The sales pitch has been something else. FIFA president Gianni Infantino promised ‘104 Super Bowls in one month’ and Donald Trump called it a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase the beauty and the greatness of America.’
US Soccer believes the 2026 World Cup can ‘transform’ the sport on these shores, while Andrew Giuliani – head of the White House’s World Cup Task Force – told the Daily Mail that the tournament provides ‘the largest platform… to show off American exceptionalism.’
This summer, eyes from across the globe will be trained on the US, Mexico and Canada. America will host 78 games across 11 cities – on its 250th birthday, no less.
But a month out, the World Cup is mired in controversy, with concerns over eye-watering ticket prices and transport costs, travel bans, war, peace prizes… and the performances of Mauricio Pochettino’s US team.
In the past few weeks alone, a gunman allegedly targeted the White House Correspondents’ Dinner – with Trump and many cabinet members in attendance, while Infantino tried – and failed – to orchestrate a handshake between Israeli and Palestinian soccer officials.
The countdown to the biggest World Cup in history has been a conveyor belt of chaos. And it begs the question: Is America careering towards a disaster – both on and off the field?
With a month to go until kickoff, the 2026 World Cup in North America is mired in controversy
Mauricio Pochettino is tasked with leading the US Men’s National Team this summer
Cole Tomas Allen, a suspect in the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Over the past few years, Infantino has embarked on a relentless charm offensive aimed at strengthening ties with Trump.
The FIFA president has been a regular in the Oval Office and at December’s World Cup draw, he awarded Trump the first ever FIFA Peace Prize.
Unfortunately for Infantino, none of that prevented the president from siding with supporters over ticket prices at this World Cup. Last week, Trump was asked about the USA’s opening game against Paraguay, where seats are going for upwards of $1,000.
‘I would certainly like to be there,’ he told the California Post. ‘But I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.’
That bruising verdict – from a man worth an estimated $6.5 billion – came just hours after Infantino’s latest attempt to defend prices that have sparked international outrage and even a lawsuit.
Football Supporters Europe have accused FIFA of a ‘monumental betrayal’ and filed a lawsuit with the European Commission.
Last week, when Daily Mail Sport reached the front of the queue in one of FIFA’s ‘last-minute sales phases,’ there were 89 tickets available Ivory Coast vs Ecuador at Philadelphia’s 68,000-seater Lincoln Financial Field. They cost $1,300 apiece.
A seat at Portugal’s clash with Colombia, meanwhile, is set to be more expensive than the Super Bowl. The cheapest available tickets are currently averaging around $2,500 – more than the NFL’s most recent showpiece finale.
Infantino said a quarter of group-stage tickets were available for less than $300. It was meant as a boast. But last week, FIFA tripled the price of ‘Category 1’ tickets to the World Cup final from $10,990 to $32,970. Four seats were recently listed – on FIFA’s own resale platform – for nearly $2.3 million each.
When asked about ticket prices for World Cup games, Donald Trump said: ‘I wouldn’t pay it’
On one resale site, the cheapest ticket for the USMNT’s opener against Paraguay costs $1,080
‘There are expensive tickets, yes, but there are also affordable tickets,’ the FIFA president said. Late last year, more than 100,000 seats went on sale for just $60 but some members of congress have written to Infantino expressing their ‘deep concern’ about FIFA’s ‘ticketing practices’ such as dynamic pricing, the controversial system which sees costs fluctuate with demand.
And Infantino likes to cite demand – there have been more than 500 million ticket requests compared with 50 million across the previous two World Cups, apparently. Trump also praised FIFA for already selling more than five million tickets. ‘Setting every record in the book,’ the president told the Post.
But reports suggest that up to a million tickets – or one in seven – remain available. Among those proving a tougher sell? The USA’s opener against Paraguay. Trump takes credit for America securing the World Cup and neither he nor Infantino will want swathes of empty seats to be the enduring image of this summer’s tournament.
