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World CupThe FIFA World Cup is the world's most prestigious international soccer tournament. The global phenomenon is held every four years and features the world's best soccer players suiting up for their country for a month of elite competition.
To qualify, the 211 members of FIFA must be a top team within one of six continental confederations.The number of spots each confederation sends differs based on size, and qualifying can take 12 months to over two years.
Early World Cups had minimal economic impact on host cities and fairly low costs. When Mexico spent millions in 1970 to build multiple stadiums and upgrade telecom and infrastructure, it marked a turning point in FIFA's commercialization. 1982's first global color broadcast increased tourism for the host cities and became a selling point to future hosts. The final in 2022 reached 1.5 billion viewers worldwide.Explore World Cup
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Axelle Berthoumieu bit Ireland's Aoife Wafer during the Women’s Rugby World Cup quarter‑final in 2025
Biting, waxing pool balls, and modifying ski suits are just a few of the various instances of bad sportsmanship in 2025. It appears that cheating is much harder to get away with in the era of smartphones. the GuardianThe 20th-century rise of fascism affected the World CupSpain, in the midst of a civil war, did not participate, and Japan, after invading China, pulled out of the competition. An additional six Central and North American teams scratched by the time that year's World Cup began. Literary HubThe World Cup ball has had 23 different designsAdidas has supplied the official ball for the last 15 iterations. The first World Cup final featured two different balls: one provided by Argentina and one supplied by Uruguay. Argentina was winning 2 to 1 before the balls were switched. Uruguay went on to win the match 4 to 2. ESPN.comTen controversial World Cup momentsIf you're expecting a staid back-and-forth, then you'll be surprised by the World Cup, which is often filled with high drama and even higher tensions. This list highlights how controversy has been a constant on soccer’s biggest stage, influencing outcomes, sparking debates, and sometimes leading to rule changes. GiveMeSportLeagues like the Premier League differ from the World CupThe Premier League and other similar club leagues are professional organizations like the NFL or NBA, where owners purchase player contracts. World Cup teams, on the other hand, are organized by citizenship. BundesligaEngland's sole World Cup win featured 'the Ghost Goal'The 1966 match is known for its controversial third goal scored by Geoff Hurst, called “The Ghost Goal.” Watch the original footage, including the legendary call from announcer Kenneth Wolstenholme, and decide for yourself if the ball went in. BBCYoung Brazilians protested their country's hosting of the 2014 World CupIn 2013, Brazil’s Confederations Cup was marked with widespread protests in a period dubbed “Generation June.” Many were angry about the looming 2014 World Cup, which they believed was an affront to the country’s many pressing issues. ESPNThe World Cup trophy was stolen in 1966—and eventually found by a dogWhile on display at the Methodist Central Hall in Westminster, England, the Jules Rimet Trophy was stolen while a church service was being held in another room. It was eventually sniffed out a week later by Pickles, a black-and-white collie. Olympics.comHosting the World Cup requires massive investments in infrastructureSince the 1990s, those costs have crept into the billions. Cities are able to sell the high price tag with promises of jobs and tourism dollars, but long-term studies showed the promises were often overstated. CNBCThe first official Women's World Cup was in 1991The first unofficial Women’s World Cup was played in 1970 in Italy, and momentum grew throughout the 1980s with multiple international tournaments. In 1988, FIFA tested the event's viability with a 12-team invitational in China. The first official Women’s World Cup was held in 1991 in China, and was won by the US. TIMEOver time, the World Cup became a commercial powerhouseThe 1954 World Cup featured the first live black-and-white televised broadcast of the event, and in 1970 FIFA introduced color broadcasts in prime-time. Increasing revenues pushed private networks to aggressively bid for broadcast rights. Today the event is a commercial powerhouse, with the 2026 World Cup projected to generate around $4B in TV rights revenue. Bleacher ReportBrazil is one of the World Cup's most legendary teamsAfter a 12-year pause for WWII, the World Cup returned in 1950 in Brazil. Brazil dominated the era, claiming titles in 1958, ‘62, and ‘70 behind teen sensation Pelé, who went from poverty to a soccer legend before turning 17. The RingerThe FIFA World Cup is soccer's most prestigious tournamentThe global phenomenon is held every four years, and features the world’s best soccer players suiting up for their country for a month of elite competition. The final in 2022 reached 1.5 billion viewers worldwide. The Highlights AppIBM helped turn Rio de Janeiro into a smart city before it hosted the World CupIn response to the deadly floods and mudslides in 2010, Brazil and IBM developed a multimillion-dollar plan to modernize Rio's emergency management infrastructure. An operations center utilizes advanced weather forecasting, surveillance, and real-time data to surveil and respond to events such as severe storms more accurately. Meredith HannonThe First World CupBefore FIFA’s first World Cup in 1930, an earlier tournament in 1909 brought clubs from Italy, Germany, and Switzerland together to compete for the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy. 1440Watch all 17 World Cup goals from Brazil's Marta Vieira da SilvaBrazil's Marta Vieira da Silva has scored more goals at the World Cup than any other player in the world, male or female, with 17. Take a look back at all of her goals for Brazil at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in this video