FIFA In Dispute Over Hosting World Cup Games At Stadium Where England Will Play
FIFA is currently locked in a dispute over the Gillette Stadium ahead of it hosting England and Scotland's matches in the upcoming World Cup.
In just four months, Mexico will host South Africa in the Estadio Azteca stadium for the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with the biggest competition in football set to take place throughout the summer.
Overall, 16 stadiums will host World Cup fixtures across the United States, Mexico and Canada, with the final set to take place inside MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
England will play all three of their group games in the United States, in Texas, Massachusetts and New Jersey, with the matches taking place between June 17 to June 27.
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But it's now been revealed that FIFA is facing problems with one of the stadiums that both England and Scotland are set to play in.
As revealed in a report from The Athletic, FIFA is facing issues regarding their plans to host World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
The report explains that the world football governing body is yet to receive an entertainment license from the local town of Foxborough to host the games at the stadium.
Local government officials in the town are threatening to withhold the entertainment license if it does not receive the $7.7million (£6m) deemed to be required to fund securing during the World Cup.
As part of the hosting agreement between each city holding a match, it was established that as hosts, their responsibility included costs relating to safety, security and protection.
In part, each of the host cities have received financial support in the form of a $625m (£457.5m) commitment from US President Donald Trump, but many have also relied on additional funding from taxpayers or private support.
However, each city must apply for their share of Trump's funding and later reimburse it, meaning somebody will have to pay Foxborough's $7.7m in order for the games to be able to go ahead.
According to the Boston Business Journal, Bill Yukna, the chair of the Foxborough Select Board, admitted in a recent meeting that it was initially believed that the Kraft Group would cover this costs, as they do for local NFL team New England Patriots' matches.
However, with the stadium being given to FIFA for the tournament, the Kraft Group are not willing to do so, while the town of Foxborough feel that local taxpayers shouldn't have to fund the event.
“The town is going to stand behind the request of the $7.7m for both manpower and some capital and expense items. And if they aren’t met, then as this board has discussed in the past, the license won’t be granted. We are going to be very clear with that,” Yukna said at the meeting.
The Athletic has reported that March 17 has been set as the deadline to receive the funding and for them to then grant the license.
Should Foxborough's capability to host World Cup matches fall through, it could mean that England's second World Cup game against Ghana and Scotland's first two games against Haiti and Morocco are under threat.
In total, Gillette Stadium is set to host seven matches from the World Cup, five group-stage games, one Round of 32 fixture and the first quarter-final on Thursday, 9 July 2026.
SPORTbible have reached out to FIFA for comment.
Topics: FIFA World Cup, Football, England, Scotland
Ben McCrum