Perhaps many people are simply waiting – in America, tickets routinely change hands right up to gameday and FIFA has its own resale marketplace where the governing body takes a 30 percent fee. Or perhaps fans are put off by the cost of getting to games.
A return train ticket from New York to MetLife Stadium, for instance, will cost $105 – down $45 from their initial price but still nearly ten times the usual fare. A roundtrip train journey from Boston to Gillette Stadium costs $80. The bus is $95.
Driving isn’t a great option, either. There will be no on-site parking at MetLife, for instance, with only limited spots available at a mall half a mile away.
They are going for $225 – but pricing is ‘dynamic,’ of course. Parking at one official lot, more than a mile from SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, costs up to $300. There are some group games – in Atlanta and Houston – where parking cost less than three figures. There, spaces cost $99.99.
This summer, a return train ticket from New York to New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium will be $105
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has come in for intense criticism ahead of this World Cup
Is it any wonder many fans have decided the World Cup isn’t worth the cost? More than a million international visitors are expected in the US over the five-week tournament, which runs between June 11 and July 19.
But the American Hotel and Lodging Association found demand for rooms across host cities is ‘tracking below initial forecasts.’ That doesn’t bode well for Infantino’s prediction that the World Cup will bring in more than $11 billion for FIFA and $30 billion for the US economy.
FIFA has cancelled block bookings across the country; many hotels described the tournament as a ‘non-event,’ with the AHLA report claiming ‘visa barriers and broader geopolitical concerns are significantly suppressing international demand.’
That is despite Trump claiming: ‘We can’t wait to welcome soccer fans from all over the globe.’ That is despite the introduction of a new ‘FIFA Pass’ that gives international ticket holders the chance to secure a fast-track visa appointment.
It doesn’t help, of course, that fans of four teams – Iran, Haiti, Senegal and Ivory Coast – are banned from travelling to the US barring some narrow exceptions. Many others face paying a deposit of up to $15,000 to secure a tourist visa.
Then there is the specter of ICE. Earlier this year, immigration bosses said agents – who have launched a major crackdown since Trump returned to power – would be a ‘key part’ of World Cup security.
That sparked concern from organizations such as Amnesty, who warned that the tournament risked becoming ‘a stage for repression and… authoritarian practices.’
But one tournament official recently told the Athletic they had been assured by secretary of state Marco Rubio that ICE agents will not be patrolling stadiums.
Despite all of this uncertainty and all these obstacles, Infantino claimed recently: ‘We will make sure, definitely, that all the teams, players, officials can come… including, of course, family members – even fans.’
The FIFA president insisted they are in are ‘constant discussions’ with the host governments to ensure ticket holders can make it to North America. But time is running out and conflict is continuing in the Middle East.
There has been uncertainty over Iran’s participation after war broke out in the Middle East
Iran is slated to play group games in Seattle and Los Angeles. But earlier this year, war broke out with the US and Israel. At first, Trump suggested Iran should skip the tournament for ‘their own life and safety.’ Then one special envoy suggested Italy could take their place.
Now, after months of mud slinging, Iran has vowed it will play – provided a series of demands are met. The Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) said the national team would take part ‘without any retreat from our beliefs, culture and convictions,’ warning too that FIFA and the host nations ‘must take our concerns into account.’
It comes after federation president Mehdi Taj was refused entry into Canada ahead of last month’s FIFA Congress. That only intensified concerns over how Iranian officials and players could be treated this summer.
Taj said Iran has now submitted ten conditions to FIFA. Among them? A guarantee that every member of the Iranian delegation – including players, coaching staff and officials – will be granted visas to travel freely between host nations.
Rubio recently said Iranian players would be welcome but he suggested anyone with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) would be denied entry. The IRGC has been designated as a terrorist group by both Canada and the United States.
‘They can’t bring a bunch of IRGC terrorists into our country and pretend that they are journalists and athletic trainers,’ Rubio said. Washington has designated the IRGC as a ‘foreign terrorist organization.’
