World Cup 2026 posters

The FIFA World Cup 2026 may still be over a year away, but the build-up has already kicked off, not with goals or team announcements, but with poster artwork.

For the first time in the tournament’s history, FIFA has released a full suite of 16 Host City Posters, each designed to represent the local culture, energy, and footballing spirit of the venues across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It’s a big statement for what promises to be the biggest World Cup yet, featuring 48 teams, three nations, and more matches than ever before.

From a design perspective, this move is a smart one. With the tournament spread across such vast and varied regions, a single unified poster just wouldn’t represent the location(s) as well. This isn’t one city playing hos, it’s a continent-wide celebration. Creating an individual visual identity for each host city not only gives fans something to connect with but also taps into the cultural richness that makes this event so global.

Designing for scale and spirit

At a glance, the posters are bursting with personality. They highlight everything from local wildlife to iconic landmarks: flamingos in Miami, cowboys in Dallas, lobsters in Boston, and the maple leaf in Toronto (obviuosly!). The artists, many of them local to the cities they represent, have taken the opportunity to turn each design into a kind of visual love letter to their hometowns.

Some standouts include:

• Toronto’s stylised cityscape from, full of hidden detail and Canadiana.

• Seattle’s nature-themed piece, with whale tails and mountains framing the action.

• Kansas City, cleverly using a football scarf to tell the story of its people and club identity.

• Mexico’s three city posters, full of vivid colour and unified by a shared illustrative style from artist Cuemanche.

In this sense, FIFA’s approach borrows something from the Olympics playbook, where host city visuals are often as important as the games themselves. It’s a welcome evolution, especially considering some of the more generic branding used in the past.

But here’s the design gripe...

While many of the posters are visually compelling, one recurring issue stands out: the footballs themselves.

Too many of the designs feature a ball that looks like it’s been plucked from a 1970s sticker album. It’s the kind of classic black-and-white hex pattern that’s become more nostalgic than current — and in this context, it just doesn’t fit. It did in 1970, Brazil v Italy.

It’s a strange choice when you consider how far football design has come. Adidas has been the official ball sponsor for decades, introducing bold innovations with each tournament. Why not celebrate that progress with a design that acknowledges the present, or even offers a sneak peek at the 2026 ball?

Instead, many of the posters lean on what feels like clip-art, flat, generic, and oddly dated in a collection otherwise full of personality and colour. In some cases, the ball dominates the design (San Francisco, Boston), drawing the eye away from the more interesting local references. It feels as though the designer isn't a football fan.

A missed opportunity for cohesion

You have posters filled with contemporary design language, bold colours, rich symbolism, local character but anchored to a ball that’s 50 years old. It’s like building a cutting-edge stadium and then lighting it with candles.

Design, especially for global events, is about storytelling and consistency. These posters had the chance to be both hyper-local and unmistakably modern. But in a few cases, that balance has tipped too far into novelty or nostalgia.

It may seem like a small detail, but small details matter — especially when these posters will become collectibles, marketing tools, and cultural artifacts. Just as people look back fondly on Mexico 70 or Italia 90’s graphic identity, these posters will help define the visual memory of World Cup 2026.

A strong foundation

Despite this gripe, the concept of individual host city posters is a step in the right direction. In fact, it’s long overdue. Football has always been local at heart, played in parks and watched in bars and living rooms around the world. Giving each host city a chance to show its flavour is both a marketing win and a genuine cultural tribute.

It also empowers local artists, whose styles vary from modern minimalism to bold street art and collage. That diversity reflects not just the cities themselves but football’s global reach — a game played and loved everywhere, by everyone.

Room for improvement – but plenty to celebrate

In the end, FIFA’s Host City Poster campaign for World Cup 2026 is a promising, creative leap. It adds depth to the tournament’s visual identity and gives fans something to emotionally connect with long before a ball is kicked.

Still, with the official tournament-wide poster yet to be revealed, there’s a chance to bring everything together and perhaps redeem the design choices made around the football itself (hopefully!)

As a designer, I hope FIFA and its partners seize that moment to set a new standard one that combines local passion with contemporary design language in a way that feels timeless, not tired.

Until then, I’ll keep admiring the posters. they’re vibrant, spirited, and undeniably bold.