The Soccer Boom: How MLS and the 2026 World Cup Are Transforming North America

Recently, Major League Soccer has experienced an influx of top European talent coming to the

The United States and playing in their league. The most notable is of course, Lionel Messi, but other

players such as Heung Min Son, Thomas Muller, Antoine Griezmann, and many others continue

to add to the popularity. Starting in June, the latest installation of the FIFA World Cup begins. It

will be a multi-country event with games being played in Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

With the MLS already growing in soccer in the US and Canada, tournaments include games

played between MLS teams and teams from Liga MX, the Mexican league. This connects to the

World Cup because they both will exponentially grow the game in North America. The World

The Cup provides opportunities for businesses to associate themselves with this prestigious event.

Sam Carp from SportsPro reports that, “Fifa expects that the 2026 World Cup will deliver the

highest sponsorship revenue ever for a standalone sporting event.” Sponsorships are a large part

of sports, and the tournament being in the United States will allow FIFA to have little to no

trouble filling out their spots for sponsors. FIFA also expects that “the money generated by the

tournament’s commercial partnership program will surpass previous World Cup cycles by a

significant margin” (Carp). These are high expectations because the previous World Cup in 2022

It is widely regarded as one of the best tournaments of all time. Politics and civil unrest exist in

each country, but North America provides the most opportunities for individuals. Couple that with

a growing MLS and an upcoming FIFA World Cup, and the business and product of soccer will reach

new heights by the culmination of this prestigious event.

Source: SportsPro