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Thirty-two years have passed since the FIFA World Cup<\/a> last took place in North America. Now, we\u2019re less than one month away from the global tournament, set to kick off on June 11 and continue through July 19. The first match is between Mexico and South Africa<\/a> in Mexico City.<\/p>\n The host nations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup are the United States, Mexico, and Canada<\/a>. Here, we\u2019re analyzing what each team has going for them.<\/p>\n The United States\u2019 Men\u2019s National Team is no longer soccer\u2019s eternal freshman. Being hosts comes with its own pressures, but Mauricio Pochettino will bring organization and big game experience to some world-class talent, and that means fans can be optimistic.<\/p>\n If they win Group D \u2014 and a favorable draw sees the USMNT alongside Australia, Paraguay, and T\u00fcrkiye \u2014 Pochettino\u2019s men will come up against a third-place team in the Round of 32. Win that and a last 16 game could be against Belgium. With the Belgian golden generation a disappointing memory, the U.S. could easily avenge their heartbreaking 2014 loss to them, and then it would be game on.<\/p>\n How can they do it? Well, playing to their strengths \u2014 attack, attack, attack \u2014 and mitigating their weaknesses \u2014 defense \u2014 would be a great start. Pochettino has built his reputation as a front-foot manager, so exploiting the ability of Christian Pulisic, Timothy Weah, Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Haji Wright, and Brenden Aaronson is vital. Behind them in midfield, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams have both enjoyed stellar campaigns with Juventus and AFC Bournemouth, respectively. Flanked by either Malik Tillman or Tanner Tessman, the park center looks solid.<\/p>\n At the back is where most expect the team to struggle. Fullbacks Antonee Robinson and Sergino Dest are better going forward than they are defending. Could Pochettino adopt a wingback system to get the best out of these talents? It would be done at the expense of an attacker. Chris Richards is a superb center back, but Tim Ream, at 38, is not the player he once was. Is Toulouse\u2019s Mark McKenzie a better bet? In goal, Matt Freese seems to have won the battle between the sticks, but he lacks big game international experience.<\/p>\n That said, if their progression is smooth,<\/span> a quarterfinal berth is there for the taking. And if more inspiration is needed, they could look to the<\/span> success of the U.S. women.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Men in green are at their most dangerous on their home turf. Luckily, they will be playing all their group games in Mexico.<\/p>\n Mexico\u2019s performances in their previous 17 WorldCup appearances do not immediately suggest they can go all the way this time around. Their best performances to date were in 1970 and 1986, when El Tri reached the quarterfinals. Those standout results should be a good cause for optimism now, however, as they were both achieved on home soil, and this summer sees Mexico hosting again.<\/p>\n So, can they match those previous two quarterfinal appearances? If they emerge as Group A winners by overcoming South Africa and South Korea, they could face England in a potential last-16 matchup \u2014 presenting a substantial obstacle to<\/p>\n their progress.<\/p>\n First, they need to get out of their group. They have the players to make this happen: Talismanic skipper R\u00e1ul Jimin\u00e9z has enjoyed another productive season in the English Premier League with Fulham, and much will rest upon his shoulders.<\/p>\nUSA<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Mexico<\/strong><\/h2>\n