Linehan: Why delaying U.S./Mexico Women’s World Cup bid until 2031 makes sense

When U.S. Soccer and the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) withdrew from the 2027 World Cup bidding process last month, there was initial shock and surprise. American exceptionalism may have played its role in the reaction, but so did other factors. Not least of these was the compelling idea that back-to-back World Cups in 2026 and 2027 could jumpstart a new era of the sport in the United States and Mexico, with ripple effects hoped for the rest of CONCACAF.

It wasn’t to be for a relatively simple reason: the two federations realized they didn’t have the support they needed for a winning bid. There is also a more important reason for the U.S. and Mexico to shift their bid to 2031, and it has nothing to do with political maneuverings behind the scenes at FIFA. With the run of upcoming hosting obligations over the next few years, the Women’s World Cup would almost certainly get short shrift had it been awarded for 2027.

In theory, the line-up of tournaments was a great idea. The U.S., alongside Mexico, would have had an unprecedented run of international soccer events with the 2024 Copa America, 2025 men’s Club World Cup, 2026 men’s World Cup, then the 2027 tournament, capped by the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. (The Olympics are a different beast, but they still feature two soccer tournaments — particularly for the women, one that includes the use of the full senior national teams.)

The U.S. was poised to become the home of the global game for years. That’s great in concept, but maybe not so much in practical execution. It brings us back to the big question we always face in sports: what takes precedence? For all the good intentions around the bid, there was zero chance that a 2027 World Cup would have gotten the depth of attention, time and resources it would have taken to stage a truly successful — and not just standard — tournament, especially following the success Australia and New Zealand saw with the 2023 tournament.

Australia drew record crowds in 2023 co-hosting the World Cup with New Zealand. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

U.S. Soccer, FMF and Canada Soccer have been working on the 2026 men’s edition for the better part of a decade, announcing their intent to bid in 2017. The 2026 World Cup was awarded to the three CONCACAF nations in June 2018, giving them an eight-year runway to prepare everything needed for the event.

Compare that timeline to the one for the 2027 World Cup — a timeline that feels even more nonsensical considering that we know where the 2034 men’s edition will be held, and one that falls squarely at FIFA’s feet.

It’s complete night and day in terms of the amount of planning for 2026 compared to what 2027 would have gotten; perhaps why the bid itself felt so copy-and-pasted from the 2026 effort. Yes, these two federations would have had the perfect tournament experience to lead into a Women’s World Cup, but what about the 2027 women’s edition would have felt purpose-built or special?

The U.S. and Mexico joint bid promised a vision of a World Cup “that will elevate the standard for women’s football and capitalize on a moment of extraordinary growth in women’s sports to deliver a tournament with absolutely unprecedented success,” according to their own bid book. And while that may have been possible, with so many major tournaments and smaller tournaments (not to mention pro leagues), commercial oversaturation was inevitable. Promising unprecedented success means providing unprecedented resources up front too — something that seemed too far out of reach for two countries that wanted to stage back-to-back World Cups even at this stage.

The two federations have already set their expectations for a 2031 bid: “equal investment as the men’s tournament, eliminating investment disparities to fully maximize the commercial potential of the women’s tournament,” according to the federations’ announcement that they would be delaying their bid.

That goal wouldn’t have been feasible for the turnaround time required for 2027, but it feels within the realm of possibility for 2031, with the right buy-in from FIFA and other confederations. For better or worse, a World Cup on the women’s side involving the United States feels like an opportunity to make a point about raising standards for the world of women’s soccer, even if U.S. Soccer had its own too-lengthy journey to equal pay.

If political rumblings are to be believed, the path could be cleared for a 2031 bid. There will have been greater distance from the last time a CONCACAF nation hosted the Women’s World Cup, with Canada having the honors in 2015. England has also signaled its intent to look at a possible 2031 bid (whether solo or a joint effort) and has already considered 2035 and 2039.

GO DEEPER

Why U.S./Mexico pivoted from 2027 women’s World Cup to ‘record-breaking’ bid for 2031

There are big questions to ask about the bidding process for the Women’s World Cup, if it’s being used as a token in negotiations on who hosts the men’s tournaments, and so on. But even as the procedural element comes into greater question, it does not negate what is achievable through the staging of this major tournament, whether that’s Brazil in 2027 (as expected, especially after Brazil received higher marks from FIFA on its technical evaluation than the European joint bid) or the U.S. and Mexico in 2031.

The growth of the women’s game is still very much on the table and a work in progress globally, even amid the massive increase in commercial interest and viewership. From that perspective, 2031 is the right call for U.S. Soccer and FMF.

Now, the two federations must step up their game to get the bid right and follow through on their promise of a historic World Cup.

(Photo: Noam Galai/WireImage)