The conflict in the Middle East has also prompted renewed fears over security at the World Cup. Back in March, a gunman killed three people – and injured 15 others – in Austin, with the FBI claiming the attack may have been sparked by ‘specific personal triggers and grievances’ related to the Iran war.
Less than a week later, two men allegedly threw a bomb outside the home of New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani. Prosecutors said they hoped to kill up to 60 people in the name of Islamic State.
Counter-terrorism expert Paul Goldenberg, meanwhile, warned of an ‘awakening’ of Iranian sleeper cells.
Infantino has promised ‘104 Super Bowls in one month’ during this summer’s tournament
‘We are in probably the most challenging times that I’ve seen in probably 20, 25 years,’ he told the Daily Mail ‘The World Cup is a prime target for someone who wants to do the greatest damage.’
But Goldenberg reassured fans that the authorities are ‘doing everything humanly possible’ to keep them safe. The 11 American host cities were given $625 million in security funding by the Trump administration, while the government launched the Safer Skies Act, a $500 million move to protect against the threat of drones.
That came around the time experts told the Daily Mail that America is in ‘imminent danger’ of deadly drone attacks. ‘There are lives on the line,’ they warned.
Violence spread across Mexico earlier this year, too, following the death of major drug cartel boss Nemesio ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera Cervantes. That raised concerns over the safety of games in Monterrey, Guadalajara and Mexico City but Infantino insisted at the time: ‘Everything is good… it is going to be spectacular.’
The World Cup Task Force also assured fans that this will be ‘the largest, safest, and most welcoming sporting event in history’ where fans ‘can look forward to a smooth, secure, and truly unforgettable tournament.’
But the chaos at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was described by Giuliani as a ‘sobering reminder’ of the threats facing America. Cole Tomas Allen, 31, is charged with trying to assassinate the president.
Trump joined in the celebrations at last year’s Club World Cup Final and he is expected to be at MetLife Stadium for the World Cup final in July. The president – a regular at major sporting events since returning to the Oval Office – hopes to be at the USMNT’s opening game against Paraguay, too.
That night, after months of off-field uncertainty and controversy, Pochettino’s team will take center stage.
The USMNT is ranked among the world’s best teams and they are one the tournament’s top seeds, too. That is a benefit of being co-hosts. The expanded 48-team format, meanwhile, makes the path to the knockout stages rather less treacherous.
Three decades after hosting the 1994 World Cup, America now has a base befitting a top soccer nation, too. This month, US Soccer moved into a new $228 million HQ outside Atlanta.
But their World Cup preparations were thrown into disarray when sporting director Matt Crocker quit less than two months before the tournament.
Christian Pulisic, nicknamed ‘Captain America,’ will spearhead the US’ World Cup campaign
US Soccer’s sporting director Matt Crocker quit less than two months before the tournament
Questions have also been raised about Pochettino’s future, given the head coach – who is under contract until later this year – has made clear his desire to return to the Premier League ‘one day.’ It all means that, heading into the tournament, the USMNT is walking a tightrope.
Automatic qualification for the World Cup has limited the US’ ability to play meaningful games against top-level sides over recent months. And in their final two matches before Pochettino names his roster, the USMNT was handily beaten by Portugal and Belgium. Those losses served as a brutal reminder of the fine margins among soccer’s elite.
Christian Pulisic, the team’s talisman, has not scored in his last 19 games. He is now reportedly battling a muscle injury, while an ankle issue means midfielder Johnny Cardoso is out of the tournament.
US Soccer chief JT Batson wants the USMNT and USWNT to become America’s favorite sports teams but research by ‘Beyond The 90’ found that, in 2025, average attendance and English-language TV ratings of men’s games fell by around a quarter.
Perhaps that is fairly trivial, given the other concerns heading into this summer. After all the controversy that engulfed World Cups in Qatar and Russia, this was supposed to be a smoother ride. But the past few months suggest the path ahead could be very bumpy indeed.
