You might not have to wait until 2026 to see a World Cup on U.S. soil, according to former FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

The 84-year-old told German outlet Sport Bild that the U.S. could fill in as host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup amid new allegations into the bidding process that landed Qatar hosting duties in 2022.



New charges brought forth by the U.S. Department of Justice claim that representatives from the Russia and Qatar bids paid bribes to swing votes of the FIFA executive committee members.



Although FIFA has insisted amidst previous allegations that the 2022 World Cup will go off in Qatar, Blatter’s comments have opened the door to re-look at potential local stadiums that could host games in a 2022 World Cup.



Previously, the 2026 U.S./Mexico/Canada bid committee put forth a list of 17 cities across the U.S. that could potentially host games with that list set to be pared down to the final 10 U.S. host cities early in 2021.



• Atlanta (Mercedes-Benz Stadium)

• Baltimore (M&T Bank Stadium)

• Cincinnati (Paul Brown Stadium)

• Foxborough, Mass. (Gillette Stadium)

• Dallas (AT&T Stadium)

• Denver (Mile High Stadium)

• Houston (NRG Stadium)

• Kansas City (Arrowhead Stadium)

• Los Angeles (Rose Bowl/SoFi Stadium)

• Miami (Hard Rock Stadium)

• Nashville (Nissan Stadium)

• New Jersey (MetLife Stadium)

• Orlando (Camping World Stadium)

• Philadelphia (Lincoln Financial Field)

• San Francisco (Levi's Stadium)

• Seattle (CenturyLink Field)

• Washington, D.C. (FedEx Field)

FIFA requires at least 40,000 seats for group stage games with those requirements bumping up to 60,000 for quarterfinals and 80,000 for semifinals and final games. Unfortunately for fans of Audi Field, with a capacity of 20,000, it will not make the cut for the list.



That does, however, leave FedExField (82,000) and M&T Bank Stadium (71,008) as local stadiums that could host potential World Cup Games, and in the case of FedExField, could host all the way up to the Final.



With Washington, D.C. consistently ranking near the top of television ratings for soccer in the U.S., it’s possible that we could see huge FIFA World Cup matches in the DMV sooner than 2026.

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