Empire State Building glows in US, Canada, Mexico colors for World Cup countdown

Record ID: 2360625

  • Title: Empire State Building glows in US, Canada, Mexico colors for World Cup countdown
  • Date: 3rd March 2026
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MARCH 3, 2026) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF ALEX LASRY, CEO OF THE NEW YORK NEW JERSEY (NYNJ) HOST COMMITTEE FOR THE FIFA WORLD CUP 2026, AND JT BATSON, CEO AND SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE U.S. SOCCER FEDERATION, AND PETER AUGRUSO, PRESIDENT OF CANADA SOCCER, AND INIGO RIESTRA, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE MEXIC
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Empire State Building FIFA World Cup
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: North America,Soccer,Sport
  • Reuters ID: LVA001054003032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Officials from the U.S., Canada and Mexico marked 100 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026 by lighting up the Empire State Building in the colors of the three host nations on Tuesday (March 3).
    CEO and secretary general of the U.S. Soccer Federation, JT Batson, CEO of the FIFA World Cup 2026 New York New Jersey Host Committee, Alex Lasry, president of Canada Soccer, Peter Augruso, and general secretary of the Mexican Football Federation, Inigo Riestra, were joined by mascots Clutch the Bald Eagle (United States), Maple the Moose (Canada) and Zayu the Jaguar (Mexico).
    Batson said U.S. Soccer is focused on putting the national team in the best position to succeed, making sure communities across the country feel part of the event and using the moment to expand access to the sport.
    "When you kick a soccer ball, you smile," he said, calling the game one that brings people together across ages and backgrounds.
    Soccer is "the world's language" and "a uniting experience," Lasry said. "Being here in the United States for the first time in 30 years is going to lead to an even bigger impact than we've seen from previous World Cups."
    Augruso said the tournament unites cultures and generations, calling soccer a universal language that does not "speak English, French, Italian... Kids in the playgrounds to people my age still continue to play to this day. Soccer really is for life."
    "It's the biggest event in the world," Riestra said. "It's 6 billion people watching the opening game. The sport unites the world."
    (Production: Andrew Hofstetter, Roselle Chen)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2026. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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