A Middle Power Gets Squeezed At Its Own World Cup

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Under an unprecedented three-way co-hosting arrangement, the marquee moments in the lead-up to the World Cup are spread across North America’s largest countries. Last December’s lottery draw went to the United States, the June 11 opening match landed in Mexico, and Canada got this year’s FIFA Congress.

That gathering, which brought world soccer’s most powerful figures to Vancouver last week, is widely accepted to be the least exciting and prestigious of the three — a business meeting for sports bureaucrats all but invisible to the world beyond them.

That trilateral imbalance reflects the realities reshaping an event originally conceived as a proud display of continental unity that has devolved into seething cross-border anxieties and resentments: Canada feels like a World Cup afterthought.

“The original hosting concept stressed the strength and appeal of Canada, Mexico and the USA jointly hosting the World Cup,” said John Kristick, who served as executive director of the 2026 United Bid Committee. “That ‘united’ thread has been lost in much of the marketing and coverage to date, with the USA claiming a lion’s share of the attention.”

From the outset, the United States was positioned as the tournament’s center of gravity, slated to host roughly 75 percent of matches, including nearly all knockout games, the semifinals and the final. That asymmetry was accepted as par for the course — the United States population is twice that of the other two countries combined, is geographically central, and offers a wealth of stadium facilities for high-profile competition.

But FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s relentless focus on winning over President Donald Trump has widened a gap between the three countries in both power and perception, contributing to the feeling that the 2026 World Cup has become an American pageant with a handful of satellite events abroad.

“FIFA Congress is our premier annual meeting, bringing together member associations and the leadership of every continental confederation. This year’s edition in Vancouver was particularly significant as it became the centerpiece of a broader week of global football governance, diplomacy and administration, reinforcing the city’s role as a key hub in the international game,” FIFA said in a statement to POLITICO.

Placing the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, the hometown of FIFA vice president Victor Montagliani — who heads CONCACAF, the regional confederation that includes North and Central America, along with the Caribbean, and has been seen as a potential challenger to Infantino — was a carefully calibrated concession to Canadian insecurities. Montagliani is close to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, British Columbia Premier David Eby, and the Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim.

“Victor has always wanted Canada to host a FIFA Congress,” a member of CONCACAF, granted anonymity to recount private conversations, told POLITICO in the lobby of the Fairmont Waterfront hotel in Vancouver. Maneuvering a congress onto the calendar was not easy. In World Cup years, FIFA has often hosted its meeting in the host country days before kickoff, but the location of the opening match in Mexico City made that logistically unfeasible this year, according to a senior FIFA adviser granted anonymity to discuss planning considerations. In years without a global tournament, FIFA usually holds its congress in late winter, an unappealing option given Canada’s weather. To keep the event on Canadian soil, organizers settled on a spring date in Vancouver.

At the congress, the FIFA Council approved an $871 million increase in the share of World Cup revenues distributed to the 48 competing countries, whose national federations will now each receive a minimum of $12.5 million for participating. The FIFA Council also rewrote on-field rules related to red cards and restart times after a stoppage in play. “In many ways, the FIFA Congress turned Vancouver into the global capital of football for the week — a distinction few cities ever receive,” FIFA said in its statement.

Beyond its official business, Montagliani was the event’s star. He welcomed Infantino to Concacaf House, a fan site near the city’s Olympic cauldron that will be replicated in Miami and New York during the World Cup.

There, Infantino honored Montagliani for his decade leading the regional confederation. Hours later, Montagliani took the field at the University of British Columbia to play in a FIFA “legacy match,” a ceremonial game tied to the organization’s development initiatives. (Team Canada defeated one from CONMEBOL, the South American confederation, in the final.) He also signed a memorandum of understanding with European confederation UEFA to support the long‑term development and growth of football across both confederations.

The visibility is notable — particularly as FIFA’s evolving governance model has concentrated decision-making power more tightly in Infantino, who became president in 2016. Under him, the organization has shifted toward a centralized structure, running the tournament directly rather than through national organizing committees.

Infantino’s approach has at times created friction with regional stakeholders, including Montagliani, who felt that FIFA’s preparations have been too U.S. centric, POLITICO has previously reported. Infantino used the Vancouver gathering to formally announce his bid for reelection in 2027. He received immediate backing from the Asian Football Confederation and the Confederation of African Football, together comprising nearly half of FIFA’s 211 voting members, would be enough to ensure Infantino’s victory.

A person familiar with Montagliani’s thinking granted anonymity to discuss it told POLITICO that Montagliani has no plans to challenge Infantino. That person said he plans to serve out his term as head of CONCACAF that runs through 2027, and then seek another four-year term.