The World Cup 2026 will be here before we know it. Having only just seen the conclusion to the European Championship of 2024, the world of football is getting ready to see how the next major tournament will pan out.
The good news is that ‘soccer’ is becoming more and popular in the United States of America, but the bad news is that many friendly matches each summer are still played in the likes of baseball and NFL stadiums. That is obviously something of a concern to those of us that have to endure watching teams like Liverpool and Arsenal play matches on pitches that aren’t good enough. Will it be the same for the World Cup?
It Isn’t Just Being Hosted by the US
The first thing to discuss for those of us that might be considering online betting on football matches that will be taking place during the World Cup is that it isn’t exclusively being hosted by the United States of America. Instead, it is being jointly hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico.
Mexico in particular has long been a football-loving nation, having been one of the nations invited to take part in the first ever World Cup. Whilst the United States was also invited, it’s fair to say that the sport took off in Mexico more than it did in America. Canada is also a country with a long-standing love of the game, so we should be safe there.
BREAKING: FIFA have confirmed that World Cup 2026 will kick off on June 11th at the Estadio Azteca 🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/rXXbLzAm0m
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) February 4, 2024
In the US, the growing appreciation of football means that more and more decent stadiums have been built over the years, to the point that the United States is providing 11 of the host cities when compared to two in Canada and three in Mexico.
None of the stadiums that were used when the US hosted the World Cup in 1994 will be used this time around, whilst the Azteca in Mexico has experience of hosting World Cup matches thanks to its use during both the 1970 iteration of the tournament and the one 16 years later. It will be in Canada and Mexico where most of the football-specific stadiums will be located.
Non-Football Stadiums Will be Used In the States
The biggest fear of many is that none of the stadiums hosting World Cup matches in the United States of America are football-specific venues. The largest stadium that is dedicated to ‘soccer’ in the US is Geodis Park in Nashville, but it can only fit 30,000 people and FIFA have a minimum requirement of 40,000 for World Cup venues.
The same problem is in place for BMO Field in Canada, but the Canadians are looking to expand Toronto FC’s ground from 30,000 to 45,000 for the tournament, making it eligible. Here is a look at the American stadiums that will be used during the World Cup, the team they usually host & their sport:
- MetLife Stadium: New York Giants & New York Jets (NFL)
- AT&T Stadium: Dallas Cowboys (NFL)
- Arrowhead Stadium: Kansas City Chiefs (NFL)
- NRG Stadium: Houston Texans (NFL)
- Mercedes-Benz Stadium: Atlanta Falcons & Atlanta United (NFL & Soccer)
- SoFi Stadium: Los Angeles Rams & Los Angeles Chargers (NFL)
- Lincoln Financial Field: Philadelphia Eagles (NFL)
- Lumen Field: Settle Seahawks, Seattle Sounders & Seattle Reign (NFL & Soccer)
- Levi’s Stadium: San Francisco 49ers (NFL)
- Gillette Stadium: New England Patriots & New England Revolution (NFL & Soccer)
- Hard Rock Stadium: Miami Dolphins (NFL)
Some of the stadiums have hosted football in the past, such as Arrowhead Stadium, which was the home of the Major League Soccer side the Kansas City Wizards between 1996 and 2007. The NRG Stadium in Texas, meanwhile, is where the US men’s national soccer team plays most of its matches. Lincoln Financial Field was the home of the MLS side Philadelphia Union in 2010, whilst Lumen Field is where both a men’s and a women’s soccer team plays their matches.
Gillette Stadium also has experience of hosting football games, being the home of the New England Revolution MLS side.
@pechefootball Will you be going to the World Cup? 🙌🏆 It hasn’t been officially confirmed but FIFA have apparently decided that the 2026 World Cup Final will be hosted at the Dallas Cowboys stadium. This is a very heavy decision that is worth millions of dollars and a lot of thought went into it. #Soccer #FIFAWorldCup
Although you would struggle to argue that the stadiums lined up to host the World Cup in 2026 are absolutely perfect locations for football matches, the reality is that more than a few of them have seen ‘soccer’ games played in them over the years. It is also fair to point out that the stadiums themselves have hosted huge competitive sporting fixtures.
Whilst many in the United Kingdom might sneer at American football as a sport, it remains one of the biggest sports in the world and tens of thousands of Americans turn up to the stadiums that host the matches on a regularly basis, so those responsible know how to deal with big event.
Whether the pitches will be able to cope with a month of football is unknown.