A Landmark Moment for Women’s Football
In October 2025, four football federations came together to make a bold, historic move: the U.S. Soccer Federation, the Mexican Football Federation, the Costa Rican Football Federation and the Jamaica Football Federation officially launched a joint bid to host the 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The announcement took place in New York City and marked a pivotal campaign to bring the world’s biggest women’s sporting event to a region that spans North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
What makes this moment so significant is not only the ambition of the bid itself, but the broader implications for women’s football globally: the joint bid seeks to set “a new global standard” for the women’s game, to inspire future generations, to empower women and girls through sport, and to leave a lasting legacy for football development across the region. ussoccer.com+1
Why this bid, and why now?
To understand the importance of this bid, we need to place it in context. The women’s game has been growing rapidly - in terms of fan engagement, investment, sponsorships, broadcast reach and cultural significance. For instance, the 2023 Women’s World Cup generated an estimated $570 million in revenue, reached 2 billion viewers and had 1.9 million fans attending matches. ussoccer.com
Meanwhile, the global governing body FIFA approved an expansion of the Women’s World Cup from 32 to 48 teams starting in 2031, adopting a 12-group format and increasing the total number of matches from 64 to 104. Reuters+1 That expansion raises the stakes enormously: with more teams, more matches, more broadcast opportunities, and a bigger stage, the 2031 edition will require hosts with capacity, infrastructure, global appeal and a strong legacy plan.
From this perspective, the U.S./Mexico/Costa Rica/Jamaica bid comes at the perfect moment: the U.S. is already set to co-host the 2026 Men’s World Cup with Mexico and Canada, the 2028 Summer Olympic Games are in Los Angeles, and the region is riding a wave of investment in sport. That means hosting the 2031 Women’s World Cup offers a unique “springboard” to build long-term momentum for women’s football across an entire continent. ussoccer.com+1
Furthermore, the four-nation collaboration across CONCACAF (North America, Central America and the Caribbean) embodies the “One CONCACAF” philosophy, signalling that the region is ready to host major global events and deliver at a high level. ESPN.com
The federations speak: ambition, legacy & regional pride
At the formal announcement in New York, key voices from each federation laid out the ambition and the legacy vision.
Cindy Parlow Cone, President of the U.S. Soccer Federation, said:
“Together, we have an extraordinary opportunity to host the biggest and most impactful Women’s World Cup in history, one that will inspire a new generation of fans and help grow the women’s game across our entire region and around the world.” ussoccer.com
She emphasised the commitment to “create a legacy that reaches far beyond 2031 and sets a new global standard for the sport.”
Victor Montagliani, President of CONCACAF and FIFA Vice President, added commentary on the broader regional importance:
“Our Confederation’s commitment to women’s football has never been stronger, and hosting the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2031 will build on this momentum, inspiring future generations of players and fans across North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.” ESPN.com
Representatives from the Mexican, Costa Rican and Jamaican federations also contributed. Mikel Arriola, President of the Mexican Football Federation, remarked that the bid “reflects the trust that FIFA and CONCACAF have placed in our Federations to continue driving the growth of women’s football.”
Osael Maroto Martínez (Costa Rica) said:
“We firmly believe that we have all the necessary elements to provide the best experience, infrastructure, and human talent … For the present and future of our players, and those around the world.” ussoccer.com
Michael Ricketts, President of the Jamaica Football Federation, highlighted the significance for Jamaica:
“This will have a huge impact on the psyche of every single Jamaican. It is no ordinary feat for a small country like ours to host World Cup matches.” ESPN.com+1
Collectively, their voices underline three central themes:
Scale and ambition — aiming for the “largest Women’s World Cup in history”.
Regional inclusion — leveraging strengths across four nations in one bid.
Legacy and impact — focusing not just on hosting, but on using the tournament to grow the women’s game at all levels.
What this bid proposes: scope, scale and legacy
The bid is more than a handshake and a press conference. It contains ambitious targets, operational proposals, and a vision for lasting impact.
Scale & scope
If selected, the 2031 Women’s World Cup would be the largest ever held. As cited in the bid: an estimated 4.5 million fans across venues in all four host nations. ussoccer.com The expansion to 48 teams and 104 matches (up from 64 matches previously) means more games, more fans, more broadcast reach and bigger economic impact. Reuters+1
The bid emphasises “world-class facilities, athlete-centred environments, and a groundbreaking legacy commitment to reinvest proceeds into the global development of the women’s game.” ussoccer.com
Regional footprint
Hosting across four countries — the U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica — allows for geographic diversity, inclusion of Central America and the Caribbean in major global football events for the first time at this scale, and regional alignment with CONCACAF’s mission. Wikipedia For instance, this would mark the first time senior World Cup matches (men’s or women’s) would be in Jamaica and Costa Rica. ESPN.com+1
It also taps into the upcoming infrastructure and sport-event momentum in the region: the U.S./Mexico/Canada will host the Men’s World Cup in 2026, the U.S. will host the Summer Olympics in 2028, which may create economies of scale, operational advantages and heightened global visibility.
