“The magic on the pitch during the World Cup has a way of erasing everything that happens off it – for better or worse,” writes Kyle Feldscher | Analysis

The world wasn’t so different on June 13, 2018, when the US, Mexico and Canada were awarded the right to jointly host the 2026 World Cup.

Donald Trump was president. A ban on travel to the US from mostly Muslim countries was in effect. Allied nations were reeling at the US government’s whiplash foreign policy. But there was hope that the world coming to America could bring the kind of unity and joy typical of massive sporting contests like the World Cup.

Fast forward almost eight years to the day, and it’s finally here. The first of 104 matches in this biggest-ever World Cup kicks off at 3 p.m. ET in Mexico City when South Africa meets up with Mexico in the historic Estadio Azteca.

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It’s safe to say that the tournament has not exactly brought the kind of goodwill Americans would have hoped for on that day in June 2018, just after Trump finished meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore. In fact, the Trump administration’s policies have hung over this World Cup ever since he retook the White House in January 2025 and began implementing the stringent immigration policies that he promised on the campaign trail.

Many of the headlines around the run-up to this massive sporting festival have focused on the worst bits of the World Cup – out-of-control ticket prices, allegations of price gouging on public transportation, the refusal to admit a Somali referee into the US, the tension over Iran’s participation amid the US-Iran war and visa troubles for fans, players and staff in the days before games start.

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A FIFA World Cup trophy is displayed at the Akron Stadium, where it arrived as the second part of its tour in Zapopan, Mexico on February 28, 2026. (Photo by ULISES RUIZ / AFP via Getty Images)
A FIFA World Cup trophy is displayed at the Akron Stadium, where it arrived as the second part of its tour in Zapopan, Mexico on February 28, 2026. (Photo by ULISES RUIZ / AFP via Getty Images)
Ulises Ruiz/AFP/Getty Images
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