North America

Officials behind North America’s bid to host the 2026 Fifa World Cup have insisted that government guarantees on visa-free travel plus work permit and tax exemptions demanded by football’s governing body will be in place by the March 16 deadline.

SportBusiness International reviews the slate of candidates in the hotly-contested race to succeed Sunil Gulati as US Soccer Federation president.

The Formula E electric car-racing series has opted not to replace its season-ending double-header event in Montreal, Canada.

Golf’s PGA Tour has confirmed that the 2018 edition of its annual tournament in Fort Worth, Texas, in the US will go ahead as planned amid doubts over the sponsorship of the event.

The NFL Players Association (NFLPA), the official players’ union of the American football league, has signed a five-year extension to its partnership with athlete marketing platform Opendorse.

US sports technology, data and content company Stats has appointed Carl Mergele as its new chief executive.

Kyle Martino has pledged to open up the domestic soccer league system in the United States by 2030 in an extensive “progress plan” released as part of his candidacy to become the next US Soccer president.

The International Association of Athletics Federations is keen to link the 2021 edition of its World Championships, which will be held in the US state of Oregon, to Los Angeles’ staging of the 2028 summer Olympic Games in a move designed to boost interest in the sport in the country.

The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) has announced it will return to Los Angeles for the first time in over a decade, with Korean companies Hugel and JTBC title sponsoring a new tournament at Wilshire Country Club.

The Tie Break Tens tennis tournament will stage its first event in the US this year after organisers confirmed that Madison Square Garden in New York will host a women’s contest.

North America’s Major League Soccer has launched its own esports competition, eMLS.

With the entry of Los Angeles FC and Nashville imminent, two new cities to be announced in spring, and two more by the end of 2018, Major League Soccer is in growth mode. Bob Williams investigates what makes a host city work for the league, and how LA FC and Nashville will seek to harness the culture of their respective homes.

Events – the USA's World Cup qualification debacle, the football federation's presidential election and two lower-league clubs bringing a case against Fifa to CAS – have conspired to put promotion and relegation back on the MLS agenda. Frank Dunne reports.  

North American NHL ice hockey franchise the Vegas Golden Knights faces a battle to retain its name, logo and colour scheme after the United States Army filed a formal opposition with the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office.

The NFL American football league has scheduled three regular-season games for London in 2018, with the new home of English Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur set to host one game, rather than the two originally specified, in its first year of operation.

Dallas-based billionaire Tom Dundon has been confirmed as the new majority owner of the Carolina Hurricanes NHL North American ice hockey franchise.