Trump reveals that the FIFA 2026 World Cup draw will be held at Kennedy Center on December 5 in Oval Office Announcement
The date and location of the 2026 World Cup were announced unexpectedly on Friday. The event will take place in Washington, DC, on December 5 at 12 noon at Kennedy Center while US President Donald Trump announced the news at the Oval Office alongside Vice-President JD Vance and FIFA President Gianni Infantino. While the previously had the draw had previously seemed labeled for Las VegasAccording to reports, bringing him to the national capital will maintain Washington, DC involved, although the matches will not be played there next summer.
The announcement was made inside the oval office while Trump was seated by wearing a Red Hat “Trump on everything”. Infantino presented her tickets while the World Cup trophy was displayed on the president’s office. Trump, as he did with the Club World Cup trophy, asked with playful if he could keep it.
“We are delighted to welcome the most anticipated draw of the FIFA World Cup in the history of the United States cultural and entertainment, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC,” said Infantino. “The draw is an important step in the tournament and which will continue the remarkable accumulation of the largest sporting event of all time, while we are preparing for many events of FIFA Landmark through North America throughout 2026. We are impatient to welcome team delegations, our partners, the world media and, only, the fans representing each of the 16 wonderful cities in the United States, For this important opportunity. “
The draw is when planning of the event next summer takes off, because the 16 cities welcome the United States, Canada and Mexico will know which teams will play where. Although a certain preparation is already underway, in particular following the club World Cup this summer, certain aspects, such as language preparation, cannot be finalized as long as the participating teams are not confirmed.
Alongside the United States, Canada and Mexico, 10 countries have already qualified for the 2026 World Cup. Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, New Zealand, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea and Uzbekistan will be at the World Cup with 42 teams that will be determined by the draw for December. The other six will be determined via playoffs, which will take place in the United States in March 2026.
When the United States hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup, the draw took place in Las Vegas Convention Center. On the other hand, the Kennedy Center, now supervised by Trump, will offer a place where it can have a good hand in planning the appearance of the event. Already chairing the White House working group on the FIFA World Cup 2026, Trump will be at the heart of the planning efforts for a World Cup which should be the most frequented of all time.
