North America will host the 2026 World Cup after FIFA voters overwhelmingly opted for the financial and logistical certainty of a United States-led bid over a risky Moroccan proposal for the first 48-team tournament.

The soccer showpiece will return to the U.S. for the first time since 1994 after gaining 134 votes, while Morocco got 65 at the FIFA Congress in Moscow on Wednesday.

The vote by football federations was public, in contrast to secrecy surrounding the ballot by FIFA’s elected board members for the 2018 and 2022 hosts, Russia and Qatar, in 2010.

The U.S. proposed staging 60 out of the 80 games in 2026, when 16 teams will be added to the finals, leaving Canada and Mexico with ten fixtures each. North America will host the 2026 World Cup after FIFA voters overwhelmingly opted for the financial and logistical certainty of a United States-led bid over risky Moroccan proposals for the first 48-team tournament.

The soccer showpiece will return to the U.S. for the first time since 1994 after gaining 134 votes, while Morocco got 65 at the FIFA Congress in Moscow on Wednesday.

The vote by football federations was public, in contrast to secrecy surrounding the ballot by FIFA’s elected board members for the 2018 and 2022 hosts, Russia and Qatar, in 2010.

The U.S. proposed staging 60 out of the 80 games in 2026, when 16 teams will be added to the finals, leaving Canada and Mexico with ten fixtures each. The U.S. is set to host all games from the quarterfinals onward.

An optimistic promise of delivering $14 billion in revenue helped sway voters, along with the lack of major construction work required on the 16 planned stadiums, all of which already exist.

By contrast, Morocco appeared too hazardous as a potential host when all 14 venues had to be built or renovated as part of a $16 billion investment in new infrastructure. The vote leaves Morocco reeling from a fifth failure in a World Cup hosting vote, with the continent’s sole tournament coming in 2010 in South Africa.

While Morocco’s combined tickets and hospitality revenue would be $1.07 billion, according to FIFA analysis, North America would generate $2 billion additional income.

Canada will host men’s World Cup matches for the first time, while Mexico gets its first taste of the event since staging the entire event in 1986.

The 87,000-capacity MetLife Stadium outside New York is proposed for the final. It’s just miles from where federal prosecutors spearheaded an ongoing investigation into FIFA corruption. More than 40 soccer officials and businesses indicted, convicted or pleaded guilty.

The bribery scandal put the governing body on the brink, FIFA President Gianni Infantino told the congress ahead of Wednesday’s vote.

“FIFA was clinically dead as an organization,” Infantino said, reflecting on his election in 2016. “Two years later, FIFA is alive and well, full of joy and passion and with a vision for its future.”

The North American victory suggests football officials are ready to gather for a World Cup in a country whose government has demonstrated its willingness to jail corrupt sports leaders through undercover investigations.

The North America bid also had to overcome concerns about the impact of policies from the Trump administration, including attempts to implement a ban on travel by residents of six majority-Muslim countries.

The main intervention by President Donald Trump was a warning in a White House news conference, discussing the FIFA vote, that he would be “watching very closely.” It was a veiled threat to withhold U.S. support from countries opposing the bid.

FIFA now has the final say on which cities are selected to host games and whether all three countries are guaranteed a place at the tournament. Victor Montagliani, the Canadian who leads CONCACAF, wants them to take three of the six qualification slots reserved for the region.

There is also a chance to send a seventh team via an inter-continental playoff. North America will host the six-team playoff tournament in November 2025 to decide the last two places in the 48-team lineup. </s> The United States will host the 2026 FIFA World Cup after its three-way bid – along with Mexico and Canada – was granted staging rights during a vote here on Wednesday.

The “United” bid, that will see 60 of the tournament’s games held in the U.S., with Canada and Mexico getting 10 each, beat out the underdog campaign of Morocco to bring soccer’s biggest show back to American soil.

The U.S. previously hosted in 1994 and the potential for a highly lucrative tournament, plus the existing stadiums and infrastructure, likely played a major role in swaying voters.

With the breakdown of voting results made public, the United bid claimed 134 votes, with 64 giving their support to Morocco and one country voting for neither bid.

The United 2026 bid (Canada-Mexico-US) officials react following the announcement that the United bid will host the 2026 World Cup during the 68th FIFA Congress at the Expocentre in Moscow on June 13, 2018.

After the U.S. men's national team missed out on qualifying for this summer’s tournament, which kicks off at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium on Thursday, the news of the successful bid was a boost to frustrated American soccer fans.

