On Friday, in a White House press meeting, President Trump was joined by Gianni Infantino, president of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), to announce the location of the 2026 World Cup draw in Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center.
The World Cup is the world's largest sporting event.
The FIFA World Cup is coming to North America next summer, and soccer fans across the globe now have an idea of when they will learn of their country's opponents.
President Donald Trump announced on Friday that the 2026 World Cup draw will be held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 5.
Trump has been increasingly involved in FIFA activities in the buildup to the 2026 World Cup. He attended the FIFA Club World Cup Final earlier this summer at MetLife Stadium, which will also be the site of the FIFA World Cup Final on July 19, 2026. Trump has also been speaking regularly with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who joined him at Friday's announcement, a senior White House official told NBC News.
President Trump also touted the refurbishing of the Kennedy Center and the efforts underway to make the District of Columbia a safer and cleaner place, noting that the District is now seeing the lowest crime rates in years.
Signor Infantino spoke briefly as well, noting that the event will include 48 participating teams, over a hundred matches, and described the World Cup as the "greatest sport and social event in the world." He brought to the White House the gold World Cup trophy, noting how few people are allowed to hold the trophy, then allowing President Trump to do so, prompting the president to jokingly ask, "Can I keep it? It would look great on that shelf right over there." Later, Signor Infantino handed President Trump a giant World Cup event ticket, marked for a seat in "Row 1, Seat 1."
The World Cup is expected to draw upward of 6 million attendees and to generate $30 billion in economic activity. The entire event will play out in three countries, the United States, Mexico, and Canada, and the 2026 tournament has been expanded over previous years, with 48 teams competing.
The FIFA World Cup 26™ is firmly in view for fans of the beautiful game around the globe with a number of firsts as three nations - Canada, Mexico and the USA - will co-host, and a record 48 teams will take part.
After the thrilling drama of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, Argentina are aiming to become just the third defending champion in history to retain the trophy.
Qualification tournaments among the six global confederations are already under way, with several teams having booked their tickets to the eagerly-anticipated global showpiece.
This will be, as someone once said, a big freaking deal.
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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem noted that there is already a process planned to expedite visas for World Cup attendees.
The last question for President Trump from the assembled media was, "Can America win?" The president laughed, noted he'd seen some of the other teams, and observed, "We have a shot."
But then, that's why you play tournaments like this - to see who wins.
Editor's Note: President Trump is leading America into the "Golden Age" as Democrats try desperately to stop it.
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