for World Cup 2026 could come in April
The official announcement of a U.S. bid to host World Cup 2026 could come as soon as April, a source says.
I’m also told that support continues to build for the U.S. bidding along with Mexico and Canada to share that World Cup and its 48 teams, with the 2026 edition the first of the new expanded format unanimously approved by the FIFA Council in January.
MLS commissioner Don Garber, who’s also a U.S. Soccer board member, says that he supports the U.S. sharing that World Cup with its neighbors.
The CONCACAF region is the favorite to host in 2026, as it hasn't hosted the World Cup since the USA did in 1994. Between then and 2022, the competition will have been hosted in Europe three times, Asia twice and South America and Africa once apiece.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino did warn earlier this month that any nation's bid must guarantee full access for players from all qualifying nations and officials, which is more pertinent in light of President Donald Trump's executive orders banning visas for visitors and immigrants from select countries.
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