Topic: America/Canada/Mexico hold the 2026 world cup

[deano2727]

I might try get to a couple of games in Mexico. Great country!

[Tokyoite]

Never been to North America before so might use this as an excuse to finally visit. Would love to go to Toronto or Vancouver!

[4pool]

Best cities for this will be Vancouver and Seattle, both stadiums right downtown. I work at BC Place, we're very excited.

Seattle is shit downtown. Too much crime and homeless camps. The city will probably clean up the downtown area for the WC. Yes i know it's years off but the situation there is going to take years to resolve. Until then in general watch yourself there. I have a nephew who works downtown and a niece and her husband who live in a north suburb. And fwiw, Portland is the same way in the downtown area.

[AndyInVA]

I dont think they wanted Baltimore and Philly they are very close to each other. MT&T bank Stadium is bigger then Gillette and DC area is a great Soccer area , Boston also a great Sports town

I was hoping DC would be selected and fail to understand why it didnt make it. I thought Charlotte had a chance.

6 hour drive to Atlanta and 7 to Philly for me.

Quick web search says the DC stadium is old and crap. so binned off.

[unknownuser]

It isn’t. Been there. It’s a Championship ground at best.

I work for MLSE and we are obviously very excited that one of our venues has been selected to host the World Cup. There are plans for BMO to be expanded and upgraded.

[bryanod]

Been to about half these stadiums, just need planning but yeah some easier than others. Of course Chicago and Baltimore both not in would be on easier side!

The Amtrak 3 on the east and Van/Sea double on West will be popular.

Brother in TO, pity stadium is fecking tiny.

[Linudden]

Santa Clara averages about 26°C during the World Cup in general but there's zero risk for rain. Unless they're prepared to do evening fixtures, Guadalajara, Kansas City, Monterrey and Miami will be very sweaty though.

[gerrardisgod]

Hopefully we’ll get to see some pale lads wearing a dopey cap during a national anthem.

[Crosby Nick]

Hopefully we’ll get to see some pale lads wearing a dopey cap during a national anthem.

Steve Staunton is the one I remember but did a few Irish lads wear them?

Don’t like all the corporate names stations in the US, makes it harder to know where they’re taking about to the casual watcher like me. Won’t they have to rename them for the tournament if they’re not FIFA sponsors or have I made that up?

[RedG13]

Santa Clara averages about 26°C during the World Cup in general but there's zero risk for rain. Unless they're prepared to do evening fixtures, Guadalajara, Kansas City, Monterrey and Miami will be very sweaty though.

NJ,Philly get 100 degree Fahrenheit with 100% humidity in the summer.

[gerrardisgod]

Steve Staunton is the one I remember but did a few Irish lads wear them?

Just him and Charlton, I think.

Sure Charlton was wearing one in the studio, oddly.

[Tokyoite]

Santa Clara averages about 26°C during the World Cup in general but there's zero risk for rain. Unless they're prepared to do evening fixtures, Guadalajara, Kansas City, Monterrey and Miami will be very sweaty though.

Another winter WC it is then! 

[Fromola]

NJ,Philly get 100 degree Fahrenheit with 100% humidity in the summer.

The 1970, 1986 and 1994 World Cups were played at walking pace in many games with the heat.

[rob1966]

How many brown envelopes did it take to get the tournament in two countries that have hosted it since England last held this 56 years ago then?

[Iska]

Why did Mexico bother getting involved in this?  The tournament has got so big that very few countries could hope to be sole or main hosts going forward - certainly very few proper football countries outside Europe - and Mexico’s one of them.  Ten or so games in this one is a paltry reward for Mexico using its turn.

[Skeeve]

Why did Mexico bother getting involved in this?  The tournament has got so big that very few countries could hope to be sole or main hosts going forward - certainly very few proper football countries outside Europe - and Mexico’s one of them.  Ten or so games in this one is a paltry reward for Mexico using its turn.

Given how much money fifa hoovers up compared with the expenses the host country gets stuck with, Mexico probably didn't want the hassle of solo hosting it, just look at some of the potential european bids that have also been mentioned including countries that have also solo hosted in the past.

Sadly, unless a country has a particular need (such as sportswashing) to solo host then it is probably likely that more world cups will fall into this multiple host pattern.

[Ray K]

For the opening ceremony I'm looking forward to a Diana Ross redemption moment, where she sticks away her penalty and celebrates like Stuart Pearce in 1996.

[Iska]

Given how much money fifa hoovers up compared with the expenses the host country gets stuck with, Mexico probably didn't want the hassle of solo hosting it, just look at some of the potential european bids that have also been mentioned including countries that have also solo hosted in the past.

Sadly, unless a country has a particular need (such as sportswashing) to solo host then it is probably likely that more world cups will fall into this multiple host pattern.

Yeah, that does make sense - though I suppose the other side of that coin is: why bother involving Mexico at all?  The US doesn’t need the help, basically is solo hosting this one, and while having Canada on board works given they share the MLS and Canada couldn’t really host on its own and is still a developing market, those aren’t true for Mexico.

