CORNERFLICK
The 2026 World Cup will reach the quarter-finals without any of its three host nations after Canada, Mexico and the United States were all knocked out in the round of 16.
Canada were the first to go, losing to Morocco. Mexico then fell to England at the Azteca Stadium, delaying any return to the quarter-finals after reaching that stage as hosts in 1970 and 1986. The United States were the last host side standing, but they also exited in the last 16 after defeat by Belgium.
That makes 2026 the first World Cup staged across three host countries to lose all of its hosts before the quarter-finals. It is not the worst host record in tournament history — South Africa in 2010 and Qatar in 2022 still hold that distinction after group-stage exits — but it leaves Canada, Mexico and the United States among the shortest-lived hosts the competition has seen.
The result also extends a longer trend. Since France won as hosts in 1998, no host nation has lifted the trophy. The run now stands at seven straight World Cups without a home winner, the longest sequence in the tournament’s history.