We’re told there’s starting to be a lot of nervousness in the five Canadian and Mexican venues that will host the 2026 World Cup.
The reason: the United States government has appointed a World Cup Committee headed by President Donald Trump himself! Several agencies intend to bring more games to new venues in that country.
In fact, they have several stadiums that meet FIFA requirements to host World Cup matches. Thus, in addition to the territorial, tariff, and security frictions with Canada and Mexico, Trump is on the verge of starting a sports crisis.
We’re told that the key player in these decisions will be the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), which unanimously voted for Mexico as the host in order to prevent FIFA from changing the World Cup route.
However, one of them, due to political conflicts with the United States, could be banned from entering the country, according to a leaked list, which the Donald Trump administration and the US presidency claim are about to officially publish. In total, that list includes travel bans and restrictions on 43 countries, but only one of them has a guaranteed spot in the 2026 World Cup: Iran.
The Iranian national team was the second from Asia to qualify, after Japan, but appears on the aforementioned list. Furthermore, it is at the highest level of restriction, which prevents 100% of all people from entering the United States.
Cameroon, Venezuela, and several other countries that still have a chance of qualifying for the World Cup could also face similar problems. However, the anonymous source who shared the list with the New York Times could change it before it is officially published.