[Crosby Nick]

For the opening ceremony I'm looking forward to a Diana Ross redemption moment, where she sticks away her penalty and celebrates like Stuart Pearce in 1996.

Haha

[RedG13]

Why did Mexico bother getting involved in this?  The tournament has got so big that very few countries could hope to be sole or main hosts going forward - certainly very few proper football countries outside Europe - and Mexico’s one of them.  Ten or so games in this one is a paltry reward for Mexico using its turn.

Even though the US has the most amount of World Cup possible stadiums size wise etc, There really only 4-5 more cities to host it imo which are Baltimore/DC, Minnesota, Det, Denver(at a mile High) and Phoenix.
Nashville would be nice but that stadium not up to standards I dont think Chi wanted to bid for it.
Canada and Mexico both have World Cup stadium also  so just making it the 3 Big North American countries was to host the games was good idea.

[RedG13]

The 1970, 1986 and 1994 World Cups were played at walking pace in many games with the heat.

I would think this would look a little like 2014ish at times. Also Seattle, SF,Vancouver, LA, Houston, Dallas, Atl, Tor, Boston all possible afternoon time slots for the games imo. Run the games in the not as hot climates/Indoor venues when the sun out then 7pm, 10pm est games in the more hot and humid climate when the sun going down, night time. I would think the games would be noon, 3pm, 6 or 7pm and 9 or 10 pm EST for 4 games a day which is basically what is happening this world cup local time.
Not sure what the Monterrey, Guadalajara climates are for the stadium.

[Crosby Nick]

Wonder if they’ve fixed that big shadow over the Azteca centre circle yet.

[Statto Red]

I was hoping DC would be selected and fail to understand why it didnt make it. I thought Charlotte had a chance.

6 hour drive to Atlanta and 7 to Philly for me.

Quick web search says the DC stadium is old and crap. so binned off.

FedEx Field is not that old, opened in 1997 but has a few issues, most serious back in January, shortly after a NFL game finished, a barrier separating the seated area from the away tunnel collapsed, injuring spectators, the stadium got ranked 28, out of 31 NFL stadiums, & this was in 2007, when it was still relatively new.

The Commanders have recently brought a plot of land in Virginia, maybe to build a new stadium, if it get's through planning & all that, it won't be ready by 2026. The other stadium in DC, RFK stadium[which was used in the 94 world cup] is up for demolition.



 

[Linudden]

DC is just the capital, as a sports and entertainment market it's outside the top five in the US anyway. New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, the Bay Area and Las Vegas are all more important to sponsors and investors. In fact, I'd argue Atlanta and the big cities of Texas are about to surpass it. Then you have places like Kansas City and Seattle punching above their weight for their sizes but are still smaller than DC by default. Either way, not much energy in sports and entertainment in the Mid-Atlantic these days. The lack of a successful NFL franchise since the whatever-Skins went to crap plays a role in that.

[disgraced cake]

Was always going to be dominated by American stadiums of course. Would expect the final to be in New York at Metlife.

Toronto's ground will be expanded upon but it certainly doesn't look like a World Cup stadium. Always wanted to visit BC place but had no idea it was a 50k plus seater, always thought it looked small from TV.

Azteca would have been lovely for the final again but they were obviously gonna hold it in the States. Monterrey's ground with that mountain view looks great.

Plenty of American places that bid but didn't get it, likes of Denver, North Carolina, Nashville, Vegas (Nevada)

Gonna be a hot one.

[Linudden]

I would say it's a Pacific time lunch hour final at SoFi in the end.

Climate controlled stadium and all that. If there's a New York heat wave the final risks being a bit of a farce since US prime time won't be an option. They can expand SoFi a bit if need be.

The proposed Dallas and Atlanta semis may stand for the same reason. Domed stadiums are key.

Then my guess would be quarters in Seattle, Santa Clara, NY/NJ and Miami (night game). The winners of Seattle and Santa Clara then face off in Dallas while the east coast winners meet in Atlanta. I wouldn't rule out a Dallas final due to the combination of being in a dome, centrally located for NY/LA winners of semis and having the largest capacity of climate-controlled venues.

[Skeeve]

Yeah, that does make sense - though I suppose the other side of that coin is: why bother involving Mexico at all?  The US doesn’t need the help, basically is solo hosting this one, and while having Canada on board works given they share the MLS and Canada couldn’t really host on its own and is still a developing market, those aren’t true for Mexico.

Yeah, it does seem odd that they got added into the mix when you could have had a usa/canada bid and then canada could have got a couple more venues included in the host cities.

[jedimaster]

Never been to North America before so might use this as an excuse to finally visit. Would love to go to Toronto or Vancouver!

Vancouver is a fantastic place to visit barring the weather. Wouldn't mind going over for a couple of matches in Vancouver and Seattle.

