America aiming to become epicentre of world sport following 2026 World Cup success

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FT Desk

The 2026 World Cup will go down as the most successful in the history of the tournament financially, and the United States has enjoyed their piece of the action so much that it'll step up plans to become, effectively, the epicentre of worldwide sports.

A joint report by FIFA and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) estimates that spending linked to the 2026 World Cup will contribute $17.2 billion to the US economy and generate a total of $40.9 billion in global GDP.

The US has hosted the 2026 tournament in tandem with Canada and Mexico, though the majority of matches have been played on US soil and the final between Spain and Argentina will take place at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey.

The USA wants more, that's why they are pressing ahead with plans to host the Club World Cup again in 2029, the 2028 Copa America with the US acting as an invitee, while they are already confirmed as hosts for the 2031 Women's World Cup as well as, crucially, the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

"There is no competition with the Americans. No country has sport as integrated into its culture as they do, as part of the formation of citizens and the preparation for a life based on competitiveness, but without extreme rivalry. In addition, they have infrastructures and professionals extraordinarily prepared to organise events of this magnitude. No country better represents what a global event means.

"They have been and continue to be the country that has received the most immigrants, from a greater number of different countries, and are home to the greatest cultural diversity in the world. They changed the standard of the World Cup in 1994 and now they have once again shown that, even by organising an event that is secondary to them, they have offered something much superior to what was seen previously," says Thiago Freitas, COO of Roc Nation Sports.

While the United States is not traditionally a country that has embraced soccer as much as other nations around the world, with NBA and NFL remaining by far the sports of choice for fans, the US does have an incomparable infrastructure to host international sports events.

Noboby has the ability to turn sports into a spectacle quite like the US, explains AS, though the hosts and FIFA have received criticism after it was confirmed that the World Cup final half-time show will last at least 25 minutes.

The World Cup final has never had a half-time show and the break from tradition has upset many.

"The United States is the world reference in sports business, from marketing to technology," says Alexandre Vasconcellos, regional director of Flashscore in Brazil.

"It is the largest advertising market on the planet, with a higher level of sophistication and with large international companies operating locally. The greater the presence of soccer, the more that knowledge and resources will contribute to feed back the value chain of football worldwide.

"In addition, the trend points to an even more accelerated growth due to the greater weight of the Latino population and the growing interest in this sport among the most traditional Americans."

At one point, soccer/football was the black sheep among pastimes in America but the increasing popularity of Major League Soccer, as well as increased broadcasting of elite European leagues in the country and the 2026 World Cup, has seen a major shift in interest in the sport.

MLS was once seen as a retirement league for big European names but over the last five years there has been a switch in focus towards youth and quality.

Yes, older players do arrive in the United States, but MLS currently boasts the presence of the greatest footballer in history, Lionel Messi, who plays for Inter Miami.

According to a survey by Ampere Analysis, as reported by the Economist, American football and basketball are the two favourite sports for Americans.

A huge 36% of fans surveyed said American football was their favourite sport, followed by 17% for basketball.

Then 10% said soccer which just edged out baseball on 9%.

It's a rather dramatic turnaround considering the previous popularity of soccer and the fact that baseball is historically referred to as 'America's pastime'.

"Until recently, the United States was mentioned in the sports field almost exclusively by the NBA and the NFL. Now the country is experiencing a growth in the prestige of football, driven in part by the celebration of major events.

"It is an agenda that not only attracts international attention, but also acts as a catalyst for investments in infrastructure, media and advertising, in addition to generating numerous business opportunities, such as hospitality and the offer of premium services for fans," explains Joaquim Lo Prete, CEO of ABSOLUT Sport.

"The US market has become the epicenter of a globalised audience. By hosting the largest soccer tournaments in the world, the United States is consolidated as a reference destination for international sports tourism and offers a showcase of massive scope for football to connect with fans from all continents in the same place, "says Thales Rangel Mafia, Marketing Director of Multimarcas Consorcios.

Heraldo Evans, commercial and marketing director at Recoma, believes the United States is evolving from being simply one of the world's biggest consumer markets into a global centre for the sports industry.

"The country has made important investments in infrastructure, content and experiences, increasing interest in disciplines that historically were not part of the local imagination and attracting major international sporting events," he said.

"This movement opens up new commercial opportunities, attracts an international audience and redefines the standards of production and management of sport. At the same time, the country takes advantage of the renewal of the Olympic program, which has been incorporating younger sports such as skateboarding, surfing, climbing and breakdance, bringing the Games closer to a new audience.

"By reinforcing these disciplines and attracting sponsors who previously did not invest in the Olympic environment, the United States seeks to recover its historical prominence precisely in the edition that will be organised in Los Angeles."

Ivan Martinho, professor of sports marketing at the ESPM, believes America is now perfectly positioned to consolidate their place as the centre for world sports.

"After several historic attempts to popularise soccer in North America, the growing influence of Latin culture, coupled with the organisation of major events and the presence of top-level stars in the local league, has proven to be a winning formula to raise the importance of this sport in the most competitive market in the world. Competing for attention with the other four major leagues already consolidated is a huge challenge, but football meets all the conditions to definitively consolidate its presence this time," he analyses.

Even United States President Donald Trump has embraced soccer in a way nobody thought he would.

In fact, at the 2026 World Cup draw, he suggested Americans find another name for their own American football and that soccer should be called football.

“It doesn't make any sense. We have to think of another name," he said alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

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FT Desk

FootballTransfers' desk

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