Why is the FIFA World Cup 2026 being held in three countries?

If you’re a shot fan, the craze astir the FIFA World Cup 2026 has astir apt taken implicit your life.

From adjacent week, the biggest World Cup successful past volition unfold crossed the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3Who are the Golden Boot favourites astatine World Cup 2026?
• list 2 of 3Last Dance: Ronaldo, Messi and others cogwheel up for apt last World Cup
• list 3 of 3From NFL-style half-time amusement to champion kits: The World Cup talking points

But wherefore is the tourney being held successful 3 countries? Al Jazeera breaks it down.

‘United As One’

Initially, the US, Canada and Mexico announced plans to tract idiosyncratic bids for the 2026 World Cup hosting rights. But aboriginal they opted to articulation hands, presenting themselves with the slogan “United As One”.

In 2017, the shot associations of the North American trio officially announced their alliance, calling it the “United Bid”.

A twelvemonth later, astatine FIFA’s 68th Congress successful Moscow, Russia, FIFA’s subordinate associations formed votes, and yet the United Bid won 67 percent of the 200 votes.

With that, past was made, arsenic FIFA announced a World Cup would beryllium held successful 3 countries for the archetypal clip successful the tournament’s 96-year history.

US President Donald Trump, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney clasp cards during the FIFA World Cup 2026 last gully [Amber Searls-Imagn Images]

Expanded format needs much venues, immense infrastructure

FIFA’s determination to grow the information excavation from 32 to 48 teams, and subsequently adhd an other knockout round, meant the 2026 tourney is acceptable to diagnostic a whopping 104 matches, the astir successful the World Cup’s past and 40 much than the full astatine the 2022 variation successful Qatar.

It is practically intolerable for a azygous federation to big that galore games, opening the doorway to the thought of much countries coming together.

What besides helped the US, Canada and Mexico’s associated bid was that each of the stadiums included successful their bid connection was already built, did not necessitate large operation enactment and boasted an mean capableness of much than 68,000.

All campaigner big cities were besides recovered to person existing transportation, accommodation, medical, technology, and different infrastructure that met oregon exceeded the requirements outlined by FIFA.

Fast guardant to today, the 2026 World Cup volition beryllium played crossed 16 stadiums successful 16 cities, galore of which big matches successful the National Football League (NFL), Major League Soccer (MLS), and Liga MX, the top-flight Mexican shot league.

Although the World Cup hosting rights are being shared by 3 countries, the US is hosting 78 games – 3 times much than Canada (13) and Mexico (13) combined.

The bulk of the high-stakes games, including the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, volition beryllium played successful the US.

World Cup 2026: the astir lucrative sports event

An analysis by the World Trade Organization has estimated that the 2026 World Cup volition nutrient $80.1bn successful gross output crossed 3 countries, including $30.5bn successful the US alone.

As The Guardian reported, FIFA’s astir caller fiscal study showed football’s governing assemblage volition marque $13bn from the four-year rhythm culminating successful the 2026 World Cup, astir $9bn of which volition beryllium successful this year.

In comparison, FIFA earned $7.5bn successful gross done 4 years of commercialized deals tied to the 2022 World Cup successful Qatar, and $6.4bn for the 2015-2018 rhythm starring up to the Russia World Cup.

The Paris 2024 Olympics generated $5.24bn.

Simply put, the net from the 2026 World Cup, dispersed crossed North America, volition marque it the astir lucrative sports lawsuit to date.

Regional clusters

To trim the logistical situation of travelling crossed 3 countries, FIFA has divided the venues into 3 determination clusters arsenic follows:

• Western region: Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles
• Central region: Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Houston, Dallas, Kansas City
• Eastern region: Atlanta, Miami, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, New York/New Jersey

Teams volition mostly play their radical games wrong 1 cluster, but not always.

For example, Brazil play each their Group C matches successful the eastbound cluster, crossed New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia and Miami.

But South Africa statesman their Group A run successful Mexico City successful the cardinal cluster, but person to determination to Atlanta successful the eastbound for the 2nd crippled earlier flying backmost to Monterrey.

Bosnia and Herzegovina person the longest question way of immoderate World Cup squad during the radical stage, with a region of astir 5,000km (3,100 miles).

They statesman their tourney successful Toronto earlier making a 3,500km (2,200-mile) travel to Los Angeles for their 2nd game. Their last radical crippled is different 1,500km (900 miles) away, successful Seattle.

While immoderate teams volition person question respite successful the radical stage, should they beforehand further, question fatigue whitethorn get from the knockouts, with matches scattered each over.

The FIFA World Cup begins connected June 11. You tin travel the enactment connected Al Jazeera’s dedicated World Cup 2026 page with each the latest news, lucifer build-up and unrecorded substance commentary, and support up to day with radical standings, real-time lucifer results and schedules.