When U.S. Soccer Federation CEO JT Batson looks ahead to this summer’s World Cup, the word “legacy” quickly comes to mind.
Tuesday marked 100 days until the World Cup kicks off on June 11, and Wednesday marks the 100 days before the U.S. Men’s National Team begins play in the tournament against Paraguay, putting the biggest tournament in the world center stage in the United States.
For American soccer officials, it is an unprecedented opportunity to grow the game of soccer in the U.S. at every level.
“We have three ambitions at U.S. Soccer,” Batson told The Post on Tuesday. “One, we want our teams to win on the world stage, including World Cups. Two is we want everyone who cares about this sport to feel ownership over the future of this sport and feel connected to U.S. Soccer. And three, we want U.S. Soccer to be everywhere. We want soccer to be the No. 1 played sport in every community in the country.”
The World Cup this summer is just one part of U.S. Soccer’s plan to grow the game, as Batson included the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and the 2031 Women’s World Cup — which the United States put in a joint bid with Mexico, Jamaica and Costa Rica to host — as part of the organization’s bigger-picture objective.
“We’re excited about using 2026, L.A. ’28 and the Women’s World Cup in 2031 to really accelerate what this sport looks like in this country, and in a way that will leave a legacy forever,” he said.
U.S. Soccer announced several initiatives in celebration of the 100-day mark until the World Cup begins — which included an immersive space to watch games during the tournament called U.S. Soccer House in Los Angeles, community-driven Soccer Forward Fests and a planned roster reveal party in New York City to announce the USMNT roster.
The USMNT will also have several send-off matches in the coming months in Atlanta, Charlotte and Chicago before the World Cup kicks off. The U.S. Women’s National Team is also in the midst of the SheBelieves Cup and will be playing at Sports Illustrated Stadium on Saturday.
Engaging fans outside of the World Cup venues and throughout communities in the United States is imperative to U.S. Soccer’s ambitions to grow the game. Batson said 1 percent of American soccer fans would be cheering for the USMNT from the stands during the tournament, which has put a greater imperative on the community events.
“We have been working for quite some time with communities all across the country around how they bring watch parties to life, how they bring the Soccer Forward Fest to life, where you’re getting more kids out kicking the soccer ball and having fun,” he explained.
The upcoming World Cup also presents MLS Clubs a chance to boost their profiles. New York City FC CEO Brad Sims told The Post that the club has its “largest marketing commitment” slated for this summer during the World Cup, planning to partner with the New York New Jersey Host Committee and Live Nation for fan fest events around the metropolitan area.
“For us, it’s kind of getting in front of these people. Getting brand awareness,” Sims said. “Trying to get them to sample our product or get them to come out, and we think on the heels of the World Cup, people are going to be like, ‘I got to go to a game.’ And maybe some of these World Cup games, based on what I’ve seen and heard, might not be in certain people’s budgets. Whereas our games will.”
Though there is a buzz for the upcoming World Cup, it has also come with a number of concerns. Complaints over the extravagant prices to get into matches during the tournament have dominated the headlines amid concerns from fans that they will be priced out of seeing matches.
FIFA is in charge of ticket prices and Batson said that U.S. Soccer has been focused on “making sure” fans can go to the USMNT tune-up games and that there are ways for them to “engage with the team at all different price points.”
Security costs have also raised concerns as some planned fanfests have been put at risk of taking place. Miami’s host committee warned that it may be forced to cancel its official fan fest during the summer if it didn’t get funding from the federal government during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing last month.
Separately, a massive fan fest planned at Liberty State Park in Jersey City was scrapped in favor of a more community-focused approach by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill.
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