The Game Is Not U.S.

First, it was Chicago getting dissed last year in favor of Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Olympics. Now, the U.S. has been shut out of another lucrative worldwide sporting event—the next two World Cup games.

The 2018 event will go to Russia, while in 2022 the FIFA World Cup will go to Qatar, marking the first time that Eastern Europe and the Middle East will play hosts to the event.

Last year’s World Cup was held in South Africa and was widely regarded as a success, as long as you could tune out the annoying buzz of the vuvuzelas in the stands while watching the event.

It’s understandable that other countries would get first crack at the Fifa World Cup, since the U.S. isn’t exactly a soccer powerhouse, and the popularity of the sport here pales in comparison to such homegrown games as American football, baseball, and basketball.

But some soccer-mad countries like Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and England—which sent soccer star David Beckham and Price William in an attempt to secure the bid—have to be smarting over being passed over for the next two events.

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