Following allegations of corruption regarding the 2018 and 2022 voting process back in 2010, more than 200 member nations took part in the decision this time around, instead of a 24-person committee.

While Morocco, as expected, obtained strong support in Africa, the United bid’s power base in Central and South America, plus some welcome backing from parts of Europe and Asia, made the difference.

There had been concerns that political factors, such as the United States’ waning popularity overseas and what was perceived as an interfering tweet about the bid from President Donald Trump, would count against it.

However, the strong marks the United bid received from FIFA evaluators boosted its prospects. It is expected that both semifinals and the final will all be held in U.S. venues.

Indeed, Trump's behind-the-scenes actions may even have helped sway some key votes. The White House provided U.S. Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro with three separate letters that Cordeiro showed to delegates, containing guarantees from Trump that any immigration policies relating to predominantly Muslim countries would impose no restriction affecting the tournament.

The United2026 bid (Canada-Mexico-US) leader Carlos Cordeiro, president of the United States Football Association, gives a speech during the 68th FIFA Congress at the Expocentre in Moscow on June 13, 2018.

Both bids were permitted 15 minutes to make a presentation to the FIFA members immediately before the vote. The United Bid featured a youth team player from each of the three nations, beginning with a moving tale by 17-year-old Canadian Alphonso Davies, the current Major League Soccer player of the week, about how his family had been welcomed after fleeing civil war in Africa.

The three federation chiefs also spoke, with Cordeiro strongly emphasizing the profitability of a North American tournament, promising $11 billion in revenues.

Morocco's presentation took some not-so-subtle shots at the U.S., highlighting the fact that guns are banned in Morocco and stating that during the 1994 World Cup even world-renowned soccer stars were unknown in America.

It was a solid performance by Morocco, which entered bidding late and was always going to be up against the odds. In the end it wasn't enough, and Americans fans can look forward to the return of soccer's greatest event in what can only be seen as a massive boost for the domestic game. </s> On Wednesday, FIFA will announce whether or not Canada will co-host the 2026 World Cup.

We would share the hosting duties with the U.S. and Mexico — if team North America wins, it would be the first time three countries host together.

The “United” North American bid was ratified by FIFA, and is favoured to win over competitor Morocco.

READ MORE: North American countries expected to top Moroccan bid to host 2026 World Cup

The announcement comes as the 2018 World Cup is set to start on Thursday in Russia.

WATCH: Fears of hooliganism before FIFA World Cup in Russia

Here’s five things you need to know about the vote:

When is the vote?

Voting takes place at the FIFA Congress on Wednesday at the Moscow Expocentre.

Both bids will be given one last chance to make their case with 15 minute presentations in front of congress.

The congress starts at 9 a.m. Moscow time (2 a.m. ET), but voting isn’t expected to begin until later in the proceedings. The vote is currently marked as the 13th item on the agenda.

Who’s voting and how does it work?

Under FIFA’s new system, all eligible football federations who attend congress are entitled to an equal a vote.

So out of the 211 members, all but the competing nations get a vote.

The winning bid simply needs a majority of the votes.

The result has been a jet-setting campaign from both bids who have travelled the globe in an attempt to win over the worldwide electorate.

There is still a chance neither bid is accepted, which would restart the process, according to FIFA.com, but North America and Morocco wouldn’t be able to submit a new bid.

FIFA released a ranking based on things like stadiums, operating costs, fan zones and transportation; North America received a ranking of 4.0 out of 5, while Morocco received 2.7.

Countries are expected to factor the ranking into their vote.

WATCH: Should countries boycott the FIFA World Cup in Russia?

In late April, U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted out support of the “United” bid for the World Cup.

It’s not unusual for a head of state to talk up his country’s bid, but Trump took things a step further, seemingly threatening to withdraw support for countries that don’t vote for the so-called “United 2026” bid.

Soon after, FIFA issued a reminder that political interference in the World Cup bidding process is forbidden under its statutes.

READ MORE: FIFA reminds Trump that blackmailing countries into voting for U.S. World Cup bid is unethical

A win would mean Canada would play in the tournament for the first time since 1986

Since host countries are automatically in the tournament, a win for the “United” bid would ensure that the Canadian Men’s soccer team would be playing in the World Cup.

The last time they did that was in 1986 — in Mexico. The team didn’t make it past the group stage.

Canada’s Women’s team is another story. The women have been in every World Cup since 1995, only missing out on the first Women’s World Cup in 1991.

