The assignment: Increasing American engagement in soccer leading up to the FIFA World Cup 2026

Whille football, baseball and basketball make up the three most-viewed sports in the U.S., soccer falls behind in popularity, ranking sixth behind boxing and ice hockey. This is a stark contrast from the rest of the world, where soccer is a prominent part of the culture and is indisputably the most popular sport. With the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026 being played in North America, your task is to create a campaign from the U.S. Soccer Federation to piggyback off of the anticipation of the World Cup to garner more support for the sport from Americans.

• How can you utilize different platforms to get this messaging across?
• How can this campaign be targeted to increase support for the sport as a whole, rather than just the World Cup?
• What strategies, either from other countries or other sports leagues in the U.S., can be adopted in this campaign to make soccer more a part of American culture?
• What elements of this initiative can ensure the enthusiasm doesn’t die down after the World Cup?
• How would the campaign deal with the challenges of the event taking place across three countries that have “interesting” dynamics in play at the moment: U.S., Mexico and Canada?
• Tourism to the U.S. is down due to concerns about immigration and a negative perception of the U.S. globally — how will the campaign address this? What about the perception that some players and participants from certain countries will not be allowed into the U.S.
• What did the campaign learn from the experiences of the Club World Cup, which ran this summer as a rehearsal for the World Cup?
• How can the campaign make the most of it being American in 2026 while maintaining its legacy, history and roots?

Note:
Judges will look for creativity, originality, and innovation in all elements of the campaign. Arbiters will also pay specific attention to research you’ve done and how it informs your initiative. The creation of digital content to support the entry is highly encouraged and will be considered strongly by judges. The strength of your research and quality of writing will also be paramount.