FIFA are set to announce the host venue on February 4th
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00:00 The 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup is just two years away.
00:04 The USA, Canada and Mexico are co-hosting.
00:08 We know the venues, but the location of the final
00:10 is yet to be decided.
00:12 So, which famous city will be given the honour?
00:15 Hello there and welcome to Football Now from Doha.
00:23 Well, it may be early days, but there is already
00:25 plenty of buzz around the upcoming FIFA Men's World Cup
00:29 in 2026.
00:31 The US, Canada and Mexico are all co-hosting,
00:34 but there is still one very important decision left
00:36 for FIFA to make, the location of the World Cup final.
00:40 There are two US venues in contention,
00:43 but first, FIFA have released a full list of stadiums
00:45 that will be hosting games throughout the competition.
00:48 So, let's take a look at where some of the world's top teams
00:51 will be battling it out.
00:52 16 stadiums are set to host matches across three countries,
00:56 starting in Canada, BMO Field in Toronto
00:59 and BC Place in Vancouver will welcome supporters.
01:02 Both stadiums are home to Canadian Football League teams.
01:06 In Mexico, Estadio Akron in Guadalajara
01:09 and Estadio BBVA in Guadalupe will be in use,
01:13 along with the famous Azteca Stadium in Mexico City,
01:16 which hosted the final at both the 1970 and 1986 World Cups.
01:21 There's a really wide range of stadiums in Mexico as a whole
01:25 and you'll get a very different experience
01:27 if you go to Guadalajara
01:29 than if you were to go to El Azteca in Mexico City.
01:32 The Azteca is a lot more run down, very old,
01:37 but it's historic in the football space.
01:42 Each team, like, obviously Mexico has a connection,
01:45 Argentina has a connection,
01:46 given the last time Azteca hosted a World Cup.
01:50 It's, I guess, a stadium that has stood the test of time
01:53 when it comes to this sport
01:54 and having another World Cup be hosted there
01:58 is just a wonderful part of its story.
02:00 So I'm very excited for anyone who gets to go to a game there.
02:04 It leaves the bulk of the host stadiums in the USA.
02:07 Foxborough Stadium in Massachusetts is home
02:09 to both the New England Revolution MLS team
02:12 and the NFL franchise New England Patriots.
02:15 Nearby, Lincoln Financial Field is Philadelphia's offering
02:18 and has spectacular views of the city,
02:20 thanks to being open at three of its corners.
02:23 Further down the East Coast, Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta
02:26 is known for its striking retracting roof
02:28 that opens and closes like a camera aperture,
02:30 while the recently renovated Hard Rock Stadium in Miami
02:33 hosted the Super Bowl in 2020
02:35 and is surrounded by a newly built
02:37 Formula One track in the city.
02:38 Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City
02:42 is one of the oldest grounds in the country
02:44 and holds the Guinness World Record
02:45 for being the world's loudest stadium.
02:47 Down south, NRG Stadium in Houston
02:49 is one of two Texas venues set to host games in 2026.
02:54 Moving over to the West,
02:55 Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara
02:56 is home to one of the NFL's most successful franchises,
02:59 the San Francisco 49ers.
03:01 SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles will host regular matches
03:05 and was in the running to have the final,
03:07 but concerns about its capacity and pitch size
03:09 has ruled it out.
03:10 And further north, Lumenfield in Seattle
03:12 is shared by the MLS team the Sounders
03:14 and the NFL team the Seahawks.
03:16 The compact 67,000-seater venue
03:19 is flanked by two distinctive arches
03:21 that form part of the iconic Seattle skyline.
03:24 14 stunning venues there then
03:26 across three different countries,
03:28 and that leaves just two remaining.
03:30 MetLife Stadium in New Jersey
03:32 and AT&T Stadium in Dallas will also host matches,
03:35 although there is one fixture in particular
03:37 that they are both currently vying for,
03:39 the World Cup Final.
03:41 The competition is fierce,
03:43 and that's because hosting football's most iconic game
03:45 brings with it a heap of tourism-related benefits.
03:48 - Yeah, I mean, there's obviously immediate benefits
03:50 from hosting a World Cup
03:52 in terms of a massive arrival of people in your city.
03:55 You're guaranteed to have pretty much all week
03:58 full capacity of hotels and restaurants and everything else.
04:01 So it's direct income there.
04:03 But in terms of what it brings to a city,
04:06 it's much more the prestige of it
04:08 to be the center of attention for a day
04:11 when people all over the world
04:13 are gonna be watching one sports event,
04:15 one game, the biggest game every four years,
04:18 and it's being held in our stadium, in our city,
04:21 with our people putting it on.
04:23 It's a huge goat of confidence, really,
04:25 in any city that gets it.
04:27 - Well, the glory of hosting the final sounds amazing,
04:30 but in order to do so,
04:31 there is a long list of FIFA requirements
04:33 that a city and stadium must adhere to.
04:36 So let's take a look at the MetLife and AT&T stadiums
04:39 and see which venue might be better suited to the event.
04:43 In the east, MetLife Stadium is an 82,000-seater venue
04:46 that is home to both the New York Giants and New York Jets.
04:50 The allure of New York is something FIFA
04:52 will find very hard to resist,
04:53 but limited public transport options
04:55 to New Jersey from Manhattan could be a cause for concern.
04:58 While in the south, AT&T Stadium in Dallas
05:01 is thought to be the current frontrunner to host.
05:03 Home to America's Team
05:04 and the world's most valuable sports franchise,
05:06 the Dallas Cowboys,
05:08 AT&T can expand up to a 105,000-person capacity.
05:12 - Yeah, you know, AT&T Stadium
05:14 is used to hosting these games,
05:15 and they've kind of intentionally here in Dallas-Fort Worth
05:20 wanted to frame themselves as a place
05:22 where important football is played.
05:23 Despite the fact that it's not the newest venue,
05:25 it's kept very, very nice, very clean.
05:28 You don't feel like it's an old stadium at all.
05:31 It isn't, but compared to some of the other venues
05:33 that have been built,
05:34 you know, the Los Angeles venue, Atlanta,
05:37 it's not the newest, it's not the sparkliest,
05:39 it's not the most gleaming,
05:40 but it doesn't take much to put a little coat of paint on it
05:43 and feel like you're in the most important stadium
05:45 in the world.
05:46 It's immense.
05:47 - Still lots of decisions for FIFA to make then
05:49 as they continue their selection process
05:51 for the 2026 World Cup Final.
05:54 That's all we have time for this week.
05:55 Do let us know your thoughts using the hashtag
05:57 #FootballNowWC2026,
06:00 and we'll see you next time.
06:01 Bye for now.
06:02 (upbeat music)
06:05 (upbeat music)