The most powerful individual figure in world soccer — a non-player that is — walked out to the practice field and Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer halted training. There were handshakes to be exchanged, photos to be taken and customized jerseys to be shown off.
It’s not everyday FIFA President Gianni Infantino drops by an October training session the week of a rivalry matchup against Portland.
“It’s impressive. I mean, he’s the president. It’s almost like having our president here. But, actually, Infantino is the president of the whole world, so there’s a difference,” Schmetzer said.
Infantino wrapped a brief two days of meetings, introductions and site visits by taking in a portion of Sounders training Tuesday morning. It was his first trip to Seattle in his role as the FIFA president before heading north to Vancouver, B.C., for additional meetings.
Infantino’s visit was important considering Seattle’s position within the international soccer landscape over the next two years. As part of his visit, Infantino announced that Seattle will host six matches during the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup next year, including all three of the Sounders’ group stage matches in the event.
That’s in addition to the six matches Seattle is set to host during the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
That’s two major events 12 months apart that could feature some of the biggest names, countries and brands in the sport playing in Seattle. Infantino expressed his confidence in Seattle being able to successfully pull off both.
“I’m extremely, extremely confident. I mean, the commitment I’ve witnessed here from the authorities, from the people is really, I mean, 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, very special,” he said.
As Infantino walked alongside Sounders owner Adrian Hanauer through the team’s training facility — expected to be a base camp for some country during the 2026 World Cup — a train followed of local soccer officials, community leaders and political stakeholders including Gov. Jay Inslee.
Infantino spoke briefly afterward and praised the soccer culture of the Pacific Northwest. He was given a history of the Sounders and Reign franchises from Hanauer and lauded what he expects to be a special atmosphere for the games being played at Lumen Field over the next two years after visiting the stadium on Monday.
“Great arena, very special arena, which has a special soul, a special heart inside. I mean, you can feel that when you go in some stadiums, right? They don’t have to be the biggest or more special. This one is very special and it was empty. So I cannot imagine how it will be when it will be full.”
And word of additional matches being played during the Club World Cup is the kind of news that could delight soccer fans in the region.
It was announced last month that the Sounders would play the three group games for the Club World Cup in its home stadium after Seattle was announced as a host city. But the three additional games, plus those being played in 2026 give Seattle 12 matches over the next two years.
It’s still unknown whether the three games not involving the Sounders for the CWC will be for the group stage or the knockout rounds — although it seems likely to be the former. Seattle is one of just two sites for the CWC along the West Coast with the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. the other. Players and player advocates have already expressed concerns about player health of having another major tournament added to the soccer calendar during the summer months, so asking teams and players to travel cross-country during the event seems unlikely.
The draw for the CWC is expected to happen in December when the Sounders will find out if the likes of Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain or Boca Juniors could end up in their group, to name a few of the qualified clubs.
“It’s incredible to be able to look ahead and see what’s coming to Seattle. Club World Cup, you know, the names are massive. For us to be able to host games it’s a great test run, I think, for what’s to come with (the) World Cup,” Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei said.
And to answer the question everyone will ask, yes, a temporary grass field will be installed for the Club World Cup.
“It’ll be of higher quality than previous sod installations, more technical, and technology has changed and evolved,” Hanauer said. “So yeah, it’ll come up after the Club World Cup, as it will after the World Cup.”
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