Carlos Cordeiro, the president of U.S. Soccer, wiped away tears before making a short speech in which, with his voice trembling, he thanked FIFA’s membership for “the incredible privilege” of hosting the World Cup.

“It was a very emotional moment for everyone,” Cordeiro said later, recalling the devastation he felt in 2010 when the United States failed to secure the right to stage the 2022 World Cup, losing to Qatar in a much-criticized voting process.

The 2026 tournament will be one of firsts. It will be the first time the World Cup is hosted by three countries, the first time it has a 48-team format (up from 32 teams), and Wednesday’s vote was the first of its kind to be decided by FIFA’s entire membership. Of the tournament’s 80 matches, 10 will be in Canada, 10 in Mexico and 60 in the United States — including every match from the quarterfinals to the final.

The last time the men’s World Cup was held in North America was when the United States hosted it in 1994. It was held in Mexico in 1970 and 1986, and Canada has never hosted. It was unclear Wednesday whether all three nations would be granted automatic bids into the field, as is customary for the host nation; FIFA said there had been no final decision on the matter.

Leaders of the North American bid had been on the road since April, visiting voting nations around the globe. As the race entered its final stages, several top officials and bid staff members relocated to London, deeming it a better base camp from which to visit far-flung federations in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and southern Africa. At one point two weeks ago, Cordeiro and his staff traveled from Europe to Bangkok for a single meeting, returning the next day.