Why FIFA's president is confident in Seattle's ability to host back-to-back world events

SEATTLE — The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Thousands of soccer fans worldwide are coming to the region, with Seattle hosting world-class events in back-to-back years.

It's a lot, it's the eyes of the world on our city. And the sports governing body is confident Seattle is ready.

RELATED: Lumen Field to host 6 matches in 2025 Club World Cup, FIFA president confirms

"I'm extremely, extremely confident," said FIFA World President Gianni Infantino, who is visiting Seattle ahead of those major events next year.

"The commitment I've witnessed here from the authorities, from the people, is really--- I don't want to say unique because there are 16 host cities for the World Cup and 11 for the Club World Cup--- but it's really very special, and I will definitely use and cite and mention Seattle as an example as well to the other host cities as to what can be done. Not just during the events but in the lead-up and after the events," Infantino added.

That's high praise.

As Infantino mentioned, Seattle is one of just 16 cities hosting the FIFA World Cup, 11 for the Club World Cup. In the Club World Cup, Seattle is one of just two West Coast cities to host, paired with Los Angeles. Seattle will host six games in the Club World Cup, including all three group play Sounders games as well as six World Cup matches, including one match for Team USA.

It's those meetings with "authorities," who Infantino said included the mayor and Gov. Jay Inslee, that inspired confidence. It was also a tour of the facilities, including the Sounder's new Providence Swedish Performance Center.

He was taken, especially by the beauty of Lumen Field. The views and openness of the stadium and how it connects with the city of Seattle. He can't wait to see it live in action for a world-class event like Seattle will host there in the next two years.

"Lumen Field, great arena, very special, which has a special soul, and a special heart inside. You can feel it when you go inside certain stadiums. They don't have to be the biggest, but this one was very special, and it was empty, so I can not imagine how it will be when it will be full," Infantino said.

Around the community, the city is gearing up with Seattle 2026 World Cup CEO Peter Tomozawa making sure there's a "20-year impact" after the events, similar to how the 1962 World's Fair made a major impact and changed Seattle forever.

"It's going to be the largest event to ever hit our state," Tomozawa said. "I expect the star of the Seattle World Cup and the Club World Cup to be the city of Seattle' he added.

"The most important element is to make the hundreds of thousands of fans, which will be coming feel welcome and be whole," Infantino said. "They must feel welcome in the entire city, and the great thing about Lumen Field is that it's very close to the center of the city, so the fan march must be organized the right, and the fan festival needs to be done as well in the best possible way and what we need to realize compared to any other sporting event is when we speak about soccer and World Cups is there will be literally millions of people coming. Not just those who buy tickets but thousands of fans without tickets who just want to be close to their team. They want to be part of something special, and that's what we're working on to showcase this region and area to the entire world and to make everyone feel welcome."

So the stage is set, and the work is well underway with FIFA beyond confident in Seattle. And beyond bullish on its future, helping to grow the game.

"This will be part of, for me, part of the legacy we want to leave as well. We're not just to organize tournaments and events, but we are here to grow the game and make it become number one not just in the world but also in this country," Infantino said.

A massive and monumental step towards that happens with Seattle hosting these major events.