On July 17, two days before the final between Spain and Argentina, Donald Trump gathered FIFA leadership in his New York skyscraper and did what he does best: announce the desired as already decided.
"You should elect the United States of America again. This time — without Canada and Mexico".
Donald Trump, reception at Trump Tower, New York, July 17, 2026
Formally, this is merely a wish — FIFA has not opened the application process for tournaments after 2034. But the context transforms the remark into something more than sports rhetoric.
Why Now
The 2026 Championship — shared by the USA, Canada and Mexico — takes place against the backdrop of a tariff crisis: back in early June, just hours before the tournament's opening match, Trump publicly questioned the continuation of the USMCA trade agreement between the three countries. The football celebration and economic conflict existed in parallel throughout the month. Excluding partners from the bid for the next tournament is a logical continuation of the same line: the USA as the sole center, neighbors as dependent counterparties.
Trump also revealed that FIFA President Gianni Infantino personally proposed to him the idea of a joint tournament between the USA and China. Trump commented on this with a joke — players "will have a wonderful short flight between matches" — but the very fact that such a scenario is being discussed at the level of heads of state and sports federations testifies to the geopolitical weight of the tournament.
Infantino as a Factor
Trump's personal closeness to Infantino has already cost FIFA its reputation during this same championship. After American striker Folarin Balogan received a red card in a match against Bosnia, Trump personally called the FIFA president requesting a review of the decision. FIFA overturned the disqualification — and Balogan played against Belgium. CNN analysts characterized this as turning a dispute over football refereeing into an "international incident". At the reception at Trump Tower, Trump openly thanked Infantino: "You made another wonderful decision".
2038: The Math is Already Done for the USA
Trump is lobbying for what, under current FIFA rules, is almost inevitable. Due to the rotation system, regions hosting tournaments in 2030 (Europe, Africa, South America) and 2034 (Asia) will not have the right to bid in 2038. The only eligible candidates are North and Central America, the Caribbean and Oceania. Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House working group on the championship, is already publicly discussing the American bid for 2038.
- WC 2030: Spain, Portugal, Morocco (opening matches — Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay)
- WC 2034: Saudi Arabia
- WC 2038: host not determined, official application process not opened
The question is not whether the USA wants to host the 2038 WC — this has already been decided at the administration level. The question is whether FIFA will agree to exclude Canada and Mexico from the bid at a moment when the three countries are still legally bound by a trade agreement that Trump is publicly calling into question. If the USMCA is terminated or substantially rewritten by 2027 — the probability of a purely American World Cup will sharply increase.