Legacy & football development
A standout feature of the bid is the legacy commitment. The federations pledge to collaborate with FIFA to ensure that the impact goes beyond the tournament itself: investing in girls’ player development, coaching education, infrastructure growth, and community-level football across member associations. ussoccer.com
This focus on legacy is important: many major tournaments provide a short-term spike in visibility and economic activity, but the long-term benefit depends on how host nations – and federations – leverage that activity to strengthen football ecosystems. The bid signals that this is integral to the plan, not an afterthought.
Host experience & infrastructure: What does it take?
Hosting a global mega-event like the Women’s World Cup requires significant operational, infrastructural, logistical and organisational commitments. Here’s what the bid suggests and what the federations will need to deliver.
Venue & stadium readiness
With 48 teams and up to 104 matches, the host nations will need a network of stadiums meeting FIFA standards (capacity, pitch quality, broadcast infrastructure, spectator amenities). The U.S. in particular has over 30 cities already expressing interest to host matches for the bid. ESPN.com+1
Mexico has rich experience in hosting major tournaments (Men’s World Cup, etc.) which bolsters credibility. Costa Rica and Jamaica bring additional host cities and the opportunity to expand football’s footprint into Central America and the Caribbean.
Travel, accommodation & logistics
A four-nation tournament spanning North America, Central America and the Caribbean adds complexity in travel logistics, scheduling, team base camps, training facilities, and fan movement. Ensuring teams, officials and fans can move efficiently between countries and venues will be key. Some service providers and commentators have already flagged concerns about travel between geographically diverse host nations. reddit.com
The federations must ensure seamless border and visa arrangements, high-quality accommodation, transport links and training infrastructure. Fan experience will be important for global broadcast and revenue generation.
Broadcast & commercial dimensions
FIFA’s decisions on the tournament format, broadcast rights, sponsorship and global reach mean that hosts must be ready to work at a global commercial scale. With the Women’s World Cup expanding to 48 teams, the commercial upside is significant. The host federations’ bid emphasises athlete-centric environments and global reach. Forbes
The commercial dimension also overlaps with creating sustainable legacy infrastructure — the bid book will need to articulate how investments now will produce returns later.
Inclusivity, sustainability & legacy
Modern mega-sporting events are increasingly judged not just by their spectacle but by their sustainability, inclusivity and legacy. The federations emphasise that this bid is designed to empower women and girls, to build inclusive spaces and to reinvest in football development. ussoccer.com Issues such as gender equity in prize money, labour conditions, and broader football ecosystem support are likely to feature in evaluations (as seen with FIFA’s expansion decisions). Reuters
Sustainability also matters: the environmental impact of multi-nation tournaments, construction of new stadiums vs use of existing assets, and legacy use of infrastructure is critical.
What’s at stake — and what this bid could deliver
Let’s examine the broader implications of this bid for each stakeholder set: the federations/hosts, women’s football globally, and the legacy for fans, players and communities.
For the host federations & region
Global leadership: Hosting the Women’s World Cup in 2031 would reinforce the U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica as leaders in global football. The U.S. has hosted twice already (1999, 2003) and would become the first nation to host three Women’s World Cups. The Washington Post+1
Expansion of football infrastructure: The tournament offers the impetus to invest in stadia, training facilities, youth development and community programmes which can benefit domestic leagues and grassroots football for years.
Economic and tourism benefits: Major tournaments drive tourism, hospitality, broadcast revenue and brand exposure for host cities. With an ambitious attendance target (~4.5 million fans) and global broadcast, the commercial upside is significant. ESPN.com
Regional inclusion: Bringing in Costa Rica and Jamaica helps to spread football development deeper into Central America and the Caribbean, which historically have had fewer major global tournaments. This can help bridge development gaps and increase investment in women’s football across the region.
For women’s football globally
Stage for growth: A 48-team Women’s World Cup hosted across four nations will be among the biggest sporting events for women in history. It will provide unprecedented global exposure for teams from emerging nations, thereby driving growth, interest and investment.
Inspiration & role modelling: Hosting in diverse geographies (North America, Central America, Caribbean) allows more fans to engage, more young girls to imagine a future in football, and more federations to build professional pathways.
Legacy investment: By emphasising legacy commitments (player development, coaching education, infrastructure), the bid points to a future where the tournament’s impact extends beyond the field.
Commercial viability: If the tournament is successful commercially, it strengthens the case for future investment in women’s football — bigger contracts, sponsorships, broadcast deals, league development.