reel. YouTubeRevisit 10 iconic moments from the Women's World CupThe Women's World Cup was inaugurated over 60 years after the men's, but it has kept pace with its production of iconic moments. Revisit the player revolts, sports bras, shocking referee decisions, and more that comprise the top moments in Women’s... ESPNA quick history of the Women's World CupThe Women's World Cup, first played in 1991 where it was won by the US team, takes place every four years in a different international host city. Although women's soccer was long sidelined by global soccer officials out of fears it would not be... TIMEFive unforgettable World Cup momentsGreat things happen on the biggest sporting stage the world has to offer. Check out five of the most amazing moments from the last twenty years of World Cup soccer. YouTubeHow much it costs to host the World CupThe cost of hosting the world's biggest sporting event depends on a country's existing infrastructure. Learn how the World Cup in Qatar will impact the country's finances in this brief podcast. MarketplaceHow the soccer World Cup worksThe World Cup is the biggest game in the world. Watch this video to learn how it works and how it came to be such a massive world event. YouTubeHip-hop legends the Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes, and DMX all attended the same New York high schoolAll four emcees attended George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School, a vocational public school in downtown Brooklyn. Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes were well-known as rappers when they were in school, once even battle-rapping one another in the lunchroom. (Jay-Z won.) MicDavos hosts the world’s oldest international invitational ice hockey tournament: the Spengler CupFounded in 1923, the Spengler Cup is the world’s oldest international ice hockey tournament, held annually in Davos. Created to promote reconciliation after World War I, it remains one of the sport’s most prestigious invitational events. YouTubeSee a timeline of early flights, patent approvals and the birth of the Wright CompanyThe brothers’ most intense period of creativity and progress came between 1901 and 1910, when their work at Kitty Hawk culminated in the first powered flight. The pair, however, were not the most business-savvy, and they struggled to take financial advantage of their pioneering work in the field. The Library of Congress'Harry Potter’ inspired a real-life version of QuidditchCreated by college students in 2005, the broomstick-based sport became an international phenomenon with organized leagues and World Cup tournaments. Now called Quadball, it’s played in more than 40 countries worldwide. Washington PostAthletes are captured in moments of victory and defeat in 6 powerful sports imagesSee shots like Muhammad Ali knocking out Sonny Liston in 1965, or Brandi Chastain after winning the World Cup final in 1999. the GuardianDragon seismometers, Baghdad batteries, and more ancient artifactsThe ancients were behind us in many ways, but some inventions from the time have not been surpassed in the modern era in effectiveness, beauty, or cleverness. This quick list of bizarre ancient inventions includes a battery from Baghdad, a Molotov cocktail-like explosive in Greece, and more. TheCollectorTitle IX helped push women’s soccer to the world stageIn 1999, Title IX-era stars Mia Hamm and Brandi Chastain helped the US win the 1999 World Cup, drawing a then-record 18 million viewers and popularizing US women’s soccer. Many suggest this would not have been possible without the NCAA’s role as a talent incubator, attracting over 20,000 international athletes annually. New AmericaSaudi Arabia began investing in international sports in the mid-2010sThe country's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has argued that embracing sports and tourism will diversify the Saudi economy away from a dependency on oil. Critics argue the events are being used to distract from the regime's human rights violations. BBC SportIn 2015, FIFA's decades-old bribery network was exposedIn 2015, the US Department of Justice exposed a 24-year bribery network influencing broadcast rights and votes on World Cup host cities. Over 40 officials were indicted for accepting bribes. FIFA implemented several reforms, including term-limits for Presidents and council members and salary disclosures in 2016. VoxFIFA was formed in 1904 and held its first tournament in 1930In 1930, the first World Cup was held in Uruguay after the Olympics refused to allow professional soccer players to play in the 1932 games. The host country made it to the final of the 13-team event, playing against Argentina. Watch this remastered film of the 1930 match with Uruguay defeating Argentina 3 to 2 in front of 68,000 screaming fans at the newly opened Estadio Centenario. YouTube2026's tournament will have 48 teamsAfter 24 years of having a 32-team tournament, the FIFA World Cup will get an upgrade in 2026, expanding the field to make it the largest World Cup ever. SBS Sport A world-famous barista's primer on coffee appreciationIf you think you can tell good coffee from bad but don’t know how to put the distinction into words, world-famous barista Nicole Battefeld-Montgomery is here to help. Her instructions for breaking down a cup of coffee rivals any sommelier’s wine-tasting guide. Nicole BattefeldCoffee brewing likely originated in Ethiopa and the Arabian PeninsulaA mixture of merchants and colonialism then launched the drink across Europe and the New World. Many European coffee traditions, like the Viennese custom of serving it alongside a small cup of water, are remnants of how coffee has been prepared in the Middle East for centuries. BBC NewsSee a rendering of the Stanley Cup if all of its hundreds of rings were attachedThe current Stanley Cup stands just under 3 feet tall and weighs 37 pounds. But what would it look like if all the rings were attached? ESPN worked with the NHL to create a 3D rendering of the Cup if all 137 etched panels were attached. ESPN
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