Detroit out of running to be 2026 World Cup host city

Detroit had been among the preliminary list of potential host sites for the 2026 World Cup bid but is no longer after that list has been trimmed.

When the host for the 2026 World Cup is announced CONCACAF hopes to hear that the world’s premier soccer event will once again return to the region. A joint bid between the United States, Canada and Mexico has been the favorite to be selected as host but a challenge has been mounted by Morocco.

As part of the bid process, preliminary sites all over the United States, Canada and Mexico were identified as potential stadiums for matches to be played. Southeast Michigan was one of the sites when the World Cup was last played on American soil and was initially included as a possible site for the 2026 bid.

The Pontiac Silverdome hosted four group-stage matches during the 1994 World Cup, including the United States Men’s National team’s World Cup opener, a 1-1 draw against Switzerland. It was the first World Cup game ever to be played indoors and remains just one of three indoor stadiums to host a World Cup match.

This time around it was Ford Field in Detroit that made that preliminary list, but dreams of a World Cup return to the region are over. With the bid process nearing a conclusion, the list has been trimmed and Detroit has been dropped.

The joint bid calls for most of the games to be held in the United States with Mexico and Canada each hosting seven group-stage matches, two in the round of 32, and one in the round of 16. But first it must become the winning bid.

The host for the 2026 will be announced on June 13, 2018, just before the 2018 World Cup begins in Russia.