[jedimaster]

Steve Staunton is the one I remember but did a few Irish lads wear them?

Don’t like all the corporate names stations in the US, makes it harder to know where they’re taking about to the casual watcher like me. Won’t they have to rename them for the tournament if they’re not FIFA sponsors or have I made that up?

Didn't Jack refer to him as 'Steve Stanton'? 

[rafathegaffa83]

Yeah, it does seem odd that they got added into the mix when you could have had a usa/canada bid and then canada could have got a couple more venues included in the host cities.

Not sure Canada could have done much more. Calgary, Ottawa and Regina withdrew early on or weren't viewed as viable since they didn't meet capacity/stadium functionality requirements.

Edmonton was mulled as a venue and it sounds like their idiot Premier fucked up their chances by making stupid demands. There may have been infrastructure issues to contend with there, but a 50k+ stadium originally built for the Commonwealth Games was a major plus.

Montreal withdrew its candidacy as the costs for the Quebec government went from $50m CAD to over $100m CAD. The provincial government didn't think such costs were justifiable due to ongoing pandemic and economic recovery issues. Montreal would have been a great host city.

Vancouver has all of its Olympic legacy infrastructure which made it an easy choice. Toronto was always going to be selected. Rogers Centre/SkyDome couldn't be used due to baseball. The biggest issue attendees to Toronto will face is that the public transportation situation is underwhelming for a city of its size and stature. An ongoing subway expansion won't be completed until 2030 (would have likely been completed in time for the WC had an earlier plan not been cancelled).

[PhilV]

Really surprised that no games are taking place in the Raiders Stadium, it's super new???

Maybe they don't want people in Vegas haha https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegiant_Stadium

[Skeeve]

Not sure Canada could have done much more. Calgary, Ottawa and Regina withdrew early on or weren't viewed as viable since they didn't meet capacity/stadium functionality requirements.

 

Fair enough, I guess when funding comes from a region rather than nationally it is easier to end up in that situation where some viable options drop out from consideration.

Looking at issues such as stadiums, transportation and weather, it does show just how badly fifa must hate the uk when barring train strikes we'd probably be closer to being ready to host one this summer than north america would be in 4 years time.

[Statto Red]

Fair enough, I guess when funding comes from a region rather than nationally it is easier to end up in that situation where some viable options drop out from consideration.

Looking at issues such as stadiums, transportation and weather, it does show just how badly fifa must hate the uk when barring train strikes we'd probably be closer to being ready to host one this summer than north america would be in 4 years time.

As much as i'd love England to host the world cup, can't see it happening in my lifetime[& i'm 48], it's not so much FIFA, but more the FIFA members who have the vote, seems you can't win the vote to host the world cup, without being corrupt, it's why Qatar won the WC, & everyone knows it, The FA would never do anything underhand like that.

England have more chance of hosting the Euros, & have put a joint bid in as, United Kingdom/Ireland to host Euro 28

[jedimaster]

As much as i'd love England to host the world cup, can't see it happening in my lifetime[& i'm 48], it's not so much FIFA, but more the FIFA members who have the vote, seems you can't win the vote to host the world cup, without being corrupt, it's why Qatar won the WC, & everyone knows it, The FA would never do anything underhand like that.

England have more chance of hosting the Euros, & have put a joint bid in as, United Kingdom/Ireland to host Euro 28

It's bizarre that a football mad country with excellent stadia like England has not had a World Cup in recent times whilst the USA will have had 2.

[cptrios]

As excited as I am to have matches nearby (though I shudder to think how much tickets will cost), I can't see 'Boston' being a good idea. I put the city's name in quotes because Gillette Stadium is not in Boston; it's in a town called Foxborough, which is 45+ minutes south of the city in the middle of typical highway-corridor suburban sprawl. Games there are great for locals, and I'm happy about that, but visitors? I'm trying to find an equivalent in the UK, but I really can't. Similarly placed towns in England at least have some picturesque old buildings and a museum or two to occupy a couple of days.

I imagine they'll add a couple of public transport options for the matches (there is currently one train back and forth from the city for Patriots games) which will make staying in Boston feasible, but if not, and you have to stay somewhere around Foxborough, make damn sure you rent a car!

[Lone Star Red]

If anyone on this site, especially internationally, travels into the Dallas area for the games here, feel free to hit me up. Would be more than happy to recommend areas to stay/eat and areas to avoid as well.

Dallas-Fort Worth is just one gigantic supersprawl, so it can be overwhelming. And the games are in Arlington, which is about halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth.

[Samie]

Mate, I'd want to stay in the LSR mansion.

[Lone Star Red]

Mate, I'd want to stay in the LSR mansion.

 

There's always room for you, Samie.

[Chakan]

Boston would probably be the closest city for me. Looking forward to it, considering i'm not watching the 2022 one.

[Brain Potter]

The USA stadiums look fine , but are they good for viewing football from. I once went to a game at the old giants stadium and couldn’t see the near touchline.