Wilson in the World: US-Mexico-Canada Teamwork at the 2026 World Cup

Posted date/time:July 1, 2026

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Wilson Center Visiting Fellow Dr. Luisa Blanco reports from outside of the Los Angeles Stadium at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

While the economic impact of the 2026 World Cup might not match the massive hype, the real value of the games goes way beyond revenue, according to economist and Wilson Center Visiting Fellow Dr. Luisa Blanco. With the USMCA trade review happening this summer, co-hosting the World Cup is a massive boost for international cooperation between the US, Mexico, and Canada.

Learn more as Dr. Blanco reports from outside the Los Angeles Stadium at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Transcript

I am at Los Angeles FIFA World Cup, one of the 104 games co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

This is the first time three countries cooperate to host the games together, and the first time we have a large representation of countries from the Western Hemisphere. Twelve out of 48 teams come from the Americas.

As an economist, I'm going to be honest, the World Cup might not give the economic impacts that we expect, but that's not the whole story.

It is about three countries coordinating these games, which is very important with this summer having the USMCA trade review.

So the World Cup is more about cooperation and less about the money, and more about the relationships that it creates