The 16 cities hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup are official. According to the Fox Sports broadcast, the final naming of the cities came as late as today, hours before the hosting broadcast. But, 16 cities were picked and are ready to host the World Cup in four years.
Mexico, Canada and the United States submitted a joint bid to host the tournament. Canada most recently hosted the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, while the United States held the World Cup in 1994. Mexico has hosted the World Cup twice, in 1970 and 1986. They were awarded the bid during the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. This year’s World Cup will be held in Qatar, pushing the tournament back to November due to cruel summer heat.
The host cities for the 2026 World Cup — which will be the first to include 48 teams — were named on Thursday. They are as followed.
Canada: Toronto, Ontario; and Vancouver, British Columbia.
Mexico: Monterrey, Mexico City and Guadalajara.
United States: Seattle, Washington; San Francisco, California; Los Angeles, California; Kansas City, Missouri; Dallas, Texas; Houston, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston, Massachusetts; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Miami, Florida; and New York-New Jersey.
"We're going into this World Cup with all the confidence in the world and hopefully come 2026 we're going to have a really strong team."
@cpulisic_10 expresses his excitement for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and how it will prepare the @USMNT for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on home soil pic.twitter.com/5x330Zyj86
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 16, 2022
Reaction to the 2026 World Cup host cities
Christian Pulisic, who was on hand in New York City for the announcement, said he was excited that the United States gets to host the World Cup, but his focus is on Qatar and the task at hand in November.
“It’s surreal. I played in Philadelphia a couple times. It’s an amazing city. Being from Pennsylvania myself, it’s really terrific. I’m looking forward to that one,” the Hershey, Pa., native said. “It’s an amazing. We have this one to focus on in Qatar, first of all, but so many memories growing up watching with my family in the basement, watching the World Cup. To be part of it and have one in this country is going to be amazing.”
Meanwhile, Mexican international Hirving “Chucky” Lozano said it is a “beautiful” moment for Mexico to host the World Cup three times.
“We live with a lot of passion in all three cities, so it’s going to beautiful for our whole country,” Lozano said.
Jonathan Osorio, Canadian men’s national team player from the Vancouver area, said hosting the men’s World Cup for the first time is “amazing.”
“It’s amazing that the World cup is coming to Canada. It’s something that, as kids, it was hard to dream of. To see it coming to a beautiful city like Vancouver, which held the women’s World Cup and had a great atmosphere there, I expect no less for the men’s World Cup. It’s an amazing feat for the whole country.”
