A World Cup Like No Other

The first World Cup that I watched with any real interest was the 1970 tournament in Mexico, which was relatively untainted by controversy, except of course the Bobby Moore bracelet incident. The England captain was accused of stealing the jewellery from a hotel shop in Bogotá, Colombia, just before the World Cup in what was believed to be a frame-up to disrupt the team.

 

Since then, World Cup tournaments have increasingly been marked with controversy. The 1978 tournament was marred by controversy, domestic politics, and alleged interference and match-fixing by the Argentine authoritarian military junta government. When hosts Argentina needed to beat Peru by more than four goals to pip Brazil to head their group in the Second Round and advance to the Final, it was more than suspicious that Argentina romped to a 6-0 victory.

 

In 1982 in Spain, West Germany’s 1-0 win over Austria is known, in German, as Nichtangriffspakt von Gijón (literally, the Non-aggression pact) as the outcome ensured that both teams progressed at the expense of Algeria, who had beaten West Germany in their opening game. The alleged collusion between the teams led FIFA to have the final games in each group kick off simultaneously thereafter to try to avoid a repeat at future tournaments.

In the cases of both the 2018 competition in Russia and Qatar in 2022, the choice of the host nations was much criticised. The annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014 led to calls for FIFA to strip Russia of the rights to stage the tournament, while Qatar faced strong criticism for the treatment of foreign workers involved in constructing the stadiums, with concerns being raised regarding human rights abuses. There were also suggestions of bribery and corruption in the host nation selection process.

 

But these may be mere trifles compared with the shenanigans surrounding the 2026 World Cup to be held in Canada, Mexico, and the USA. Even six months before the competition kicks off in Mexico City on 11^th June 2026 when Mexico take on South Africa, there have been controversies galore.

 

Ronaldo and the Suspended Suspension

While playing for Portugal in their penultimate qualifying game against the Republic of Ireland, Christiano Ronaldo was red carded for violent conduct, which normally carries a three-match ban. Ronaldo missed his country’s final qualifying group game against Armenia, but that will be the extent of his ban after FIFA decided the second and third games of his ban would be suspended for a year, leaving him free to play in Portugal’s opening match of the 2026 World Cup Finals.

FIFA say that their decision was reached because Ronaldo had not received a red card in his other 225 international appearances, but more likely stems from the fact that even at 40 years of age, Ronaldo is still big box office, and his exclusion from Portugal’s opening matches could affect ticket sales and deprive FIFA of one of the things they crave most – financial reward.

 

The Draw

The draw for the 2026 World Cup Finals had - after much padding - passed its ninetieth minute before a country other than one of the three hosts had been drawn from their respective pots.

 

The Independent described the draw as “an utterly dismal spectacle” and “much worse than anything that Sepp Blatter could have dreamed up,” while BBC commentator Jonathan Pearce said of FIFA President Infantino, that "the man knows no shame," and as proceedings dragged on, he added "Hopefully the draw will be finished in time for the first match in June."

 

No mention of the draw would be complete without reference to…

 

The FIFA Peace Prize

 

When FIFA announced the introduction of the “FIFA Peace Prize – Football Unites the World - to reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world” (their words, not mine), it seemed to be at odds with the organisation’s statutes, which state firmly that “FIFA remains neutral in matters of politics and religion.”

 

As soon at the announcement was made it was clear that the prize would be given to Donald Trump, and I say given to rather that won by, since winning something expressly suggests the possibility of not winning it, which doesn’t seem to have been the case here. FIFA announced no nominees for the prize and FIFA’s board members say there was no vote on its recipient, with the decision to give it to Trump made unilaterally by FIFA President Gianni Infantino. FIFA said that the Peace Award to Donald Trump reflected the wishes of “billions of football fans,” but I defy you to find me a fan who was asked their opinion and I suggest that it would be a struggle to find a fan outside the MAGA bubble who thinks that Trump deserved to be handed the shiny bauble.

FIFA have said that their Peace Prize will be an annual award, but cynics suggest that it was created purely as a one off sop to Donald Trump after his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize, although given FIFA’s tone deaf reading of geopolitics, perhaps we can expect future prizes to go to Benjamin Netanyahu or Vladimir Putin.

 

Just days after the draw – and purely coincidentally, I’m sure - US prosecutors asked the Supreme Court to drop bribery charges against Hernan Lopez, part of a wider probe into bribery schemes involving officials in FIFA-affiliated regional bodies, though FIFA itself was not charged.

 

Ticket Prices

 

No major sporting event would be complete without the furore over wildly inflated ticket prices, and this World Cup is no exception.

 

For the qualifying group games, tickets are priced in four categories, with the cheapest starting at a fairly reasonable range of between US$60 and US$105 rising to between US$410 and US$620 for Category A games. Rumour has it, however that tickets at the lower price points are already impossible to obtain.

 

As you might expect, the prices increase steeply through the competition to an average ticket price for the final at the Giants Stadium in New Jersey currently standing at $3,945 with the highest price coming in at US$6,730. On average, prices are double those charged for tickets at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

 

US Visas and Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)

 

A new condition that the US government is proposing would require visitors to the US to provide their social media from the last 5 years, plus their telephone numbers and email addresses used over the last five and ten years respectively, and more information about their family members. The proposal is likely to mean that applicants could face lengthy delays in obtaining ESTA approvals, so even if fans can get tickets, they might have issues getting into the US to use them.

 

 

The Pride Match

 

Before the tournament, FIFA had pencilled in the game scheduled to take place in Seattle on 26 June as its Pride Match, with the local organisers of Seattle Pride planning celebrations with the local LGBTQ+ community. As bad luck would have it, the draw pitted Iran against Egypt in this fixture, two countries where such activities are culturally and religiously incompatible. Egypt and Iran both lodged formal complaints with FIFA regarding plans for an LGBTQ+ Pride celebration at the game, with the Egyptian football authorities "categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match."

 

FIFA are now likely to have find another fixture for their Pride Match.

 

Hydration Breaks and Half-Time Entertainment

 

Hydration breaks in matches are nothing new, but ordinarily they are conditional on temperatures in grounds reaching a certain level. Although this is a good thing, The Laws of The Game state that such breaks should not exceed one minute. For the World Cup in 2026, however FIFA have decreed that every match will be paused for a three-minute “hydration break” in each half, justified as being to "prioritise player welfare.” That is fooling no one; the breaks – which in themselves are justified - will probably drag on for at least five minutes, providing an opportunity for broadcasters to air commercials.

 

Then we have the half-time break in the Final. Law 7 – The Duration of the Match – states unambiguously that “Players are entitled to an interval at half-time, not exceeding 15 minutes.” The Final of the 2026 World Cup will be played with that law ignored or set aside as FIFA have decided that the half-time interval will feature a music show just as American football’s Super Bowl currently does. The 2025 Super Bowl featured a 13 minute performance from Kendrick Lamar, but that didn’t take into account the amount of time required to set up and then dismantle the performance area.

 

Regardless of how long it takes, a music show at the World Cup Final is an unnecessary diversion and further evidence that football’s administrators have lost sight of what is most important in the game, and that’s the matches themselves.

 

Will the World Cup 2026 “Unite the World” or divide it further? Your view is as good as mine, but one thing we can be sure of, this will be a World Cup like no other.