US, Mexico and Canada propose most lucrative World Cup ever

Soccer leaders from the U.S., Canada and Mexico announced a joint bid to host the expanded 48-team World Cup in 2026, promising an event that would bring in more money than any previous iteration of the world’s biggest sporting event.

North America hasn’t played host since the U.S. held the event in 1994 and drew almost 3.6 million people to stadiums across the country -- still a World Cup record although only 24 nations competed at the time. After that tournament, FIFA, the sport’s governing body, increased the number of teams to 32 and will expand it again to 48 as of 2026.

A return to North America, with 60 games in the U.S. and 10 each in Mexico and Canada, would be “by far the most successful World Cup in the history of FIFA in terms of economics,”

Source: Bloomberg