It’s time to kick it at the World Cup

It’s time for your quadrennial reminder that the US is, in fact, capable of caring about soccer when it wants to.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off tomorrow afternoon, with Mexico facing South Africa in Mexico City to open the world’s most popular sporting event.

It’s kind of a big deal

This year’s tournament is the largest in World Cup history, and not just because every uncle with a group chat suddenly becomes an expert on soccer tactics.

• The 2026 edition features 48 teams playing 104 matches across 39 days, up from the previous 32-team, 64-match format.
• It’s also the first World Cup hosted by three countries, with games spread across 16 cities in the US, Mexico, and Canada.

For American fans, this marks the first men’s World Cup on US soil since 1994. There will be matches hosted across 11 metro areas, including Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Seattle, and the San Francisco Bay Area.

And while ticket prices have drawn widespread criticism for being too high, host cities are still expecting the influx of fans to provide a major tourism bump.

Looking ahead…Team USA, who has the highest odds of advancing in their four-team Group D, will take the field tomorrow against Paraguay. The tournament runs through July 19, when New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium hosts the World Cup final.