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The first week of the FIFA World Cup has been underscored by tensions over geopolitics, U.S. immigration policy and dramatic group stage action that is priming viewers around the world for what promises to be an exciting knockout round later this month.
The action-packed global spectacle, played on North American soil for the first time in more than 20 years, is creating new fans in the U.S. and shining a light on America’s place on the global stage under President Trump.
Here are five big takeaways from the 2026 FIFA World Cup so far.
Cup brings politics to the surface
Politics have hung over every World Cup going back decades, but the 2026 tournament has featured sharper than usual political undertones.
The competition’s first week took place against the backdrop of negotiations between the Trump administration and Iran to end their war, with Iran as a team in the World Cup playing on U.S. soil.
Iran’s players and coaches have increasingly found themselves under a microscope, particularly after they were forced to leave the United States after their first game without recovery time. Iran’s team is training in Mexico. Iranian team managers have said the extra travel could impact them on the pitch.
There have been protests of both the regime and the war outside Iranian football matches, while some supporters have said FIFA will not honor tickets issued through the Iran Football Federation, citing the ongoing conflict with the U.S.
A FIFA official told The Hill it is “working closely with the IR Iran Football Federation to identify compliant solutions that maximise opportunities for Iranian supporters to attend matches.”
President Trump’s immigration agenda is also looming large over the World Cup, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations at some matches and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) blocking entry into the country for at least one Somali referee for allegedly making contact with suspected terrorists.
Some Democrats and immigration activists have voiced discomfort with ICE and DHS officials patrolling at World Cup matches, while the Trump administration has argued people who are in the U.S. legally and attend matches or watch parties have “nothing to worry about.”
Fans and family members of players from foreign nations have struggled to secure visas to enter the U.S., while sky-high ticket costs have priced out fervent fans at stadiums across the country.
US ad market changes global football
This year’s World Cup is expected to be the most profitable in FIFA’s history.
Blue-chip corporate brands including Nike, Anheuser-Busch and Adidas have poured millions of dollars into advertising campaigns around top matches, particularly those in primetime featuring the sport’s premier players, such as Argentina’s Lionel Messi and the U.S.’s Christian Pulisic.
Fox is already garnering significant ratings during this year’s World Cup, with Team USA’s opening match against Paraguay reportedly earning a massive audience of more than 27 million viewers.
Many of this year’s matches are being held inside NFL stadiums, ground zero for the booming business of the world’s most popular professional sports league.
FIFA rules forbid the use of corporate names that are not official World Cup sponsors, a sign of the competitive North American sports landscape the organization is trying break into.
A new study commissioned by Sports Business Journal found corporate brands with naming rights to U.S. stadiums that are hosting World Cup matches stand to lose exposure worth up to $53.5 million.
Meanwhile, economic experts predict World Cup matches will generate more than $2 billion in activity and create tens of thousands of jobs in major U.S. cities including Los Angeles, Seattle and Dallas.
Hydration breaks a heated point of debate
New to this year’s World Cup are incremental “hydration breaks” implemented at the midway point of each half, a measure FIFA says is necessary to protect player health and safety.
These breaks were especially relevant during the first week of the tournament, when temperatures across the U.S. soared into the mid to upper 90s on some match days.
But critics of the new stoppages say it can hand certain teams an unfair advantage, granting coaches and players who are struggling a chance to huddle and potentially lead to flips in momentum.
The breaks are also taking place regardless of the weather, including in indoor stadiums where heat is not a factor.
Some managers are not hiding efforts to use the new breaks to their benefit.
“You can use the break to tell the players what they need to improve or what is good or what they should do better,” Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman said. “So, you can use it in different ways to your advantage, and this is what we will be doing.”
Fox has taken heat from critics for showing ads during the stops in play, some of which have run long and caused fans to miss crucial seconds of action on the pitch.
A FIFA official, during a recent conversation with The Hill, insisted the organization is not accusing Fox of intentionally breaching advertising agreements and chalked the early hiccups during hydration breaks with broadcasters to “everyone learning together.”
American love affair with football reaching new heights
Soccer, as it is called in the U.S., exploded in popularity in America after the 1994 World Cup, the last time the tournament was played on North American soil.
It led to the creation of Major League Soccer, which today features 30 teams spread across nearly every major media market in the country and has raked up an estimated value totaling more than $23 billion.
On the pitch, the U.S. women’s national team has experienced most of the success for Team USA in recent years, but the men’s squad under new manager Mauricio Pochettino has gotten a surge of support during the early days in this year’s cup.
Massive watch parties for U.S. matches have sprung up in cities like New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C., while seemingly every sports bar and hotel lobby in towns large and small is playing group stage matches throughout the day.
The way U.S. fans, particularly younger people, are consuming World Cup matches is also notably changing.
A recent study from streaming tracker Bango found more than 75 percent of fans aged 25 to 34 expressed frustration in needing multiple streaming platforms to view games, with a record number saying they are opting to catch up via highlights on social media or YouTube after a game has concluded.
The 2026 World Cup is expected to be the most streamed in history and is likely to give a major boost to media companies increasingly using live sports to lure viewers away from traditional broadcasts and toward direct-to-consumer streaming platforms.
Tourists take in cultures and customs at US host cities
Social media has been filled during the first week of the tournament with online posts authored by visitors from Europe and around the world exploring all the United States has to offer in between matches.
Some have expressed amazement that soft drinks come with ice. Others have reveled in American eateries like Waffle House and Whataburger.
Many have marveled at the sheer size and sophistication of U.S. stadiums playing host to World Cup matches.
“You don’t find stadiums like this anywhere else in the world than in the US,” one user wrote on the social platform X. “Americans don’t just know tech and AI, they are also masters in entertainment and sports. Europe take note.”
The Associated Press contributed
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