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Eight years ago, when FIFA chose the United States, Mexico, and Canada to host the 2026 World Cup, the organization envisioned a major tournament that would show greater cooperation and solidarity between the countries. Three nations would host the matches for the first time in the tournament’s history, and millions of fans would travel across borders to watch.
That vision of unity has not aged well. The games are set to begin tomorrow, but immigration restrictions, trade disputes, security concerns, and a new wave of American nationalism under President Trump have led to an unusual geopolitical experiment: a World Cup that will test how divided North America is.
“Few things can unite communities like a joint World Cup bid,” Arturo Sarukhán, Mexico’s former ambassador to the United States, told me. He had advocated this joint competition bid, and understood it as an opportunity to show the continent’s “hope” and “collective success”. A three-host competition was proposed in 2017, in a document dubbed the “Consolidation Bid”—a name that seems strange today. Jules Boykoff, a political scientist at the University of the Pacific, in Oregon, and the author of a book the 2026 World Cup, he told me that in private conversations during the bid, there was a feeling that Trump would not be there when the World Cup started.
While the concept didn’t pan out, the tournament faced a series of new challenges. Since re-entering power, Trump has neglected long-standing intercontinental cooperation. The three countries were, in a way, closely linked: The now-defunct North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) linked their economies for a quarter of a century. They share borders, and the United States is home to the largest Mexican immigrant community. “Even if some politicians would like to push ‘Control-Alt-Delete,’ you cannot delete one country next to another,” Sarukhán said. Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st state, publish on Truth Social a verified map that showed our northern neighbor has entered the United States. He threatened Mexico with a military attack in January and declared a national emergency at America’s southern border last year to stop immigration. His campaign to impose high tariffs also poses risks to the economies of Canada and Mexico—all of which make the World Cup season even more worrisome.
In the middle of the tournament, on July 1, the three countries are set to renegotiate the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement—a free trade agreement that replaced NAFTA in 2020 and that forms the legal framework for the North American economy. In December, Trump threatened to abandon the USMCA altogether. If it collapses or burns, the supply chains, investment flows, and labor arrangements linking the three signatories could fall apart, with countries having to work together to get out of the games.
Co-hosting the World Cup has happened before: In 2002, despite a minor diplomatic disagreement, South Korea and Japan managed to host the games, and FIFA has scaled back the trend since (the 2030 World Cup will feature Spain, Portugal, and Morocco). Still, this year is “the most politically combustible World Cup we’ve seen,” Boykoff said. Since returning to office, Trump has tightened immigration enforcement in ways that have already affected the race. The star striker of Iraq was held for seven hours and US immigration officials upon arrival; the team photographer was denied direct entry, as was a FIFA referee from Somalia. The South African national team had to delay its trip due to what the country’s sports minister called “shameful and grossly unfair” visa issues.. At least 15 Iranian team officials and staff they were denied visasaccording to Iranian media, and the team is training in Tijuana because the players will be able to enter the United States only. the day before each of their matches. The pattern is hard to miss: Many of these countries are ones that Trump has openly disparaged or gone to war with.
No World Cup has ever been completely free of politics, but this one has been unusually captured by one man. Trump has embraced the tournament as a show of American power, and FIFA has been eager to oblige. The president of the organization, Gianni Infantino, has served he built a close relationship with Trump. In a surreal exhibition of flattery, FIFA awarded Trump his new design peace prize in December, months after he sparked public outrage by not winning the Nobel Peace Prize. That the international competition would be, in his hands, especially an instrument of American victory is not surprising.
In the middle great fear of deportationfans stand to lose more. Even though the Department of Homeland Security insists there will be no ICE raids at World Cup matches, immigrants (or anyone who fears racial profiling) have little reason to take the Trump administration’s decision lightly. The administration has not ruled out making arrests near stadiums, and any fear of an encounter with ICE could serve as a deterrent. There are also logistical difficulties that come with a tournament of this magnitude. Like my partner Nick Miroff reportedDHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin compared the World Cup security operation to what it will take to protect “78 Super Bowls.” TSA officers are stationed at stadium entrances and will be directed from airports expected to be full of arriving fans. Prices of tickets, hotels and transport have been criticized for alleged price gouging. Even Trump reportedly said that if he had to pay those ticket costs, he wouldn’t go either.
“No one seems too pleased,” my colleague Jonathan Lemire wrote. But that could change—there are a number of reasons why fan interest may increase once the tournament begins. More nations are competing than ever before, including 10 African countries—the continent’s biggest ever show. This is also almost the last World Cup for some of the greatest players football has ever seen.
There is a version of the tournament that works: Games happen, teams play, and politics fade into the background. Sports events have a way of confirming their temporal reality. But the fact remains that this World Cup started as an alliance between three countries, and now it is a reminder of how that relationship broke down.
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