Toronto, Montreal and Edmonton are the three Canadian cities slated to host matches if the United 2026 bid prevails. The bulk of the matches — 60 in all — would be held in the U.S., with Canada and Mexico hosting 10 each.

READ MORE: Canadian soccer stalwarts say co-hosting 2026 World Cup could transform the sport in Canada

Soccer in Canada could be transformed forever due to investment in facilities for a World Cup.

“It would be incredible to have the games in Canada and have kids going to the stadiums and watching games and watching Canada play,” said Paul Stalteri, former Canada captain who played club soccer at the highest level in the German Bundesliga and English Premier League before retiring in 2013.

“Some great things can happen in the long term, not just playing the games at the World Cup but the seeds that can be planted leading all the way up to that World Cup and after for the next generation of players.”

The last time FIFA voted on a host nation was in 2010, which prompted a litany of corruption scandals related to the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, respectively.

That was with the old voting system, where the executive committee made the final decision about who would host.

Several members of that committee were later banned from the game after they were caught up in the corruption scandal that engulfed world football’s governing body in 2015.

Under FIFA’s new system for choosing the host nation for the lucrative tournament, all eligible football federations who attend congress will be given a vote.

WATCH: First person in FIFA bribery case sentenced to 8 months in prison </s> From kick-off on 14 January to the final on 5 February, The Africa Report will be bringing you all the latest news and views from this year's Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Gabon.

When President Ali Bongo pushed in 2015 for Gabon to host the next Afcon, he is unlikely to have foreseen a build-up quite like this.



Less than six months ago the National Assembly in Libreville was on fire following a disputed election in which the incumbent won by a mere 6,000 votes; supporters of rival Jean Ping were being shot in the street; social media was blocked; and foreign journalists were barred from entering the country. The Bongo family’s 50-year rule over the country appeared under critical threat. This was not a time to welcome the continent for a festival of football.

The European Union election observation mission pointed to an “obvious anomaly” in the results: in Haut-Ogooué province, Bongo officially won 95% of the vote from 99% turnout. In Gabon's eight other provinces, turnout averaged just 48%. After the Constitutional Court upheld the result in September, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was still concerned enough to look for alternative options – it asked Morocco to host the tournament if conditions in Gabon deteriorated.

Ghana and Algeria could be forgiven a degree of schadenfreude: both countries had presented exceptionally strong bids to host Afcon 2017 and were surprised to lose out to the Gabonese at an often farcical CAF meeting in Cairo two years ago. Algerian Football Federation President, Mohamed Raouraoua, a long-time rival to CAF President Issa Hayatou, openly questioned the validity of the decision. Hayatou was surely confident of a quiet tournament after the chaos of Libya’s 2013 withdrawal and Morocco refusing to host in 2015. Events would prove him wrong.

While the political climate in Gabon has since calmed, there is no doubt the tournament is still coming at a difficult juncture for the government.

The reported $700m cost, with two new stadiums completed in Port-Gentil and isolated Oyem, stands in stark contrast to fresh public spending cuts announced last October as oil revenue continues to fall. The leaked Local Organising Committee (LOC) budget revealed staggering commission fees of $60m and suspiciously high outlay on infrastructure which was meant to have been finished in time for the 2012 tournament. No expense has been spared. The government was forced to deny paying Lionel Messi $3.5m to attend the stone-laying ceremony at the Port-Gentil venue two years ago.

Despite hosting two major tournaments in the past five years, there is still no road between Libreville and Port-Gentil; and in the centre of Libreville, the Stade Omnisport sits unfinished on the site of the former Stade Omar Bongo. Construction began in 2010.

There have been calls for a boycott, but not yet from the official opposition with sway on the coast. Ping is expected to give a speech on the opening day of the tournament. The four stadiums are each parked over 10km outside of each host city, which organisers may hope will forestall protests or crowd trouble.

Either way, the genuine enthusiasm when Gabon co-hosted Afcon with Equatorial Guinea in 2012 is unlikely to be replicated amidst economic stress and simmering discontent. A strong run by Les Panthères, led by talismanic striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, may change that. They have a favourable draw and should make the quarter-finals at the very least. CAF doesn’t like television coverage of empty stadiums and the Gabonese are doing their best to comply, handing out free tickets to schools and encouraging businesses to buy up blocks for their employees.

What those fans will witness is hard to predict. With four different winners since 2010, this is now a competition too close to call. Gone are the days of one-country domination, most recently by Cameroon and Egypt. That reflects both a general rise in standards but also the absence of a truly great generation in any one country.

