By Ian Miller
Unless you’ve recently moved out from under your mom’s rock, you probably have heard something about a little thing called the World Cup, which is taking place this month across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. (In fact, the 2026 tournament is the first time the tournament has been hosted by three countries.) Whether you’re a soccer (or “football,” as it’s called nearly everywhere but the US) fan or not, it’s a big deal to host a World Cup tournament, and the US is doing so in 11 cities this year! (Mexico is hosting three matches and Canada is hosting two more.)
The World Cup has a long history dating all the way back to 1930, when the first World Cup was played between 13 teams, ending in a win for Uruguay against Argentina. The World Cup, played every four years, has only been canceled twice, both times during WWII (1942 and 1946). FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or the International Association Football Federation), the organizing body behind the World Cup, was founded in 1904, but the World Cup was still a few years away.
Before the creation of the World Cup, football/soccer was an Olympic sport. “In 1920, Jules Rimet, the future president of FIFA who would one day become known as the “Father of the World Cup,” proposed a separate international tournament for the sport,” [Smith, 2026] which became the international event the world loves today. However, until 1984, professional players affiliated with FIFA were banned from participating in the Olympic Games, so players could not participate in both the World Cup and the Olympics.
The US, following this year’s 2026 Cup, will join five other countries (Brazil, Italy, France, Germany, and Mexico) in having hosted the World Cup five times; the US hosted the Cup for the first time in 1994, which was the highest-attended event in FIFA history to that point. Europe has hosted the tournament 11 times in total; the tournament took place in Asia for the first time in 2002, in matches across South Korea and Japan. Africa hosted the tournament for the first time in 2010, when South Africa hosted the 19th FIFA World Cup.
The tournament usually takes place in the summer months, but in 2022, the World Cup was held in November and December to accommodate environmental conditions of the Cup being held in Quatar that year, where the daily summer temperature can reach a blistering 122-degrees Fahrenheit.
Also, you should know that The Golden Scoop has been hard at work preparing to serve ice cream at the Kansas City Fan Festival this year! So, if you’re around at the KC Fan Fest, don’t forget to stop by our booth and say hi! We’re being sponsored by Jack Stack BBQ to be their dessert partner during the KC Fan Fest, and we’re so grateful to them for allowing us to appear on the world stage! Whether you’re watching “the beautiful game” right from the stadium seating this year, ears plugged against the incessant honking roar of vuvuzelas and questionable, beer-garbled football chants or watching from the peace and quiet of your living room television (your results may vary, depending on who’s in the room), the World Cup isn’t something to miss this year. Let’s watch it together.
Find the Golden Scoop at these locations:
9540 Nall Avenue
Overland Park, Kansas 66207
913-284-804410460 W 103rd Street
Overland Park, Kansas 66214
913-232-9639Hours:
Monday – Closed
Tuesday-Saturday: 8am-7pm
Sunday @103rd: 9am-5pm
Sunday @ 95th: 1pm-5pm
