Nashville Is One Step Closer To Hosting The FIFA World Cup

Nashville may be known as Music City, but over the years it has grow into a big destination for sports. The city gained attention after hosting the 2019 NFL Draft for the show it put on and the sheer amount of fans who showed up. Now, the city is in the running to host the biggest soccer event in the world.

Nashville recently welcomed the U.S. Soccer team to Nissan Stadium where it held a World Cup Qualifying game against Canada, per News Channel 5. While soccer has been a popular sport worldwide, it has not received as much attention in America. That trend, however, seems to be changing.

"It brings this country together," said Cesar Hernandez, a U.S. Soccer fan from New York City. "It brings everyone together around the world."

The World Cup qualifier on Sunday (September 5) served as an audition for the expectation of future World Cup games, the news outlet reports. Nashville is one of 17 cities still in the running to be one of the 10 or 11 hosts for a future FIFA World Cup, a possibility that has many community leaders hopeful.

"We're in the home stretch of our bid to be a part of the 2026 World Cup," said Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation CEO Butch Spyridon, adding, "It is arguably the biggest sporting event in the world."

FIFA executives will tour Nashville to check out the venues and potential practice facilities, offering another chance to showcase the ability of Music City to transform into a sports haven.

A final decision for the 2026 FIFA World Cup host cities has not been made, but Spyridon anticipates the decision will be announced early 2022.