For fans, players & communities
Fan experience: A Women’s World Cup across multiple countries offers diverse host cities, different cultures, and a richer fan experience. For the first time, fans in the Caribbean and Central America may be able to attend senior women’s World Cup matches.
Player opportunities: More teams mean more players get to compete at the highest level, raising the standard of competition, increasing visibility and career opportunities.
Community legacy: Infrastructure improvements and increased visibility can motivate youth participation, particularly girls, in football. In host nations, the tournament can catalyse community-level changes (e.g., improved pitches, better access to coaching) that persist for a generation.
Challenges & considerations
Of course, the bid is ambitious — and there are real challenges ahead.
Logistics & coordination across four nations: Ensuring consistency across four different football federations, legal frameworks, infrastructure standards, transport/visa regimes, fan services and broadcast operations adds complexity. Travel distances and cross-border arrangements (especially between e.g., Jamaica/Costa Rica and U.S. venues) must be managed carefully. Some raised concerns about travel burden and weather/seasons. reddit.com
Infrastructure readiness: While the U.S. and Mexico have lots of existing stadiums and major event experience, Costa Rica and Jamaica will need to ensure they meet FIFA’s requirements (stadium size, pitch quality, broadcast infrastructure, training centres). Ensuring that new or renovated facilities deliver value beyond 2031 is key to legacy success.
Sustainability & cost: Hosting mega-events is costly. Ensuring financial viability, avoiding white-elephant facilities, and aligning infrastructure with long-term community benefit is important. The federations will need to articulate how they will invest revenues, reinvest in football and avoid pitfalls of past host nations.
Ensuring equity and growth: With the expansion to 48 teams, attention must be paid to ensuring competitive balance, meaningful matches (not too many one-sided games), and pathways for emerging football nations. FIFA and the federations must ensure that the growth is inclusive, not just symbolic. Reuters
Fan and player experience: Fan experience needs to be excellent across all venues; teams must feel the tournament is world-class. Ensuring consistent standards of accommodation, travel, support services, broadcast production and media coverage across four host countries will be an operational test.
What comes next: timeline & campaign strategy
The bid timeline is firmly established. According to FIFA’s bidding regulations, key dates include: expression of interest by March, bid submission by Q4 2025, evaluation and on-site inspections in early 2026, and final host selection at the FIFA Congress on 30 April 2026 in Vancouver. Wikipedia+1
For this bid, the federations plan to submit the official bid book and related documentation in November 2025. ussoccer.com
In the meantime, the campaign will need to:
Engage global stakeholders (clubs, leagues, federations, sponsors) to demonstrate operational capacity and commercial viability.
Highlight legacy commitments (e.g., how proceeds will reinvest in women’s football globally).
Showcase infrastructure readiness, host-city commitments and cross-border coordination.
Emphasise inclusivity, regional benefit and the unique nature of the four-nation setup (U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica, Jamaica).
Build momentum with public engagement, fan campaigns, media narratives and alignment with broader regional major events (2026 Men’s World Cup, 2028 Olympics).
Why this bid matters for the future of the sport
This joint bid is more than just about hosting a tournament: it is about charting the future of women’s football in a region and globally. The four-nation approach recognises that no single country must shoulder the entire burden; that collaboration can yield scale, multiple geographies and inclusivity. It also reflects the changing economics and view of sport: major women’s tournaments are no longer niche—they are global spectacles with value and impact.
For youth players, especially girls in Central America and the Caribbean, knowing that Jamaica or Costa Rica might host matches in 2031 is transformational. It tells them career pathways exist, visibility exists, investment exists. For federations across CONCACAF, it signals that women’s football is a strategic priority and that major investment, infrastructure and event hosting are within reach.
For the global game, the bid helps push the narrative: women’s football deserves the same scale, ambition and legacy planning as men’s. The expanded 48-team format, the 104-match schedule and the multi-nation hosting plan all reinforce that this is women’s football with serious commercial, social and sporting intent.
Conclusion
The joint bid by the U.S. Soccer Federation, Mexican Football Federation, Costa Rican Football Federation and Jamaica Football Federation to host the 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup is a moment of ambition, strategy and regional cooperation. It sets out to deliver what could be the biggest women’s sporting event in history, hosted across multiple countries, with a massive legacy plan and a focus on empowering women and girls.
If successful, it will mark a major shift in how the women’s game is valued, hosted and remembered. It will not just be a tournament—it will be a catalyst for development, regional uplift, global visibility and generational change.
For fans of football, for young girls in every corner of North America, Central America and the Caribbean, and for those invested in the growth of the women’s game, this bid offers hope, momentum and a promise: that the future of women’s football is bigger, better and more inclusive than ever.
