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Feature Story — SportsTravel — News, Insight and Analysis for the Sports-Event Industry

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The teams emerging for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final (Credit: Robin Clifford)

An International Fan’s World Cup Final Experience: An “Extraordinary” End to the Tournament

When the FIFA World Cup reached its conclusion last month, it went down as a tournament that delivered record numbers of goals and unprecedented attendance. It also served as a milestone for the competition, with three host nations and 48 competing national teams for the first time. However, it was also a World Cup that […]

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FIFA President Gianni Infantino (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Analysis: Why Selling Stakes Would Be Disastrous for FIFA — and Gianni Infantino

When British newspaper The Times reported on July 28 that FIFA was exploring a new structure that would allow it to sell stakes in its prime assets (including media contracts, sponsorships, events) to private investors, few could have imagined the seismic repercussions it would have across the global soccer landscape. The news led to a swift […]

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Jeremy Bloom became X Games CEO in December 2024. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Q&A: X Games CEO Jeremy Bloom

In December 2024, Jeremy Bloom was named CEO of the X Games. It was a return to the action sports world for Bloom, now 44, who had been a U.S. Olympian in skiing and starred in college football at Colorado. Bloom never got the chance to compete in X Games as an athlete, but now […]

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The X Games held its first League Championship at the Caesars Superdome in late July. (Photo by Ted Keith)

How X Games Flipped the Script

An 11-year-old girl stood poised on her skateboard on top of a ramp inside a cavernous venue known for hosting Super Bowls and Final Fours, one member of a mixed-gender team representing a single city at a season-ending championship event. Then she dropped in, made history, won a gold medal, and helped further the evolution […]

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A fan waves a flag at a Kansas City Fan Festival during a match between the United States and Australia (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)

The Record-Breaking Numbers Behind the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Before the 2026 FIFA World Cup officially got underway on June 11, it was already guaranteed to be a record-setting affair — as this would be the first edition of the event in its 96-year history to feature three host countries, 16 host cities and 48 national teams competing, with 32 advancing to the knockout […]

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Spanish fans meeting players at Baylor School's public training session (Credit: A Owens Photography)

Rocky Top World Cup: Chattanooga, Tennessee’s Role in Spain’s Triumph

Spain won its second FIFA Men’s World Cup on July 19, beating Argentina 1-0 in the final. Now holding concurrent world and European titles, it was a historic moment for La Roja, but it was not only the Spanish team and its fans across the Atlantic who were raising a glass in celebration. Eight hundred […]

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Spain's Ferran Torres (7) celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the World Cup final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

World Cup Cities Dish on Lessons Learned

Was the World Cup worth it? When a panel of CVB leaders gathered last week at Destinations International’s annual convention in Portland, Oregon, to discuss the matter, the general consensus was yes. But would they do things different? In many cases, the general consensus was yes as well. The panel, held at the Oregon Convention […]

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The Men's Gymnastics Parallel Bars finals at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham, UK (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Commonwealth Games 2026 Preview: An Uncertain New Era

The Commonwealth Games enter an uncertain new era this week, as Glasgow, Scotland, gets set to stage the 23rd edition of the event. It joins a special club of Auckland, New Zealand, and Edinburgh, Scotland in hosting the event on two occasions, 12 years after its last time as a host. The 2026 event, taking […]

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Spain's captain Rodri lifts the FIFA World Cup trophy in New Jersey (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

The 2026 FIFA World Cup’s Defining Legacy: Host City Highlights

The biggest FIFA World Cup in history is over, and it was, in many ways, the most remarkable in history, one that rewrote the record book: 16 host cities across three countries; 104 matches; 308 goals; and 6,810,966 fans. Much of that is due, of course, to the competition’s expansion from 32 national teams to […]

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Fans at the Ecuador vs. Germany World Cup match at New York New Jersey Stadium (AP Photo/Stephen K.H. Moyes)

2026 FIFA World Cup Final Preview: One Step from Glory

The 23rd FIFA World Cup has reached its crescendo. And now, just two teams remain in contention to claim international soccer’s ultimate prize this Sunday at New York New Jersey Stadium: Spain and Argentina. For Spain, it is a return to the FIFA World Cup Final 16 years after securing their first Jules Rimet trophy […]

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