Minneapolis Bid Committee Declines to Move Forward with 2026 FIFA World Cup™ Bid

Minneapolis continues to be considered as a World Cup™ Team “Base Camp” city

Minneapolis (March 15, 2018) – Today, the Minneapolis Bid Committee publicly announced it declined to submit a formal bid to be a Host City for the 2026 FIFA World CupTM. While we believe that Minneapolis is well-prepared to host this premier international event, the inability to negotiate the terms of various agreements – in order to provide sufficient protections from future liabilities – led to the suspension of the bid.

Despite the decision, the committee fully supports the overall initiative to bring World CupTM soccer back to the United States for the first time since 1994. At this time, Minneapolis is still being considered as a Team Base Camp city for a participating World CupTM team, should FIFA award the 2026 games to the United Bid Committee.

The Minneapolis Bid Committee released the following statement:

The Minneapolis Bid Committee greatly appreciated the opportunity to be considered a host site for the 2026 FIFA World Cup™. We believe Minneapolis is well-positioned and well-prepared to host this premier international event, after having successfully executed major sporting events such as Super Bowl LII, the 2014 MLB All-Star Game, the 2016 Ryder Cup, and the 2017 ESPN X Games.
However, after much discussion and several attempts to work within the parameters prescribed by FIFA, we chose not to continue forward in the bid process. Unfortunately, the inability to negotiate the terms of the various bid agreements did not provide our partners, and our community, with sufficient protections from future liability and unforeseen changes in commitments.
Specifically, we were requesting flexibility on the financial liability caps and/or stronger estimates on anticipated costs associated with the events, including the possibility of hosting six games and a Fan Fest that could last for up to one month.
Despite our decision to not continue with the United Bid, Minneapolis remains a strong supporter of the joint Canada, Mexico and U.S. bid.

In announcing its decision to the United Bid Committee of Canada, Mexico and the United States, the Minneapolis committee stated: “Should any conditions change, where there would be an opportunity for flexibility with some of the hosting parameters, we would be eager to reengage in these discussions.”

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ABOUT SPORTS MINNEAPOLIS

Sports Minneapolis – a subsidiary of Meet Minneapolis, the Greater Minneapolis Convention and Visitor’s Association – is focused on recruiting, enhancing and producing sporting events in the Minneapolis area for the benefit of our community. In addition to generating significant estimated economic impact, amateur and professional sports events can help connect the community through sport, fostering health and wellness.

Minneapolis is on a winning streak in securing upcoming major sports events over the last several years, including Super Bowl LII, the ESPN X Games 2018, 2018 WNBA All-Star Game and the NCAA Men’s Final Four in 2019, among others. Sports Minneapolis has played a major role in bringing these events to Minneapolis, along with events like Northern Lights Junior Volleyball Qualifier, USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships and many other professional, collegiate and amateur sporting events.

For more information, visit www.sportsminneapolis.org.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Kathy McCarthy, Meet Minneapolis Director of PR and Communications, 612-767-8048, KathyM@minneapolis.org