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According to media reports, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and SoFi Stadium have serious disagreements and the World Cup may not be played there.
However, so far no plans have been announced to move the World Cup to another stadium, including the Rose Bowl.
On Wednesday, ESPN announced that FIFA will not allow the 2026 World Cup to be played at the Stadium.
According to additional published reports, although SoFi Stadium was originally selected as one of the 2026 venues, the Kroenke family, which owns the stadium, is reportedly unhappy about the deal, including the money distribution between FIFA, the city, and the stadium.
Other reports indicate that FIFA has demanded the removal of luxury boxes to expand the field size at the stadium.
“I have seen the same rumors on websites, etc.,” said Rose Bowl General Manager Jens Weiden. “We were part of the original joint bid with Sofi to host games at both venues, but some time ago FIFA decided they would focus on Sofi as a venue.”
“We do know from being part of that bid process that the FIFA World Cup is a very challenging model as they require venues, cities, and taxpayers to fund FIFA World Cup specific improvements to the buildings while at the same time keeping most/all revenues from the events.”
The Rose Bowl has hosted several sold out soccer matches this year. On July 4, 82,110 fans attended the match between the LA Galaxy and the Los Angeles Football Club. The crowd was a new Major League Soccer single-match standalone attendance record.
SoFi Stadium in Inglewood was chosen among a total of 10 stadiums to hold games during the 2026 World Cup in North America.
The Rose Bowl had been a finalist but lost out in the final selection.
As part of the effort to be selected to host games, the Los Angeles World Cup Host Committee led FIFA officials on tours of the Rose Bowl Stadium, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park in November.
Matches during the FIFA World Cup in 2026 are set to be held in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Los Angeles hosted matches during the 1994 World Cup and the 1999 Women’s World Cup.
The family expected to receive commercial assets as advance payment.
SoFi Stadium — which is home to the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers — officially opened on Sept. 13, 2020. It is the most expensive stadium ever built, at an estimated cost of about $5.5 billion. It was built on the site of the former Hollywood Park racetrack and sits adjacent to the Forum.
The host committee’s effort was led by the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission, which includes the Los Angeles Rams, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, Rose Bowl Stadium, Los Angeles Football Club and L.A. Galaxy.
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