With less than a month left until the 2026 FIFA World Cup, anticipation is building across the globe. For the first time in history, the tournament will stretch across three countries: the US, Canada and Mexico will host a record 104 matches featuring 48 teams.
It will look very different from Qatar 2022, where fans from around the world gathered in the smallest country ever to host the World Cup. Qatar's size allowed supporters to attend multiple matches in a single day, something many fans still remember fondly.
While the 2026 tournament will be bigger in every sense, parts of Qatar’s World Cup hosting playbook are now making their way to North America.
Exporting expertise
Under an agreement between FIFA and Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, staff and key stakeholders have been deployed from Qatar to host cities across the US and Canada to share their expertise in organising a World Cup.
