The United States wants to turn the final stage of the 2026 World Cup, which it jointly organizes with Canada and Mexico, into the largest sporting event in the world. The draw to form 12 groups that included 48 teams, the largest number of participants in history, was worthy of Hollywood. Nessun Dorma, the famous aria from the opera Turandot, performed by Andrea Bocelli, opened the concert that also featured Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger and the stunning Lauryn Hill, one of the best rappers in history. Closing out the show were Los Village People with their famous YMCA.
The United States may not be a soccer match (their national team is not among their favorites), but if they knew it Show business. A business in which Donald Trump moves like tar in water. The point is that football is definitely tempting the country with the largest advertising market in the world, with more posts and licensed products being sold. More than ever before, 104 concerts are planned, so FIFA hopes it will be a highly profitable tournament with an audience of 2,000 million people.
The final stage begins on June 11 when Mexico and South Africa face each other at the Estadio Azteca, the stadium with the most opening matches. It appears that the draw was in favor of Spain, one of the favorites to win the tournament, which is located in Group H, along with Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. Los de Luis de la Fuente face off as favorites, alongside Argentina, England and Germany. This Saturday, FIFA will celebrate the draw of stadiums and the calendar for adaptation to television screens (18:00 Spanish Peninsula time).
Lionel Messi’s last World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo’s; The tournament in which Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland, Vinicius Junior or Vitinha should shine, it should also be one of the final dedication of players like Lamine Yamal or Dowie. Thus, they will compete for attention with a figure who dwarfs and outshines them all: the President of the United States, Donald Trump.
The selection of groups had some distinctive characteristics: each organizer would head one of the 12 groups that would undertake this task A priori They have provided an easily accessible collection. Moreover, the top four rankings of classification FIFA, Spain, Argentina, France and England cannot meet until at least the semi-finals. One of the biggest favourites, for example, Spain and Argentina, cannot be matched until the final. Furthermore, there cannot be more than one country from the same continent in each group, except for Europeans combined, which can at most match.
One of the best moments of the ceremony was the video broadcast in which actor Matthew McConaughey, a huge soccer fan and MLS team owner, and actress Salma Hayek encouraged former soccer player Rio Ferdinand to become one of the captains of the draw, along with broadcaster Samantha Johnson. Model Heidi Klum attended the ceremony, accompanied by American comedian Kevin Hart.
No FIFA and Trump
The desire of the President of the United States for the tournament, approved by the President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, as master of ceremonies, is what distinguished the ceremony, celebrated at the Kennedy Center in the American capital, a huge arts complex, and which was also attended by the Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, and the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, the two host countries of the World Cup.
A jubilant Trump received the new “Viva de la Paz” award from his close friend Infantino, an award designed explicitly to please the US president, who had expressed his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize, which went to her Venezuelan rival, Maria Corina Machado. Before the winner’s name was revealed, everyone present at the ceremony knew that Trump would receive the award, given his special friendly relationship with the FIFA President and his commitment to pleasing his host above all other considerations.
Trump said after receiving the award: “This is one of the greatest honors of my life. We have saved thousands and thousands of lives. We have ended many wars in many places. The World Cup will be something incredible. We worked with all three countries to coordinate it. And I want to decide that our relationship is extraordinary.”
Relations between the three organizing countries have been tense since Trump occupied the Oval Office. The three leaders were seated on the same podium, but separated from each other, demonstrating their distance beyond the New York Mandate’s threats to annex Canada and tighten immigration policies with revisions and deportations. But football can calm their spirits, at least for a while. “We’re on top of it. I think we’ll have a meeting when the event is over,” Trump said in a clearly conciliatory tone, as the Republican president expected on the red carpet. “It is a great honor.” This was an honor for several reasons. “First of all, they sold more tickets than any other event, long before the concert started,” Trump added. The three leaders sat together after Trump received the award.
The 2026 World Cup is scheduled to be held jointly in 11 American cities and three Canadian and Mexican cities. Although there are doubts about the United States’ ability to organize the tournament due to its obsession with security and its lack of interest in other matters affecting athletes, there is no doubt about its wonderful sense of showmanship. The organization chose four of the brightest stars in the world of sports to open the lottery balls: Tom Brady, one of the best American football players; NBA exjugador Shaquille O’Neal; And NHL legends, Wayne Gretzky, and baseball legends (MBL), Aaron Judge, authentic idols in his country.
About seven million visitors are expected to travel to the United States. FIFA is hoping for record advertising revenue for the most expensive World Cup in history. Ticket prices for concerts are doubled and multiplied by eight in some cases. For example, tickets to the final can cost more than $6,700.