Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, feels that the 2026 World Cup should be hosted by a country in North America rather than one in Europe. This means the United States may have the chance to host its first World Cup since 1994, especially since Blatter thinks there's a good commercial opportunity.
And it's even better news for the United States that Blatter is running for his fifth term as FIFA president in 2015. Blatter is the eighth president of the international football organization and has been since 1998. In his last election, the 78-year-old won an unopposed race back in 2011 when his opponent, Mohamed bin Hammam, withdrew. Under his tenure as FIFA president, the World Cup has taken place in France, South Korea/Japan, Germany, South Africa and Brazil, with Russia and Qatar hosting in 2018 and 2022.
The 2014 event in Brazil marked the first time it was held in the Western Hemisphere since 1994. Prior to that, Mexico hosted in 1986 and Argentina hosted in 1978, but European countries have dominated with a combined 11 World Cups since the international tournament began in 1930. North American countries have been the host just three times and the U.S. only once - who also lost their bid for 2022 to Qatar. But the growing popularity of the sport in the United States has Blatter considering their bid for 2026.
"Perhaps there's a big commercial opportunity arising now in the United States because of the tremendous television audiences that are booming and that the World Cup has also encouraged in its domestic game as well," Blatter said in a video interview broadcast at the Soccerex Convention in Manchester, via this ESPNFC.com article. "We did well with football when it first went to the United States but the opportunities are bigger now. Could you just have a look at those possibilities as to where the World Cup might travel from Qatar?"
Thus far, those who have bid for the 2026 event include Canada, Mexico and Colombia. It's speculated that the United States and Morocco will as well, along with a possible joint bid from Uruguay and Argentina. This would be especially interesting because Blatter also noted that the World Cup should return to either Africa or the Americas in 2026, which would make for an even more competitive bidding and selection process.
