For many, the build-up to the 2026 Fifa World Cup in US, Mexico and Canada has been confusing, at times odd, and in some cases not very welcoming. With a majority of the matches slated to take place in Trump’s America – a country where football (or soccer) isn’t even among the top three sports – there have been concerns that the tournament will be a real dud.

The 2026 World Cup is the first to be held in three different host nations - but why? Al Jazeera explains.

As the 2026 Fifa World Cup kicks off in North America, the tournament is already living up to expectations of a hostile and exclusionary reception by its main host nation.

The sport is a marker of a particular relationship to the wider world.