On a hot night in Los Angeles, from the picturesque Griffith Observatory overlooking the Hollywood sign, FIFA President Gianni Infantino unveiled the branding for the 2026 World Cup.
This is an important day leading up to a major tournament. A trophy inspired by the carnival of the 2014 Brazil World Cup and a red, white and blue shield from the 1994 USA World Cup. Color schemes, logos and mascots are associated with the tournament they represent. It creates anticipation and fuels excitement. However, this iteration is less inspirational.
Unlike the Stars and Stripes that adorned the iconic logo of ’94, there’s nothing about this design that makes America scream. According to FIFA, this is an all-inclusive brand, simple and highly customizable. This is a logo that can be easily transferred and used across merchandise, with each host city having its own color pattern and slogan.
The AthleticInstant analysis of:
Is it really this? Is this the real World Cup logo? The world’s biggest sporting event?
Yes, this is it. — Maurer
How does this compare to previous World Cup logos?
It’s decidedly bland and lacks the character of previous editions. The tournament has been a branding effort since his first tournament in 1930. For this tournament, a local Uruguayan artist drew the official poster for the tournament, which was relatively abstract, depicting goalkeepers stretching and flying. It was an instant hit, and over the decades that followed, the iconography and visual identity of the World Cup became increasingly important.
In Mexico in 1970, renowned designer Lance Wyman ventured into design, creating a concentric visual identity in which numbers and letters were embedded in each other. The official logo and poster for the tournament was a simple graphic rendering of the then-new Adidas Telstar, making the ball the most instantly recognizable sports equipment imaginable. Other tournaments shine as well. Italy in 90 brought an almost abstract touch to things, but the 1994 World Cup was decidedly more… obvious. red, white and blue. A soccer ball passes through the red and white bars of the American flag. Years later, the design remains iconic.
“Overall, we weren’t very cautious, were we?” said then-US soccer president Alan Rosenberg. The Athletic last year. “Look what we’ve done to the logo. It’s not abstract, it’s red, white, blue, the Stars and Stripes and a soccer ball running through it. We’re punching people between their eyes.” It was like.”
Tournament logos feel a bit standardized these days, with logo outlines of Jules Rimet trophies.
They have always incorporated the cultural elements of the host country. In Qatar, for example, the logo was made to look like a woolen shawl, the traditional garment of the region. The 2018 Russia World Cup featured bold colors of red, gold, black and blue. FIFA said the work was inspired by centuries-old techniques found in world-renowned Russian art.
The logos for this upcoming tournament, which will be held in three different countries, feel like a common practice of “clean” design that we see a lot these days. — Maurer
So why did they do it this way?
FIFA answered questions during a session with the national media on Wednesday. The motivation for the design was to make the brand inclusive, simple, and highly customizable across multiple platforms, according to people involved. According to FIFA, they wanted to bring the World Cup trophy to the forefront of their logo and wanted to create a system that could be reused in future tournaments and felt “iconic” for all ages. It says.
Design simplicity is FIFA’s hallmark, not its flaw. You’ll see plain Jane logos everywhere: sweatshirts, caps, shoes, even the front of jerseys at tournaments. There is also a version of the logo that divides the ’26’ into 16 grids to represent the 16 host cities, and a version that includes his 48 panels representing the teams in the tournament in the numbers. FIFA also created unique color palettes and design inserts for each host city. However, the base logo remains the same.
FIFA representatives said the logo design process was led by their own brand team, with input from a number of consulting firms, but declined to name them. — Maurer
What other path could they have chosen?
Canada has never hosted a World Cup, but the United States and Mexico have hosted World Cups, and both the 1970 and 1994 tournaments featured some of the best designs in the history of the tournament. FIFA may have considered revisiting or rethinking some of its previous visual identities, or creating different versions of its logo for each host country. Instead, what unfolds feels bland and lifeless. Perhaps it will grow for us too. Let’s see. — Maurer
what they say
CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani said Wednesday’s launch event was “a bit of a kickoff, apart from the launch of the city, which we held last year.”
“This is actually the first thing going into 2026 and there’s a lot more to come after this. Obviously the city is really excited, but behind that,” he added. rice field. “They were picked last year, so we’re going to start thinking about colors and other things. It’s really exciting. And obviously I think we have a lot of work to do going forward, but that’s pretty much right now. I feel like it starts with
Montagliani also mentioned the possibility of the United States and Mexico hosting the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
“It’s a process. Obviously, it’s exciting. The two countries you know have facilities and a history of organizing. It’s just the beginning,” he said. “So there’s a whole process behind it, we’re behind it, CONCACAF is behind it, and we’ll see what happens.”
Montagliani added that discussions were taking place over the issue of coverage of the Women’s World Cup. “I have to say (the discussion) started on a slightly different level,” he said. “So it’s moving and I think it’s important to understand where we’re coming from here. We’re investing in women’s games, women’s football.”
Infantino touched on safety and security concerns for the 2026 Games.
“Qatar is small, especially compared to North America. We have built a strong network of partnerships and everything has gone very smoothly in terms of World Cup security and I am sure the same will happen here,” he said.
“We come here to bring happiness, passion and joy to our people, our locals in the United States and North America, our communities around the world who already live here, and our fans from abroad. Looking three years ahead, we are already working with law enforcement officials, government officials from three countries and those who participate to ensure peace.”
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(Photo: Harold Cunningham/FIFA via Getty Images)
