Last month, U.S. Soccer contacted the City of Orlando about being part of the United States, Mexico and Canada joint 2026 World Cup bid process.
Orlando was a host city for the 1994 World Cup and Mayor Buddy Dyer stated many times he hoped the city would be considered the next time a World Cup was played in America.
A lot has changed since then, most notably a surging soccer market stoked by Orlando City Soccer Club’s move to the city in 2011.
The Orlando Sentinel asked former World Cup athletes Alexi Lalas and Stuart Holden, now analysts for Fox Sports, which American cities they would like to see get World Cup games and what Orlando could bring to the table.