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As the March 16, 2018 due date for the official bid for hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup draws near, preparations by the United Bid Committee to submit it are coming into focus. To that end, the committee has selected 44 cities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico to state their interest in being considered for hosting matches during the tournament. A total of 49 stadiums in and nearby those cities will be considered. Ultimately, the committee will select between 20-25 cities to be included in the final bid.
Cities will announce their desire to host matches by September 5, 2017 before making final bids in January of 2018. If the United Bid is selected by FIFA, a dozen or more cities will be chosen as host cities for the tournament. Locations not chosen to hold matches will be still be able to put on events related to the World Cup, such as: the preliminary and final draw, hosting team base camps, and being the home of the International Broadcast Center.
A total of 48 teams will participate in what will be the largest World Cup field ever. A total of 80 matches will be contested in the tournament and 60 games will be played in the U.S. with Canada and Mexico evenly splitting the remaining 20. Requirements for holding matches are a minimum capacity of 40,000 for group matches and at least 80,000 seats for the opening game and final.
There are several stadiums in the U.S. and Mexico that meet the requirement for hosting the opening and final match including the legendary Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, and FedEx Field nearby Washington, D.C.
The candidate cities have several criteria to meet in order to be considered in the final bid as detailed by a statement released by the United Bid Committee:
“In addition to a stadium capable of hosting international soccer, each city has to propose top international-level training sites and locations for team base camps, and hotels for teams, staff and VIP’s. The Bid Committee will also evaluate cities on their commitment to sustainable event management, aspirations to develop soccer, and the positive social impact they anticipate in the local community and beyond stemming from the event.”
All of the cities and stadiums that are being invited to bid for hosing games are:
United Bid Host Cities and Stadiums
| Metropolitan Market | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Market | Stadium | Capacity |
| United States (34 cities, 37 stadiums) | ||
| Atlanta, GA | Mercedes-Benz Stadium | 75,000 |
| Baltimore, MD | M&T Bank Stadium | 71,008 |
| Birmingham, AL | Legion Field | 71,594 |
| Boston, MA (Foxborough, MA) | Gillette Stadium | 65,892 |
| Charlotte, NC | Bank of America Stadium | 75,400 |
| Chicago, IL | Soldier Field | 61,500 |
| Cincinnati, OH | Paul Brown Stadium | 65,515 |
| Cleveland, OH | FirstEnergy Stadium | 68,710 |
| Dallas, TX | Cotton Bowl | 92,100 |
| Dallas, TX (Arlington, TX) | AT&T Stadium | 105,000 |
| Denver, CO | Sports Authority Field at Mile High | 76,125 |
| Detroit, MI | Ford Field | 65,000 |
| Green Bay, WI | Lambeau Field | 81,441 |
| Houston, TX | NRG Stadium | 71,500 |
| Indianapolis, IN | Lucas Oil Stadium | 65,700 |
| Jacksonville, FL | EverBank Field | 64,000 |
| Kansas City, MO | Arrowhead Stadium | 76,416 |
| Las Vegas, NV | Raiders Stadium | 72,000 |
| Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 78,500 |
| Los Angeles, CA (Inglewood, CA) | LA Stadium at Hollywood Park | TBD |
| Los Angeles, CA (Pasadena, CA) | Rose Bowl | 87,527 |
| Miami, FL | Hard Rock Stadium | 65,767 |
| Minneapolis, MN | U.S. Bank Stadium | 63,000 |
| Nashville, TN | Nissan Stadium | 69,143 |
| New Orleans, LA | Mercedes-Benz Superdome | 72,000 |
| New York/New Jersey (East Rutherford, NJ) | MetLife Stadium | 82,500 |
| Orlando, FL | Camping World Stadium | 65,000 |
| Philadelphia, PA | Lincoln Financial Field | 69,328 |
| Phoenix, AZ (Glendale, AZ) | University of Phoenix Stadium | 73,000 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | Heinz Field | 68,400 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | Rice-Eccles Stadium | 45,807 |
| San Antonio, TX | Alamodome | 72,000 |
| San Diego, CA | Qualcomm Stadium | 71,500 |
| San Francisco/San Jose, CA (Santa Clara, CA) | Levi's Stadium | 75,000 |
| Seattle, WA | CenturyLink Field | 69,000 |
| Tampa, FL | Raymond James Stadium | 73,309 |
| Washington, DC (Landover, MD) | FedEx Field | 82,000 |
| Canada (7 cities, 9 stadiums) | ||
| Calgary, Alberta | McMahon Stadium | 35,650 |
| Edmonton, Alberta | Commonwealth Stadium | 56,335 |
| Montréal, Québec | Stade Olympique | 61,004 |
| Montréal, Québec | Stade Saputo | 20,801 |
| Ottawa, Ontario | TD Place Stadium | 24,341 |
| Regina, Saskatchewan | Mosaic Stadium | 30,048 |
| Toronto, Ontario | Rogers Centre | 53,506 |
| Toronto, Ontario | BMO Field | 28,026 |
| Vancouver, British Columbia | BC Place | 55,165 |
| Mexico (3 cities, 3 stadiums) | ||
| Guadalajara, Jalisco | Estadio Chivas | 45,364 |
| Mexico City | Estadio Azteca | 87,000 |
| Monterrey, Nuevo León | Estadio Rayados | 52,237 |