"Football will win over the United States," says Fifa president | OneFootball

FIFA president Gianni Infantino expressed optimism this Wednesday about the success of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and anticipates a huge economic impact from this competition.

“I don’t know if Americans realize what’s going to happen […] This country, Canada, and Mexico will be turned upside down,” Infantino declared during a business forum held in Miami. “A horde of happy barbarians will come to invade this country and the result will be that soccer will conquer the United States,” he added.

At the America Business Forum, Infantino highlighted the economic benefits of a competition as widely followed as the World Cup and encouraged Americans to invest in soccer.

“There is so much potential […] Just the World Cup alone has an economic impact of about 40 billion dollars [R$ 215 billion], 200,000 jobs created, and five or six million people who will come to watch the matches and also enjoy their vacations,” he enumerated.

Infantino, who spoke from the same stage where President Donald Trump had given a speech a little earlier, said he has a great relationship with the Republican and praised his policies while leading the country: “He has been of great help in everything related to the World Cup,” the sports executive said about the White House occupant.

“He was elected quite clearly [as president],” he added. “And he is simply doing what he said he would do, so I believe we should all support what he does, because he is doing very well, and for FIFA even more so.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.