FIFA president Gianni Infantino: 'For 2026, soccer will be the number 1 sport in this part of the world'

After much speculation, the world now knows in which cities the 80 matches of the FIFA World Cup Canada-Mexico-USA 2026, the first in history to have 48 participating teams, will be held. The excitement was so great that the president of soccer's governing body, Gianni Infantino, dared to make a bold prediction.

It is a fact that 2022 will be remembered as a year closely linked to soccer, as not only has the aforementioned official announcement of the lucky cities to host the 2026 edition been made, but there is also a special fervor as the start of Qatar 2022, the twenty-second edition of the FIFA World Cup, draws ever closer.

A unique edition of the FIFA World Cup will be held from November 21 to December 18, i.e. for 27 days, as it has never before been held in the Middle East and at the end of the calendar year. Mexico, Canada and the USMNT have all qualified and will compete for soccer glory. 

Soccer and the United States, the romance of the future according to Gianni Infantino

In the heat of the excitement, filled with positivity, by the euphoria unleashed in Mexico, Canada and the United States, by the announcement of the 2026 venues, and worldwide by the proximity of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Gianni Infantino launched a prediction: the time is coming when soccer will be able to compete on a level playing field with the NFL, the NBA, and the MLB for the hearts of American fans.

"For 2026, soccer/football will be the number 1 sport in this part of the world", was Gianni Infantino's statement during the broadcast in which the 16 venues for the 2026 World Cup were unveiled, 2 in Canada, 3 in Mexico and 11 in the United States.

It is well known that in the United States, the love for Football, Basketball and Baseball is unparalleled. Simply put, in Forbes' 2021 list of the world's most valuable teams, the top is occupied by the Dallas Cowboys with $5.7 billion, the New York Yankees, $5.2 billion, and the New York Knicks with $5 billion. It will undoubtedly be a tough mission for soccer to steal the love of most fans, at least in the United States.