By Robert Haugh
FIFA just handed the Bay Area a World Cup schedule that feels like a big snub. And the local reaction has been brutal.
When the 2026 match lineup for Levi’s Stadium was revealed this weekend, the public and press didn’t mince words.
Santa Clara is getting a slate of mid-tier teams: Switzerland, Paraguay, Qatar, Austria, Jordan, Algeria, and Australia in the group stage.
Dieter Kurtenbach of the Mercury News delivered one of the sharpest takedowns. He called the schedule a “death blow to the local economy.” Ouch.
He wrote that the Levi’s slate as “glorified friendlies between nations whose primary export is serviceable midfielders” and warned the underwhelming lineup could stunt local soccer excitement for years. Double ouch.
Bay Area fans and media have branded the draw “lousy” and “second-rate,” saying FIFA effectively pushed the region to the undercard. Los Angeles and Miami landed the headliners.
Instead of high-stakes, must-watch matches, critics say the local slate resembles a preseason exhibition list.
The biggest concern is that these matchups won’t generate any excitement. That could kill visitor spending. And packed hotels that have been promised since Levi’s started chasing mega-events.
There are other problems.
One of the featured games, Switzerland vs. Qatar, is set for midday in direct sun. Who wants to sit in Levi’s Stadium in the heat for a weak matchup? And will families shell out big money for it?
There is one potential positive.
Levi’s will host a Round of 32 knockout match. If the U.S. Men’s National Team wins its group, that game could land in Santa Clara.
The previous commenters sound like they work for the Stadium Authority! No true supporter of football–outside of those from the assigned countries themselves–would consider that list to be anywhere near elite. None of them have any realistic chance of winning the World Cup. Switzerland is probably the best team of the lot, but they are nowhere near the elite powers. The only benefit of this grouping is that perhaps the secondary market ticket prices will have to come down from the ridiculous pricing. There will be a market for families that just want to go to the World Cup no matter what but they alone will not sell out the stadium. I am reminded of a game in the 2016 Copa América at Levi’s between Uruguay and Jamaica. Both teams were eliminated by that point–ticket prices felt to $18 a seat. There were so few fans, maybe a few thousand, that they let us sit in the club section. Somebody in the host committee–maybe somebodies/obviously had no clout to get decent matchups.
1) Every hotel room within the City of Santa Clara will be filled during the World Cup – at crazy high prices meaning solid Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT).
2) Restaurants throughout Santa Clara will see significant and measurable customer increases.
3) So about what is there to complain? Twenty years ago Miami and LA clearly would have been on a World Cup list of expected cities. Santa Clara?; 20 years ago? Only in dreams. Today, we get 6 (SIX) World Cup matches. How many to SF, Stanford or San Jose? Um…Zero. Do you need a recount?
4) Countries with serious investing power will watch their home teams play via live broadcast in Santa Clara. Qatar. Switzerland. Austria. Paraguay. Australia. Jordan. Algeria. All those countries had enough resources to support their teams to qualify. We should be glad to create relationships for future business investments in the shadow of Levi’s Stadium.
Let’s celebrate the opportunity to market The Mission City as Silicon Valley Central.
Chris Stampolis
Santa Clara
Let’s hope we can pull off a hat trick.
Gemini actually had an interesting response about the teams coming to Levi’s:
i know fifa world cup is a big deal, but if the slated teams are somewhat low quality, can we still expect large crowds to fill the stadiums?
Yes, large crowds are generally expected to fill the stadiums for the FIFA World Cup regardless of the perceived “quality” of some individual teams, primarily due to the tournament’s immense global prestige and the dedication of traveling fans.
While team quality can affect attendance at regular club matches or less-established tournaments, the World Cup is a unique global spectacle driven by several other strong factors:
Tournament Prestige: The World Cup is the pinnacle of international football, a once-every-four-years event that draws massive worldwide attention and a desire to witness history.
Dedicated Traveling Fans: Countries with deep-rooted football traditions have thousands of passionate supporters who will travel great distances to follow their national team, often saving up for years for the trip. The qualification of a nation’s team is a massive driver of fan travel demand, regardless of its global ranking.
Host Nation Enthusiasm: The local population in the host country (or countries, for the 2026 World Cup) provides a huge baseline for attendance. In host nations with strong local soccer culture, expect nearly every game to be well-attended.
Stadium Capacity and Accessibility: The sheer size of the venues (like the large NFL stadiums being used for the 2026 World Cup) allows for massive crowds. Coupled with a large host market like the USA, the potential for record-breaking attendance is high.
Event Experience: Fans attend for the overall matchday experience, including the atmosphere, amenities, and the unique global gathering, not just the technical quality of play in every match.
While recent smaller-scale tournaments like the expanded Club World Cup have seen fluctuating attendance for matches involving less globally renowned teams, the iconic status of the national team World Cup means that attendance for even “lower quality” matchups is likely to remain high, especially in the group stages when all qualified teams participate.