The men's FIFA World Cup 2026, co-hosted across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, has reignited a long-standing question: can football finally cement itself as a mainstream sport in a country long dominated by the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball, and NHL?

A country slowly warming to football

BBC World Service's More than the Score explores this shift in a new episode hosted by Lee James. The programme traces how football has steadily grown in the United States since the country first hosted the men's World Cup in 1994, charting the milestones that have brought the sport to its current moment.

The women's national team has long served as a beacon, establishing itself as a global powerhouse with a record of dominance that few national sides can match. On the men's side, Lionel Messi's high-profile move to Inter Miami breathed new life into Major League Soccer, drawing eyes to a domestic league that had struggled for mainstream attention for decades.

Trump's involvement adds a new dimension

The episode also examines the role of President Trump in shaping public discourse around the tournament — a dimension that has added a charged political backdrop to what is already the biggest sporting event on the planet.

Lee James speaks with a range of voices who have lived through football's rise in the country. Former US Soccer president Alan Rothenberg, who was instrumental in bringing the 1994 World Cup to American soil, reflects on how far the sport has come. United States internationals Eric Wynalda and Heather O'Reilly share their perspectives on the game's growth at both the elite and grassroots levels.

MLS vice-president Dan Courtemanche speaks to the league's expanding ambitions, while South Korea captain Son Heung-Min — who made the notable move from the English Premier League to MLS — offers a player's perspective on what the American game now offers to world-class talent.

48 teams, three nations, one tournament

With 48 teams competing across three nations, FIFA World Cup 2026 is the largest men's World Cup in history. More than the Score promises to go beyond the scorelines and standings, exploring the new teams, standout stars, and fan cultures that are shaping the tournament in ways that raw statistics cannot capture.

New episodes of More than the Score are available on BBC World Service and wherever you listen to BBC podcasts.