FIFA delegation visiting DC ahead of World Cup 2026 destination selections

After being slowed by the pandemic, the race among 17 U.S. cities to land a coveted spot hosting the 2026 World Cup is back on – and the FIFA delegation is visiting DC today to hear the pitch from the nation’s capital.

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D.C. is bidding to host its fourth World Cup – more than any other U.S. bid city, according to officials.

In conjunction with the FIFA delegation’s visit, DC officials will unveil their plans for "2026 FIFA FanFest" – which would be located on the National Mall.

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The FIFA delegation will visit different sites around the DC region – where key events would be hosted.

The delegation has already visited Boston, Nashville, Atlanta and Orlando.

After the District, their itinerary includes  Baltimore, New York City, Philadelphia and Miami. 

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In the next two months, FIFA will compete its site visits to the remaining U.S. finalists: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Kansas City, Houston, Dallas and Cincinnati.

The United States won hosting rights along with Mexico and Canada in what will be the first World Cup staged in three nations. The site visits were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, pushing back a final decision on the host cities to early 2022.

The Associated Press contributed to this report