Côte d’Ivoire, who ended their long wait for another title in 2015, arrive as favourites, alongside Algeria and a promising Senegal. Ghana will be hoping to erase memories of losing on penalties in Malabo two years ago. Nigeria again missed out on qualification, as did South Africa, who had shown signs of youthful advance in 2015. But seven-time winners Egypt are back to contest their first Afcon in seven years. Other subplots include a passionate Uganda side, underdog debutants Guinea-Bissau and Zimbabwe succeeding in spite of organisational chaos at home.

Injuries and withdrawals notwithstanding, the 60th anniversary of the Africa Cup of Nations will boast some of the continent’s leading players. While empty stadiums and protests may yet become the abiding memory of a tournament on the brink of discredit, you can count on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Riyad Mahrez, Sadio Mane and Andre Ayew to provide a few vignettes of their own before the close. </s> ZURICH (AP) - FIFA says nine soccer federations are interested in hosting the 2023 Women's World Cup including South Korea, which could jointly bid with North Korea.

Brazil and South Africa are in the contest, suggesting underused stadiums built to host the 2014 and 2010 World Cups could be picked.

Other contenders are Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Colombia, Japan and New Zealand.

South Korean officials said this month that FIFA approached them to explore a joint bid with North Korea.

Potential candidates have until April 16 to register to bid, then until Oct. 4 to submit bid books.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino holds a soccer ball as he speaks during a press conference after the FIFA Council Meeting, Friday, March 15, 2019, in Miami. The council approved working with Qatar to explore expanding the 2022 World Cup to 48 teams by adding at least one more country in the Persian Gulf to host matches. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

The 37-member FIFA Council will pick the host in March next year.

The next Women's World Cup is played June 7-July 7 in France. </s> A joint proposal from North and South Korea is among a record nine bids for the 2023 Women's World Cup, football's world governing body FIFA has announced.

The other bids come from Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa, which means four of football's six confederations - Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America - are represented in the contest.

There are two stadiums of note in North Korea. The Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang is the biggest, with a capacity of 50,000 seats.

The Yanggakdo Stadium, also in North Korea's capital, holds 30,000.

Having formally expressed their interest in hosting the ninth Women's World Cup, the 10 federations involved now have a month to return their bidding registrations and until October to submit their bid books, signed hosting agreement and all other related documents.

Unlike the men's tournament, which is voted on by all 211 member associations at a FIFA Congress, the winner of this race will be decided by a vote of FIFA's 37-strong ruling council next March.

In a statement, FIFA said it 'will implement a fair and transparent process, which will include a clear evaluation model as well as a concrete commitment to sustainability and human rights'.

FIFA introduced a human rights element to its bidding contests in 2017 following widespread criticism of the decision to award the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, respectively.

According to its 41-page 'Overview of the Bidding Process', FIFA will require the 'implementation of human rights and labour standards' by the bidding federation, the government and 'other entities' involved in organising the event, including those who build or renovate stadiums, training bases, hotels and airports.

While the joint Korean bid will undoubtedly attract the most interest, Australia were the first to declare their interest and are probably the front-runners in terms of their media campaign.

The announcement of nine potential hosts is a far cry from the last two bidding races when there were only two bidding federations for the 2015 and 2019 editions of the tournament. And the fact they are all new would-be hosts is another indication of the growth of the women's game.

This year's tournament is being staged in France between June 7 and July 7, with England and Scotland among the 24 nations taking part. </s> ZURICH: FIFA´s ruling council on Tuesday unanimously approved an expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams in 2026, with a format of 16 groups of three nations.

"The FIFA Council unanimously decided on a 48-team #WorldCup as of 2026: 16 groups of 3 teams," a tweet from FIFA´s official account said.

The decision marks a major coup for the body´s president Gianni Infantino who has made enlarging football´s showcase event the centrepiece of his young administration.

The controversial proposal had faced criticism from some of the sport´s most powerful voices, including warnings that it would dilute the quality of play and overburden already exhausted players.

But Infantino had in recent weeks voiced confidence that his flagship project would be approved.

The FIFA chief has noted that a bigger tournament would beef up FIFA´s coffers.

And a confidential FIFA report seen by AFP projects a 48-team tournament would bring a cash boost of $640 million (605 million euros) above projected revenues for next year´s finals in Russia.

But Infantino has also argued that more World Cup berths would help drive football´s global growth by boosting "inclusion" in the "biggest social and sporting event".

