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Report: U.S., Mexico discussing joint 2026 World Cup bid

Jurgen Klinsmann Sunil Gulati USMNT 84

Just days after former U.S. Men’s National Team defender Alexi Lalas firmly stated that the United States is capable of hosting a future World Cup on its own, reports have surfaced linking a joint bid between the U.S. and another CONCACAF nation.

According to ESPN FC, the U.S. and Mexico are reportedly in talks over a joint bid that would see the 2026 World Cup come to North America. Both sides are said to have met at the recent FIFA Congress in Mexico City, while further conversations on the matter will take place in the next few months.

ESPN FC is also reporting that Mexican Football Federation president Decio de Maria has held talks with FIFA president Gianni Infantino about the matter, increasing the likelihood that such a bid would be accepted.

“Mr Infantino was very enthusiastic about my idea for a joint bid and wants me to pursue this further,” De Maria said.

The U.S. last hosted the World Cup in 1994, its only time housing the competition. A bid for Mexico would be their third, including previous competitions in 1970 and 1986.

What do you think of the two sides potentially banding together? Would you rather the U.S. push to host a World Cup on its own?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Perhaps if they win the bid, they plan to play all games in U.S. stadiums so they can jack up ticket prices and profits. Their National team sure seems to prefer to host home games in the U.S..

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  2. So ridiculous. We could host a tournament 4 times the size without breaking a sweat. There is no reason to share it unless this is some political ploy or nonsense.

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  3. It’s obvious how this will play out in my opinion. Mexico doesn’t really want it. There just trying to be in the way of the U.S. until they get bought off behind closed doors and the $$ divided among the few Mexican club Owners who own everything soccer in Mexico including the Mex national team. All profit no initial outlay. Just like the cartels running the country. Screw the Mex soccer fans long live the Pacto de los Caballeros! But good for us we’ll be the single host.

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  4. Be careful what you ask for: Jozy Altidore subbed out in the 40th minute due to injury. Didn’t see the video, but it doesn’t good from what I’m reading on Twitter.

    Next man up is…?

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    • Considering where the previous 4 were/are being held….South Africa, Brazil, Russia, & Qatar…. I would hazard a guess that safety is low on the priority list for choosing a venue for the WC. SA, Brazil, & Russia all have documented issues with safety concerns. Qatar will be a completely different animal….it may not have the same level of “street crime” as the others, but who knows how they’ll handle some of the issues hanging over their hosting (human rights, women’s rights, alcohol, etc…).

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      • I don’t have to go to family friends native of Mexico to make the point, having spent 2 decades married into a Mexican family myself and many of those years working and living there. Pretty much everything you hear about safety and security in Mexico is wrong, or only applies to a few border locations (Cd. Juarez, for example).

        Security is not an issue for a WC bid involving Mexico.

      • I don’t have to go to family friends native of Mexico to make the point, having spent 2 decades married into a Mexican family myself and many of those years working and living there. Pretty much everything you hear about safety and security in Mexico is wrong, or only applies to a few border locations (Cd. Juarez, for example).

        Security is not an issue for a WC bid involving Mexico.

        I know it may be an uncomfortable feeling to consider but you may want to employ the thought that your “family you married into” may have different experiences than the family I take at their word.

        …but I’m sure everyone in Mexico is glad you just eliminated any viable threats in their region because your family said otherwise. If only the world worked in this fashion we’d have no threats to discuss. Utopia’s for everyone!

      • LOl

        Before going all sarcastic mode, you might want to read what teeing off on. I started off explicitly from the get-go saying I didn’t have to refer to anyone’s family and then went on to point out my years of working and living in the country. My views are firsthand, not just hearsay from my wife’s family or any other. So you can see how that kind of makes your comments look a bit silly…

        Of course there could be danger for anyone traveling anywhere at any time. But there is simply not some sort of special widespread higher risk to travel in Mexico or to Mexico hosting the WC.

  5. The only reason I can think of for the US to entertain a joint bid with Mexico would be to sooth the hurt feelings of over all those who are still upset about the US DOJ going after FIFA for their crooked business practices. This may be the only way (other than a joint US/Canada bid) for us to host games for a long while (guessing 20 yrs beyond 2026).
    Mexico needs the US to have a chance to win the bid as they would need to pump a lot of money into infrastructure & stadium updates…to meet the requirements of hosting. Money they don’t really have. Where as the US could host a World Cup with limited prep. We already have the stadiums, infrastructure, and accommodations. It would likely take us a year (max) to work out the scheduling and get the security in place necessary to host.

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    • You’re kidding right? Mexico does have the money hence them building new stadiums and renovating the old ones. Mexico can host the World Cup in its own

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  6. Just give mexico their team’s group stage games. Other than Mexico City, guadalajara, and monterey, there aren’t any other big metropolitan areas. San Diego /tijuana excluded.

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  7. I’m with Lalas on this one. Concacaf is next in line. Mexico has hosted twice. Canada just hosted the women’s world cup. The U.S. should be the host of 2026. I don’t see any reason why we would need to share it with Mexico.

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    • By that argument, US has hosted Women’s world cup 2x’s and Men’s 1x in the past 20/22 years. Honestly, let Australia have it, and stop the dual nation bids.

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  8. Dumb idea. One of the few complaints about ’94 was the travel distance and time between venues. This will only be worse.

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  9. If you’re Mexico its probably the only way you get to host. With expansion likely it makes some sense. Although with travel distances already in issue with the size of the US adding Mexico adds miles.

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    • Not really.
      Flying time from Boston or NY to Mexico, DF is about 5 hours, less than to LA.
      If you have major venues in Chicago, Houston, Dallas, LA, or San Diego amongst others – flying time from those cities to Mexico, DF, or Monterrey, Toluca, Puebla, etc. is comparable to flying anywhere in the US from NY / Boston /Philly, or even shorter from major midwest hubs, or LA / San Fran / San Diego.
      I think it is great idea!

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