This Friday, the global football community will turn its eyes to Washington DC's Kennedy Center, where the draw for the 2026 men's World Cup will set the stage for next summer's tournament. For fans, it's an event sportswriter Jonathan Liew likens to an early Christmas, offering the first real flavour of the excitement to come.
A Tournament Transformed by Politics
However, the 2026 edition is shaping up to be unlike any World Cup before it. The 48-team sporting extravaganza will be hosted across three nations: Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Its build-up has been distinctly coloured by an extraordinary eight-year courtship of former US President Donald Trump by football's governing body, FIFA.
This relationship will reach a symbolic peak at Friday's ceremony. Alongside the traditional draw, FIFA plans to award its inaugural football peace prize. President Trump is widely tipped to be its first recipient, a move that has sparked intense debate about the sport's entanglement with a divisive political figure.
Mounting Risks for the Beautiful Game
The alliance poses significant risks for the tournament's integrity and accessibility. Trump has already threatened to move games away from Democrat-controlled cities if he wins the upcoming presidential election, injecting partisan politics directly into the event's logistics.
More alarmingly, his administration's legacy includes official policies that bar nationals from certain countries from entering the US. With the tournament set to feature teams from across the globe, this could prevent athletes from competing on the world's biggest stage, undermining the very spirit of the World Cup.
An Unprecedented Crossroads for Football
The situation presents FIFA with a profound dilemma. By so closely aligning itself with Trump in pursuit of a smooth tournament in North America, the organisation has tied football's premier event to the volatile winds of American politics. The coming months will reveal whether this gamble pays off or if the sport comes to regret its political makeover when the first whistle blows in the summer of 2026.
The draw in Washington marks not just the start of the competitive countdown, but a critical moment of reflection on what values the world's game chooses to champion.
