Infantino: 2026 World Cup 'bigger than anything ever seen'
FIFA chief hails record attendance pace and defends drink breaks as tournament ramps up.
85 million fans across 44 games. The tournament is on pace to shatter attendance records, with matches spread across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Infantino also defended the introduction of mandatory drink breaks, a move that has drawn criticism from some teams and analysts.
The 44-game format marks a sharp increase from the 32-match tournaments of 2014, 2018, and 2022. 57 million total from Qatar 2022 when adjusted for the expanded schedule. The tournament’s footprint spans 16 host cities, with the opening match scheduled for June 11, 2026, in Los Angeles.
Infantino’s rhetoric underscores FIFA’s push to market the World Cup as a global spectacle, but it also highlights logistical challenges, including stadium readiness and fan mobility across three countries. The 16 venues—ranging from MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to Estadio Azteca in Mexico City—must accommodate not just matches but fan zones, media hubs, and transit systems designed to handle peak crowds. The drink break policy remains a flashpoint.
