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FIFA votes in favour of fast-tracking 2026 World Cup bid

REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

The FIFA Congress has voted overwhelmingly in favour of fast-tracking the bidding process for host nations for the 2026 World Cup.

Ninety-three percent of the 209 voting members of the FIFA Congress voted in approval of expediting the process Thursday in Bahrain, giving the United States-led three-country bid the leg up before a final decision is made in June 2018. Initial plans have the U.S. hosting 60 matches and everything from the quarter-finals on, with Canada and Mexico entertaining 10 fixtures each as the quadrennial tournament expands from 32 to 48 teams for the first time.

"We have to make sure this bidding process is bullet proof," FIFA chief Gianni Infantino said Thursday in light of past corruption claims that shrouded his predecessor's tenure, courtesy of Sam Borden of ESPN FC.

Other nations compelled to bid have to express an intent to do so by Aug. 11, with submissions requiring the approval of FIFA's technical specifications by March 2018. Because of that small window, the U.S. bid is a heavy favourite.

"In a way, we weren't really a sophisticated soccer country in 1994," U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said Thursday. "We've had such growth since then ... It's a great focal point, a vision for everyone connected to the game. And maybe also for the men's national team, where we can dream about what might happen at that tournament."

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