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Top 10 Reasons the 2026 World Cup Will Be Historic
The 2026 tournament expands to 48 teams for the first time, lifting the match count from 64 to 104. It is also the first World Cup shared by three hosts — the USA, Canada and Mexico — with Mexico becoming the only country to stage the event three times, including a third appearance for the storied Estadio Azteca. MetLife Stadium hosts the final in front of more than 82,000 fans, FIFA projects over $5 billion in economic impact, and fully automated offside technology arrives to cut down marginal VAR controversies. If Lionel Messi plays, it could be his last World Cup after lifting the trophy in Qatar in 2022, a tournament that drew 5 billion cumulative viewers — a mark 2026 is projected to surpass.
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