FIFA approves 48 team World Cup for 2026 was posted in Sports of TheNews International - https://www.thenews.com.pk on January 10, 2017 and was last updated on January 10, 2017. This news story is related to Latest/178124-FIFA-approves-48-team-World-Cup-for-2026/ - breaking news, latest news, pakistan ne. Permanent link to the news story "FIFA approves 48 team World Cup for 2026" is https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/178124-FIFA-approves-48-team-World-Cup-for-2026. </s> FIFA will expand the World Cup to 48 teams, adding 16 extra nations to the 2026 tournament which is likely to be held in North America.

President Gianni Infantino's favored plan — for 16 three-team groups with the top two advancing to a round of 32 — was unanimously approved Tuesday by the FIFA Council.

It meets Infantino's election pledge of a bigger World Cup, and should help fund promised raises for FIFA's 211 member federations.

With 80 matches instead of 64, FIFA forecasts the equivalent of $1 billion extra income at current rates from broadcasting and sponsor deals, plus ticket sales, compared to $5.5 billion revenue forecast for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

FIFA's six continents should find out by May how many extra places they will get.

UEFA wants 16 European teams at the tournament, which is strongly favored to be played in North America. The CONCACAF region has not hosted the World Cup since the 1994 tournament in the United States.

American, Canadian and Mexican soccer leaders have had initial talks about a co-hosting bid.

Africa and Asia could be winners in a bigger World Cup with up to nine places each. They had only five and four teams, respectively, at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Still, FIFA said it expects the standard of soccer to drop compared to the 32-team format locked in for the next two World Cups in Russia and Qatar.

The "absolute quality" of play, defined by high-ranked teams facing each other most often, is achieved by 32 teams, FIFA acknowledged in a research document sent to members last month. It made 10,000 tournament simulations to reach that conclusion.

FIFA must break with soccer tradition to make its new format work after an original 48-team plan — with an opening playoff round sending 16 "one-and-done" teams home early — was unpopular.

Instead, three-team groups will replace the usual groups of four to create simple progress to a knockout bracket. However, it leaves one team idle for final group games and could risk collusion between the other two teams.

FIFA said it could guard against result-rigging by introducing penalty shootouts after group games that end in draws. </s> A motion has been passed to expand the FIFA World Cup from 32 to 48 teams, it was confirmed on Tuesday.

FIFA relayed the news after a vote found members were unanimously in favour of the plans, which are scheduled to take effect from 2026:

Those voting had five options to consider on the ballot. Rob Harris of the Associated Press relayed them here:

The new vote will see 48 teams in the World Cup in nine years' time, with 16 groups of three to make up the initial stage of the main draw. It means the amount of matches played in the competition will increase from 64 to 80.

Ben Rumsby of the Daily Telegraph outlined more potential radical changes that could be implemented as a result of the three-team groups, where sides would be more likely to finish deadlocked on points.

“FIFA's preferred solution to this renewed threat is a radical proposal for drawn group fixtures to be followed by a penalty shootout in order to ensure a positive result in every match—which would minimise the possibility of a result being contrived,” it’s suggested.

Prior to the vote, Football Association chief executive Martin Glenn suggested he was against the plans. “I can't influence FIFA—we’re one voice out of 211,” he told BBC Radio 5 live (h/t BBC Sport). “Our preference would be to keep the tournament smaller, because there's a quality factor here. But we'll try to influence the shape of it.”

However, as noted by BBC Sport’s Richard Conway, Argentina’s legendary World Cup-winning captain Diego Maradona expressed his support for the restructuring:

New FIFA President Gianni Infantino has been the driving force behind the expansion and said ahead of Tuesday’s result that a bolstered tournament would help “the development of football all over the world,” per BBC Sport.

Infantino also suggested that financial motives wouldn’t be a crucial factor in any result. According to the Associated Press (via ESPN FC), in-house research from world football’s governing body found that a 48-team World Cup would boost revenue by an estimated 20 per cent compared to the upcoming tournament in Russia in 2018.

Gary Lineker, the winner of the Golden Boot at the 1986 World Cup, made no secret of his scepticism about the extension:

While the expanded tournament will be more inclusive, will give more teams a chance to test themselves at the highest level and give supporters some different stars to view, the big concern over the new format is that quality will suffer. After all, the World Cup has long been considered the absolute peak of the sport.

Aside from the competition itself, it’ll be fascinating to see how this revamp influences qualifying, and with the battle to secure a spot in the tournament inevitably less fierce, if interest in the international game will dwindle between the major summer spectacles.
The FIFA Congress votes to hold the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, with Morocco's World Cup bid coming in second.