2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup Countdown
In the sixth edition of our series highlighting 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup host markets, we’re putting Houston—host of seven games, including one Round of 32 game and one Round of 16 game—under the microscope. Whether you’re a marketer, a brand, or just a fan, we’ve gathered a sampling of insights to help you capitalize on Houston World Cup soccer interest.
Market Overview
Before we dive into soccer-specific info, let’s start with a snapshot of the demographics of the Houston metro area in comparison to the rest of the United States. Below are insights into population, age, race, family size, education, and income via the U.S. Census Bureau.
| Category | United States | Houston |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 334,914,895 | 2,304,580 |
| Persons <18 years old | 21.7% | 21.9% |
| Persons 65+ years old | 17.3% | 12.8% |
| White, alone | 75.5% | 32.1% |
| Black, alone | 13.6% | 22.6% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 19.1% | 44.0% |
| Persons in HH | 2.57 | 3.19 |
| Language other than English spoken by age 5+ | 21.7% | 46.5% |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 34.3% | 37.1% |
| Median HH income | $75,149 | $62,637 |
The Houston DMA is the eighth-biggest television market in the U.S. with 2.45 million TV households. This accounts for 2.14% of all U.S. TV households. For comparison sake, here are the markets surrounding Houston:
- 6. San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose – 2.49 million (2.17%)
- 7. Washington, DC (Hagerstown) – 2.48 million (2.16%)
- 8. Houston – 2.45 million (2.14%)
- 9. Boston (Manchester) – 2.42 million (2.11%)
- 10. Atlanta – 2.41 million (2.10%)
Noteworthy for the FIFA World Cup – FOX has an owned an operated station, KRIV (FOX26), serving the Houston area, as does Telemundo, which owns and operates KTMD (channel 47).
WORLD CUP HOST CITY INSIGHTS – PHILLY
Like what you’re reading and want to see more? We’ve got the same insights for Philadelphia – the fifth market for which we did a deep dive ahead of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
Soccer interest in Houston
Using 2024 data from the U.S. Census, MRI-Simmons, and Esri’s Market Potential Index, below is a table illustrating the percent of the DMA’s population who participated or is likely to participate in several soccer-specific categories. Also included are the respective indexes, highlighting the amount the DMA over-indexes relative to the general U.S. population.
| Category | % of Population | Index |
|---|---|---|
| Participated in Soccer/12 Mo | 4.06% | 129 |
| Watch World Cup Soccer | 9.11% | 111 |
| Watch International Soccer | 7.32% | 121 |
| Watch the U.S. Men's National Team | 4.83% | 110 |
| Watch the U.S. Women's National Team | 3.82% | 104 |
| Watch MLS | 5.31% | 110 |
Putting Houston-Area Zip Codes under the soccer microscope
With background on the DMA and the relationship of its residents to soccer, let’s now combine the two and dive a bit deeper by identifying key zip codes with residents who over-index in soccer-specific engagements.
United States of Soccer
Soccer’s time has come. To grasp the impact the World Cup will have, you must first get to know the American fans and their passion for the sport. Soccer isn’t a trend — it’s here to stay and it’s growing fast. Our report goes deep into the American soccer audience, shedding light on its demographics, characteristics, and the factors that most shape fandom.
Using similar data referenced above, below is a map of the Houston DMA that highlights specific zip codes meeting the following criteria:
- Over-index in participating in soccer in the last 12 months
- Over-index in likely demand for watching the World Cup on TV
Of the 288 zip codes within the DMA, 141 (49%) meet the above criteria. Notably, all are at least partially within 50 miles of NRG Stadium (host of seven total 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup games).
Curious which individual zip codes over-index most in both criteria? Check out the scatter plot graph below for more insight.
For ease of sorting and discovery, here are the top 20 zip codes for each category.
| Zip Code | 2024 Participated in Soccer/12 Mo (Index) |
|---|---|
| 77204 (Houston) | 236 |
| 77012 (Houston) | 225 |
| 77039 (Houston) | 223 |
| 77076 (Houston) | 221 |
| 77547 (Galena Park) | 221 |
| 77011 (Houston) | 219 |
| 77037 (Houston) | 219 |
| 77506 (Pasadena) | 219 |
| 77093 (Houston) | 214 |
| 77081 (Houston) | 212 |
| 77060 (Houston) | 211 |
| 77087 (Houston) | 203 |
| 77017 (Houston) | 201 |
| 77038 (Houston) | 200 |
| 77587 (South Houston) | 198 |
| 77036 (Houston) | 196 |
| 77502 (Pasadena) | 194 |
| 77032 (Houston) | 188 |
| 77029 (Houston) | 187 |
| 77074 (Houston) | 187 |
| Zip Code | 2024 Watch World Cup Soccer (Index) |
|---|---|
| 77039 (Houston) | 165 |
| 77037 (Houston) | 164 |
| 77446 (Prairie View) | 163 |
| 77547 (Galena Park) | 162 |
| 77506 (Pasadena) | 162 |
| 77060 (Houston) | 162 |
| 77012 (Houston) | 161 |
| 77076 (Houston) | 160 |
| 77081 (Houston) | 159 |
| 77093 (Houston) | 157 |
| 77036 (Houston) | 155 |
| 77011 (Houston) | 154 |
| 77038 (Houston) | 151 |
| 77087 (Houston) | 150 |
| 77017 (Houston) | 150 |
| 77587 (South Houston) | 148 |
| 77074 (Houston) | 145 |
| 77061 (Houston) | 145 |
| 77502 (Pasadena) | 144 |
| 77086 (Houston) | 143 |
Searching for “2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup“
We’ve still got some time before the tournament kicks off in June of 2026, but it’s interesting to note the search volume trends within the Houston area. Below is the volume of Google searches for “2026 FIFA World Cup” since January 1, 2022.
Two notable spikes in searches are in June 2022 and November-December 2022. The former was the period during which FIFA announced the host markets for the 2026 tournament. The latter is during the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup when searches were likely increased due, in part, to preview discussions around 2026.
The next notable spike in search volume is from when the full schedule of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World cup was announced in early February.
Note: the embedded graph may not populate if you use Safari as your browser. To view the graph, click here.