The new soccer mecca: the United States hosts the renewed Club World Cup before everyone else

The World Cup - Olympic Games - Copa América saga written by Brazil between 2014 and 2019 currently finds an expanded version on a floor with a growing football tradition. The United States was designated as the venue for the first edition of the Club World Cup with 32 teams to be held in 2025, so it will host four of the sport’s most prestigious events for the next five years. The 2024 Copa America, the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games fill the board.

The country that currently organizes the Gold Cup - together with Canada - will, in fact, concentrate the main competitions of global and continental national teams, the most important club competition and, to round off, the multisports event par excellence, which includes football. The arrival of Lionel Messi is part of a plan for sustained growth that is already fruitful and that Gianni Infantino approves.

“The United States already has the required infrastructure and enormous interest throughout the country,” said the FIFA president. The two variables he highlighted are supported by numerical records. In terms of infrastructure, the resplendent multipurpose giants in each State offer a major advantage: no construction from scratch will be necessary. Perhaps subtle remodeling or expansion, but it also seems unlikely: the average capacity of the 11 World Cup stadiums is 72,890 people. In Qatar, just one of the eight mega-stadiums exceeded 70,000 spectators.

The “huge interest” is a two-headed giant. The practice of football grew and the audience and attendance did so at the same time. Currently, several surveys, such as one prepared by the consultancy firm Gallup, position it as the fourth most popular sport behind American football, basketball and baseball. Another strong test is given by high schools, where number 5 is the fourth most moving ball, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).

On the other hand, the regular season of the last MLS culminated in the historic attendance record of more than 10 million fans (the previous maximum was 8.5 million), it showed a huge increase in viewers, increased participation in social and digital networks and sales of merchandising. It is no coincidence that Apple disbursed 2.5 billion dollars to broadcast the league worldwide for the next 10 years.

The Club World Cup will be the fourth event organized by FIFA in the United States, after the Men’s World Cup in 1994 and the Women’s World Cup in 1999 and 2003. The first two are often invoked as “great starting points” from the popularity spurt hit by soccer. Another important milestone was the arrival in Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007 of David Beckham, often described as the “savior” of an MLS on the brink of bankruptcy.

The duration, frequency and format of the competition will be traced to that of the last editions of the World Cup. It will take place for one month every four years and will consist of eight groups with four teams each, of which the first two will qualify for direct elimination, starting from the round of 16. The official calendar and host cities will be announced in the coming weeks.

There are 12 teams qualified to date: Chelsea (England), Real Madrid (Spain), Manchester City (England), Palmeiras (Brazil), Flamengo (Brazil), Monterrey (Mexico), Seattle Sounders (United States), León (Mexico), Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia), Urawa Red Diamonds (Republic of Korea), Al Ahly (Egypt) and Wydad Casablanca (Morocco). UEFA will have a total of 12 representatives, CONMEBOL six, CONCACAF, AFC and CAF four members, while OFC and the host country will have one place.