The 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place this June through July, and will be a tournament of many firsts. The matches will be spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico, making it the first Cup to be jointly hosted by three nations. This historic moment, however, is currently being overshadowed by American immigration restrictions, venue concerns and potential boycotts from other nations. 

This will also be the first year that 48 teams will be competing, as opposed to the typical 32 that played in most previous World Cups. With the expanded format, nations that have never competed will have the opportunity to qualify.

While the group stage matchups were drawn in December of 2025, some teams still have yet to qualify. Each continent is given a set number of permitted nations, and the increased number means certain teams are taking longer to qualify. 

Africa and South America still have one open spot each, and North America has two. Europe has the most, at 16, because its qualifying tournament is still ongoing and will not end until March 31. 

Thanks to the rise in teams allowed, several smaller nations, including Cape Verde, Jordan and Curacao, have qualified for the first time in FIFA’s 96-year history. 

With the games fast approaching, it is impossible to prepare without addressing the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration from many South American, Middle Eastern and African countries. Trump released a list of nations that were banned or partially restricted from entering the U.S., and it included the World Cup qualifying nations Haiti, Iran, Senegal and the Ivory Coast. These countries will have to receive special permissions, or they may not be able to compete. 

Germany has already launched a plan to potentially boycott the tournament in retaliation for this decision, comparing it to the tensions of the Olympic boycott during the Cold War. The 1980 Summer Olympics took place in Moscow, and over 60 countries boycotted the event in protest of the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan. 

“By my reckoning, the potential threat is greater now than it was then,” said Oke Gottlich, a VP of the German soccer federation. 

Many have drawn comparisons to Qatar’s human rights violations during the 2022 World Cup, which did not cause a boycott from any competing nations. FIFA has made an attempt to appease Trump’s aggressive policies by giving him a “FIFA Peace Prize”, a move that has been criticised by many countries and officials within the FIFA organization. 

Despite the growing number of issues, many fans are excited for the return of the biggest tournament of nations. As the popularity of soccer has steadily increased in the U.S. over the past few decades, early hype for the World Cup has been huge., 

The American professional soccer league, Major League Soccer, has also increased fan interest within the U.S., with many international players playing for American teams and also in the World Cup. LA Galaxy’s new transfer Hueng-Min Son and Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi will be playing for South Korea and Argentina, respectively, and both will draw in large fanbases to their matches. 

The games will be spread across North America, but will primarily take place in the United States in 11 specific host cities spread across the nation. Mexico will host three games, including the final, and Canada will host two.

A ticket lottery system has been implemented to ensure all fans have a fair chance of getting tickets, although several venues and matches have already sold out. FIFA last reported that lottery submissions had reached over 500 million, with matches like the tournament opener and Colombia vs Portugal being some of the most desired by fans. 

Even though a majority of the matches will take place in the U.S., there have been several issues with tournament compliant venues. While the U.S. has the MLS organization, many of the teams play out of NFL arenas or have their own arenas that do not fit FIFA’s qualifications. FIFA has a minimum capacity requirement of 40,000 seats, which some MLS stadiums cannot accommodate. 

In short, many concerns with the international soccer community have to do with the possible “Americanization” of soccer, potentially turning this centuries-old competition into another gimmick-filled ad-fest. 

There have been plans for a Super Bowl-style halftime show to take place during the final match, but this plan has been met with much backlash from fans and officials alike. The halftime show format will have to be altered substantially to work, as a soccer match’s halftime break cannot exceed 15 minutes, but the typical halftime intermission during the Super Bowl can go up to 30 minutes. The length of this break mid-game has the possibility of negatively impacting the pace of the soccer match. 

Though there are many causes for concern for the upcoming World Cup, large changes are still being made in the months leading up to the tournament. Stadiums are being retrofitted to accommodate the larger capacities. International rights organizations are suing the Trump administration to allow people to enter the country and stop ICE from entering stadiums. 

With matches set to start in five months, there is still plenty of time for sweeping corrections to ensure a safe and successful World Cup competition.