2026 FIFA World Cup: Atlanta Chosen As Potential Host City

ATLANTA, GA – Atlanta has been chosen as a potential host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the bid committee announced Thursday. Atlanta is among 32 sites in the running, including four cities in Canada and three in Mexico.

Representatives from the 32 candidate cities are slated to meet in Houston in mid-November to finalize potential bid paperwork, the committee said. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

FIFA would be the biggest event to come to Atlanta since the 1996 Olympics, which still has remnants and landmarks around the city more than 20 years later. The governing panel said that it had received entreaties from 41 cities but narrowed its list based on places that were “more than capable of helping fulfill the shared vision and ambition of FIFA and the United Bid Committee.”

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“As we move to the next stage of the bid process, we’re even more confident we have everything needed

to deliver the largest, most compelling FIFA World Cup in history and help accelerate the growth of soccer across North America and around the world,” United Bid Chairman Sunil Gulati said in a statement. “We have more than double the number of cities required to stage matches in 2026. We have a vision for
growing the game and engaging fans as never before.”

Cities that were cut from the list, including New Orleans, Cleveland and Birmingham, Alabama may still get a chance help out by hosting non-competition events, the committee said.

"The 32 cities that we have identified as potential host cities, on their own and together, are prepared to welcome soccer fans from around the world. They are more than capable of helping fulfill the shared vision and ambition of FIFA and the United Bid in shaping the future of soccer in North America,” said John Kristick, Executive Director of the United Bid Committee.

United States cities include: Atlanta; Baltimore; Boston; Charlotte, North Carolina; Chicago; Cincinnati; Dallas; Denver; Detroit; Florida; Houston; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Kansas City, Missouri; Miami; Minneapolis; Nashville, New York/New Jersey metro area; Orlando, Philadelphia; Phoenix; Salt Lake City; San Francisco Bay Area; Seattle; Tampa, Tennessee; Washington, D.C.;

Canadian cities: Edmonton, Alberta; Montreal; Toronto; Vancouver, British Columbia

Mexican cities: Guadalajara, Jalisco; Mexico City; Monterrey, Nuevo Leon

Image via Pixabay