By Julien Pretot
VANCOUVER, Canada, April 28 (Reuters) - FIFA's member associations meet in Vancouver on Thursday for their annual congress, a usually routine gathering that carries greater weight this year with the 2026 World Cup less than two months away and several questions still hanging over the first 48-team edition of the tournament.
The biggest World Cup in history will be held across the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.
One of the clearest concerns is cost.
The sheer
scale of staging a tournament across North America, with long-haul travel, differing tax regimes and significant operational demands, has prompted unease among some participating nations.
UEFA has passed on concerns from several European associations that teams could find it difficult to break even unless they progress deep into the competition.
FIFA, for its part, is expected to point to the unprecedented commercial strength of the tournament.
The governing body has indicated it is prepared to raise prize money and participation payments beyond already record levels, presenting the expanded World Cup as a vehicle for wider redistribution rather than simply a bigger payday for the strongest teams.
Its argument is that more nations, more matches and greater revenues will ultimately mean more money flowing into development programmes and solidarity funding across the global game.
Iran's participation is the most politically sensitive item on FIFA's agenda.
Iran have qualified for the World Cup, but security and travel concerns around their matches in the United States have prompted officials in Tehran to seek guarantees and request alternative venues.
FIFA has rejected any change to the schedule, saying teams are expected to play as planned.
Visa access and travel restrictions are also expected to be closely watched.
Officials from the Palestinian Football Association were recently denied entry to Canada for a pre-congress meeting, underlining the practical obstacles that can arise when sport, border policy and international politics collide.
However, Palestinian association vice president Susan Shalabi and president Jibril Rajoub have both now been granted visas and are expected to attend the congress, FIFA told Reuters on Monday.
Shalabi has already arrived in Vancouver while Rajoub is expected on Tuesday.
FIFA says it is working with host governments to help facilitate access for delegations, although the final list of attending associations will not be confirmed until the congress begins.
The wider logistics of the 2026 World Cup remain a defining theme. A tournament spread across three countries, multiple time zones and vast distances will test teams, supporters, broadcasters and organisers in ways no previous World Cup has.
Some federations have raised concerns privately, but FIFA argues that a multi-host model is essential for a 48-team event and reflects the future scale and ambition of the competition.
For Vancouver, then, the task is not only to celebrate the approach of a landmark World Cup but to smooth the final edges before the June 11 kickoff.
FIFA expects the 2026 tournament to be the largest and most lucrative in its history, with projected revenues of around $13 billion for the current cycle. The challenge now is to ensure that its expanded vision of the World Cup feels not only bigger, but workable, fair and genuinely global.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
