WASHINGTON (BN24) — U.S. President Donald Trump announced Friday that the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place in Washington, D.C. on December 5, calling it “the biggest event in sport.”
The tournament, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will be the largest in the competition’s history, expanding to 48 teams and 104 matches. The draw ceremony will be held at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where Trump currently serves as chairman.
The event had been widely expected to be staged in Las Vegas, echoing the draw location from the last U.S.-hosted World Cup in 1994. However, the decision to move it to Washington aligns with Trump’s close ties to the venue and the symbolic importance of the nation’s capital.
“This is probably the biggest event in sports,” Trump said during a joint appearance at the White House with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who brought the World Cup trophy to the Oval Office to mark the announcement.
Infantino praised the scale of the upcoming tournament, noting the global impact and visibility of the draw. “The draw will be broadcast live all over the world and will be watched by one billion viewers,” he said. “It will feature 48 participating teams. There will be 104 matches — 104 Super Bowls!”
During the joint appearance, Infantino handed Trump the iconic trophy. “Can I keep it?” the president asked, holding the prize aloft with a smile.
The draw will divide the 48 qualified nations into 12 groups of four teams. From there, the top two teams in each group, along with the eight best third-place finishers, will advance to the expanded knockout stages — a first for the World Cup.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup marks the first time the tournament will be hosted by three countries and the first edition under the new 48-team format. Matches will be played in major cities across North America, including New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, and Mexico City. With global anticipation building and logistics for the expanded format underway, the December draw will be a crucial milestone in the build-up to what FIFA and U.S. officials are calling the most ambitious tournament in football history
