The 2026 FIFA World Cup will kick off in Mexico City on June 11 and continue through July 19. This year’s world cup is the first of its kind in regards to the games being co-hosted across three different countries.
Mexico, Canada and the U.S. will host 104 matches across 16 cities, including 11 venues in the U.S. such as MetLife Stadium in New York and AT&T Stadium in Dallas.
This year the tournament also is expanding from 32 teams in the past to 48 teams. The growth not only increases the duration of the tournament, but also allows for more fans to feel connected through their country.
For sophomore JP Hanks, a longtime soccer fan, hosting this year’s World Cup in North America will change the environment for the event in a positive way.
“I think that there will be more of a soccer fever that goes around compared to in a country like Qatar,” Hanks said. “When you’re in a country with 350 million people, it makes the environment more special.”
In 2002 the World Cup was co-hosted by South Korea and Japan; however, FIFA banned co-hosting after that and only recently reversed their policy for the 2026 World Cup.
Hanks expects the tournament to bring in casual fans across all three host countries.
“The environment is contagious,” Hanks said. “When fan bases are very good and the environments in stadiums and outside the stadiums are very good, it makes people excited about what’s about to happen.”
Ticket prices have started to draw criticism due to the almost five times increase in some select matchups and the finals.
“FIFA introduced dynamic pricing, which means that FIFA can raise and lower costs as needed,” Hanks said. “The middle class person is not going to be able to afford tickets.”
Some of the highlights in the first round include the Colombia-Portugal game and the USA-Uruguay match. As for some favorites to win it all, Hanks thinks Spain and Frances have a good chance as well as Argentina as the defending champion with Colombia, Morocco and Ecuador as dark horses.
Hanks believes the World Cup carries a weight that stems from national pride, a feeling that club tournaments such as the Champions League can not match.
“There is something that brings the world together that most tournaments do not do,” Hanks said. “Everyone takes a break from whatever they’re doing to sit behind their television and watch their respective countries.”
