Given some of the lengthy and expensive journeys it could avoid, it seems to me WC2026 is screaming out for some sort of regionalisation in venue selection and organisation of the groups. Miami / Orlando and LA / San Fran make perfect sense to me.
I agree somewhat, but the cities won't need to necessarily be the closest. An extra hour in the air between matches is no big deal so whether it's LA-SF or LA-Seattle or even LA-Dallas (or Miami-Orlando vs. Miami-Atlanta, or Miami-DC) is pretty close to irrelevant. I don't think FIFA cares about fans traveling between cities, they never have before. And with the teams, as long as some logic is applied the cities don't need to be that close. I think there will be some regionalization, like they won't make a team play Edmonton and CDMX in the group stage and they may (or may not) tie in the R32 match with the initial 2 group stage venues. But like I keep saying, finances are going drive FIFA's selection decisions and we have zero visibility into how much profit FIFA makes from each venue. That factor overwhelms all the stuff we talk about.
I wouldn't be 100% on that. The original "bid book" schedule had a couple of groups that had a third match (of 3) in Canada/Mexico then have that group's runner-up (concievably) play their round of 32 match in Mexico/Canada. J
I thought the format was set. 16 groups of 3 with the top 2 in each group proceeding to the Round of 32. So 2 Group stage games for each team with 32 of 48 teams advancing. It's what this site says which is also reported on other sites: https://www.2026worldcupnorthamerica.com/fifa-football-format-final-round-world-cup-soccer-2026/ if you have info that says otherwise, please post the source.
GROUPS have 3 games. That's why it's not certain that the team that finishes 2nd will play in that match J
ahh ok I get it now, my apologies. I was just saying earlier that with the large distances, there should be some degree of regionalization put into the scheduling, I don't think it'll be random. But also it doesn't mean that getting clusters of close cities will be a driving factor in venue selection. I think with a little bit of planning this could be extended to the R32 sites, even for the runner-ups. But maybe shorter travel distances ends up being an extra advantage for the group winners. We'll just to wait for when the schedule comes out. Even just knowing the final list of venues may help sort it out a bit.
For me, I care because LA-SF is drivable. As is MIA-ATL, PHL-NYC-BOS. NYC to Cincy, not so much. If I can afford the tickets (big 'if'), I'd prefer to make use of my car for this WC because a lot (most?) of the stadiums are not comfortably accessible by metro, unlike in Europe and Asia. But I agree that FIFA doesn't care about the expense and inconvenience that fans may face, so...
for sure us fans care. I just don't think FIFA cares. I think they feel certain they will sell out all of the games and making it convenient for fans to drive between the cities is not something they care about. There will be consideration as to where the teams play their games I think it'll be generally regionalized and not necessarily where they get the very closest cities.
FIFA doesn‘t really care about anything but their profit. We‘re going to get confirmation for that very soon, when they select sub par stadiums (in terms of World Cup) in biggest markets just to maximize their profit. Narrow pitches, significant viewing obstructions, uncovered seats and unreachable locations will suddenly mean nothing to same FIFA that used to call that inacceptable for recent World Cups! Color of $$$ changes everything!
Meh. The stadiums are much better now than back in 1994 for the USA. Plus the atmospheres and buzz should be a lot better now compared to then too. Canada and Mexico may not be up to par but they will be very happy hosting.
Of course they are, but still clearly below the World Cup level that FIFA managed to establish in last four world Cups (talking about US only, Mexico is fine). Those stadiums are build for another sport, most of them simply just do not fit the World Cup! About the atmosphere, it will be great in Mexico, not so sure about the rest. Yes, better than back in 1994 for sure but how many americans even know about 2026? 2%? 3%? World Cup is much more than 90 minutes of football in a full stadium and that‘s where involvement and excitement of the locals is needed! It is actually crucial for the overall atmosphere and success of the tournament …. I seriously doubt that’s going to happen!
You actually think an old ass Azteca is better than most American Stadiums? Surely you "jest". Americans like a party and Americans like a winner. Assuming the young talent jell by 2026 they should be one of the favorites to win it in 2026 and every media market in every city hosting it will do their best to hype up the World Cup. Social media being the main reason it will be waaaaaaay different than 1994. The atmospheres should be electric inside and outside the stadiums.
I did not say they are going to win it. Just saying they will be one of the favorites IF the young talent progress and live up to hype and potential. The team could finish last for all I know but the potential is there.
Can you explain what you mean by "significant viewing obstructions"? I don't think any of these modern stadiums have obstructed seats, and in any case it's not "significant". I guess we'll see on pitch dimensions, I think some will have pitches narrower than the maximum but all will be above the minimum. Also, how are the sightlines different for American football and World Cup football? Action happens all over the field and the important stuff happens near the goal lines at either end for both sports. There are some converted baseball fields in US Soccer where the seats do point in the wrong direction, but none of those are under consideration for the World Cup. Also what do you mean by "unreachable locations"? BTW I've been to Azteca for a match it's not a great stadium from a fans point of view. Yeah the atmosphere and history are great but the upper deck seats where I was at were WAY far from the pitch. And the rest of the fan experience such as concessions, restrooms, etc were far below what the new American stadiums have. Maybe that stuff doesn't matter to you but it does to me and I think to most fans.
NFL fields are narrower than soccer fields. Also, they tend to have higher walls around the field so the fans in the front rows can see over the the 60-70 very large men on both sidelines. Football stadiums also tend to have a more pronounced curve to their bowls than SSS. All of this can result in sidelines and corners being obscured when soccer is played in NFL stadiums. As an example, when I had STH at midfield of Lumen Field, I couldn't see the corner flags from my seat and had to watch any action in the corners on the big screen.
differences between american football and international football pitches are huge and viewing obstructions depend on how the stadiums were build, with both sports in mind or just for american football. atlanta is extreme case where absolutely noone thought about football, while most of the others have smaller but apparent obstructions, mostly around the corners. some stadiums offer perfect views, such as miami or nashville about unreachable locations, try to get to foxboro, santa clara, even miami or kansas city without the car
it is going to be really interesting to find out if FIFA is going to choose the biggest profit or the best football stadiums, also the final site choice is all but straightforward. by mid 2022 we should know it!
Foxboro has a railway line specifically built so that fans in Boston can get to Foxboro. It just isn't used for NER games due to relatively poor attendance. I can assure you that if a WC game were held at Foxboro, that the line would be active. The issues you've addressed are also a function of stadiums in the US in general and FIFA isn't going to give a flying f**k that people need to rent a car to get there.
For us Canadians I would go Edmonton, Toronto and to replace Montreal I would go with a wild card city...that city of course being??? Our nation's capital of Ottawa
But Vancouver just pulled out @Robert Borden I don't know if you have been keeping up but Vancouver is no longer an option now
I'm not sure Vancouver pulled out so much as FIFA hasn't accepted their re-entry yet. A tweet I saw within the last few days mentioned that FIFA only visited Edmonton and Toronto, but that Vancouver was still trying to work itself back into the bid.
Yeah but if that was true don't you think Infantino and his staff wouldn't have gone to Vancouver to scope things out