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US sports Bill Nair Arthur Blank hopes that geopolitical tensions will “settle” before next year’s Soccer World Cup, paving the way for a successful tournament to grow the sport in the US.
The accumulation of FIFA’s World Cup in the United States in June 2026 was as President Donald Trump’s aggressive stance on tariffs and immigration caused some groups to question the suitability of the US to host tournaments.
Trump has also been hostile to the Mexican and Canadian co-hosts — even threatening to annex the latter — they accuse the US of failing to stop “cartel activity and the influx of lethal drugs.” The American Travel Association, a trade group, warns that slow processing of visas could hinder the success of men’s tournaments.
But in the blank, the founder of Home Depot, which has become one of the most prominent sports bosses in the United States, owns NFL and major league soccer teams — said America welcomed visitors and Trump would become a “positive force” for the tournament.
“As probably like most people around the world, I hope the geopolitical scene will settle down and become a little more stable and predictable than it is now,” Blank told the Financial Times that Amb Sports + Entertainment owns one of the host venues for the event.
While Trump has declared the Men’s World Cup will be “the best football tournament the world has ever seen” and an opportunity to showcase America’s “pride and hospitality,” Human Rights Watch has expressed “significant concerns” about the administration’s immigration policy.
US Sports Bill Nair Arthur Blank said Trump will be a “positive force” for the 2026 World Cup © Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
“I am confident that the president will become a positive force for the World Cup as we begin to approach it,” Blank, who contributed to Joe Biden’s campaign in 2020 and 2024.
Tycoon owns the Atlanta Falcons NFL franchise and launched Atlanta United on the MLS side in 2017. His team will play at the 75,000-man Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
The World Cup could increase Georgia’s economy by over $500 million, according to the Metro Atlanta office, a local business association. “We want to bring tourism out not only in Atlanta, but in other parts of the state,” said Dan Corso, president of the Atlanta Sports Council, part of the Chamber of Commerce.
Blank said the World Cup could have a greater impact on promoting football in the US than the 1994 tournament.
“The changes we have in Atlanta since ’94 have been amazing,” said Dietmar Exler, operations chief at AMB Sports & Entertainment.
According to Sportico, MLS has grown to 30 teams with an average valuation of over $700 million. It attracted players like Argentine star Lionel Messi who plays for Intermiami, but the British Premier League generates hundreds of millions of dollars a year with US media rights.
Last year, Blank contributed $50 million to the U.S. Football Federation’s first national training center in Atlanta to further improve coaching standards and facilities.
“The Premier League is clearly the number one league in the world. The MLS is probably behind six or seven leagues, but it’s probably cut in half over the last 15 years or so,” he said.
