President Trump is bringing potentially the biggest sporting event to the United States.
The draw for the 2026 FIFA men's World Cup will take place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The announcement was made from the Oval Office by President Donald Trump for the December 5th event.
"It's the biggest, probably the biggest event in sports, I guess," said Trump.
The 2026 event will be hosted in three different countries. The United States, Canada and Mexico. This will be the first World Cup hosted by three nations and also the first with the expansion to 48 teams.
Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA said the draw will see the 48 qualified teams split into 12 groups of four teams. The top two teams from each group plus the eight best third-placed teams will advance to the knockout stage.
The event is usually a very big display with lots of pomp and circumstance. When the United States held the World Cup in 1994, the draw was held in Las Vegas with Stevie Wonder among the headline performers.
The World Cup kicks off June 11 at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City and runs through the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Infantino presented Trump with a ticket to next year's World Cup final, which the FIFA president said was the first ticket available for the upcoming tournament and he also brought the World Cup trophy with him to the Oval Office. Trump wanted to hold the trophy but was told it's a superstition, much like the Stanley Cup, that players believe that touching the trophy before their team actually wins the tournament on the field can spark bad luck.
Infantino said the trophy is "for winners only," and then handed the trophy to Trump saying, "And, since you are a winner, of course you can as well."
The President held the trophy and commented that it was "a beautiful piece of gold" and maybe he can display it in the Oval Office.