The United States’ dream of making a deep run in the 2026 FIFA World Cup ended Monday night in Seattle with a disappointing performance against Belgium. For the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT), their performance in the tournament, which began with so much promise, ended earlier than millions of American fans had hoped.
But the story of this World Cup was always much bigger than how far the USMNT could advance.
When the FIFA World Cup returned to the United States on June 11 after 32 years, there was excitement across the country. The world’s biggest sporting event had come back to America — this time bigger, more diverse, and more global than ever.
For a nation that has long struggled to fully embrace the world’s most popular sport — with a reported fan base of 3.5 billion, which is two-fifths of humanity — hosting the tournament was another milestone in America’s complicated soccer journey.
The United States has never been a traditional soccer powerhouse. Its greatest World Cup achievement remains its third-place finish in 1930, at the first-ever tournament in Uruguay, behind the host nation and Argentina. Since then, the men’s national team has experienced moments of promise but has rarely been considered among the sport’s elite.
Yet much has changed since the United States last hosted the World Cup in 1994.
Back then, soccer was still fighting for mainstream acceptance in a country dominated by football, basketball, baseball, and hockey. Today, the landscape looks dramatically different.
One of the biggest reasons is the extraordinary success of the U.S. women’s soccer national team. Over the past three and a half decades, American women have transformed the country’s relationship with soccer, winning four World Cup titles and five Olympic gold medals. Their dominance kept the sport in the national conversation and inspired generations of young players.
The phrase “soccer mom” became part of American culture. It is a reminder that, beneath the surface, millions of children were playing the game in suburbs across the country even when professional soccer struggled for attention.
The emergence of Major League Soccer (MLS) is another example of that transformation.
Once dismissed as a distant cousin of Europe’s elite leagues and America’s established professional sports, MLS has steadily grown into a serious sporting enterprise. The league now has 30 teams and has built passionate fan bases across the country. MLS attendance has reached new heights, setting a record last season with an average of more than 23,000 fans per game. With the momentum generated by the World Cup, those numbers are likely to climb even higher.
What began with much of its support concentrated among immigrant communities, particularly Hispanic fans, has expanded into a broader American audience. Stadium attendance has grown, television interest has increased, and the league continues to attract global attention.
The arrival of international icons such as David Beckham and Lionel Messi — even in the later stages of their legendary careers — helped elevate MLS’s profile and connect American soccer with the global game.
The United States also offers something no other country can: the world’s most powerful sports and media market. For FIFA, bringing the World Cup back to America was about more than stadiums. It was about expanding the reach of the beautiful game in a nation with unmatched commercial influence.
The 38-day festival will conclude July 19 at MetLife Stadium, just outside New York City. By then, millions of Americans will have watched not only the world’s traditional soccer giants but also nations they rarely encounter in sports.
That may be one of the most wonderful aspects of the World Cup.
The expanded tournament gave countries such as Cape Verde and Curaçao a chance to enter the global spotlight and, for a few weeks, enter the American imagination.
That is the magic of soccer. A small island nation and a global superpower share the same field. Population, military strength, and economic power disappear for 90 minutes. Only talent, teamwork, and passion matter.
And perhaps that is why this World Cup arrived in America at such an important moment.
During President Donald Trump’s second term, America’s relationship with much of the world has become increasingly complicated. From mass deportations of undocumented immigrants to aggressive tariffs and foreign policy confrontations, including the Iran conflict, many outside the United States have viewed the country less as a beacon of opportunity and more as a superpower willing to impose its will.
The World Cup offered a different image of America.
For more than a month, fans from around the globe filled American cities, bringing their languages, flags, songs, and traditions. The tournament reminded everyone that America’s greatest strength has always been its ability to welcome the world.
There was controversy as well. Trump, being Trump, inserted himself into what had otherwise been a largely controversy-free World Cup, intervening with a phone call to FIFA after star U.S. striker Folarin Balogun was suspended for a red card. FIFA later lifted the one-game ban, allowing Balogun to play against Belgium.
Critics argued that political pressure had no place in sporting decisions. To many, the episode reinforced broader concerns about institutions and rules being challenged by political influence.
But the larger story of this World Cup cannot be reduced to one controversy or even the USMNT’s early exit.
The world’s game came to America at a time when America needed the world.
Soccer may never replace football on Sundays or baseball’s place in American nostalgia. But the sport no longer needs to prove it belongs here.
The 2026 World Cup showed that soccer is now firmly woven into the American story.
The U.S. team may be out, but the beautiful game is in. Soccer and America have both won.
(By arrangement with The American Bazaar.)
(Frank F. Islam is an entrepreneur, civic leader, and thought leader based in Washington, DC. The views expressed here are personal.)
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