Top 10 Reasons Why LA is a Soccer City

The global image of American soccer has soared over the past 30 years, with the U.S. hosting the FIFA World Cup in 1994 and its men’s team making it all the way to the quarter finals of the tournament in 2002. American players like Christian Pulisic, Giovanni Reyna and Chris Richards are on the books of top-tier European clubs, while legends like Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Spain’s Jordi Alba, and Uruguay’s Luis Suárez all currently play for Major League Soccer club Inter Miami.

While America is no longer regarded as a “footie” minnow (ranked 16th in the FIFA-Coca Cola Men’s World Ranking as this post goes live), most folks overseas probably associate Los Angeles more with showbiz than soccer, and more with surf than turf. Yet even back in 2014, a HuffPost headline declared “Los Angeles Could Be The Top Soccer Town In The U.S.”

Here are 10 reasons why LA really is a soccer city that boasts plentiful credentials as a 2026 FIFA World Cup host city.

Los Angeles previously hosted the World Cup in 1994, with eight matches played at Pasadena’s historic Rose Bowl Stadium, making it the most-used stadium in that tournament. These included a five-goal tussle between Romania and Argentina in the round of 16; the semi-final pairing of Brazil and Sweden; the third place playoff between the Swedes and tournament surprises Bulgaria; and the final between Italy and Brazil in front of more than 94,000 fans, which went down to nail-biting penalty kicks before the South Americans secured the trophy.

The LA Galaxy is the best-known and oldest of LA’s pro soccer clubs, founded in 1994 as a charter member of Major League Soccer’s Western Conference. The city is also home to Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) and Angel City Football Club.

Originally playing its home matches at Rose Bowl Stadium, the Galaxy has been based at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson for more than 20 years and is the MLS’s most successful team.

LAFC first played in 2018 as a Western Conference expansion team, winning the MLS Cup just four years later and twice being runners-up in the CONCACAF Champions League. Sharing the soccer-specific BMO Stadium in Exposition Park with LAFC is Angel City FC, which debuted in the National Women’s Soccer League in 2022.

With six MLS Cups to its name and a further four appearances in the final, the LA Galaxy is the most successful MLS team. One of the 10 founding MLS clubs, the Galaxy won the CONCACAF Champions Cup within six years of forming, beating Honduras’ Olimpia in a 3-2 thriller at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The 2007 signing of English superstar midfielder David Beckham was a watershed moment for both the Galaxy and American soccer, raising the profile of both the team and the game in this country. The Galaxy has fielded a parade of high-profile international players including Robbie Keane, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Luis Hernández, Marco Reus, and U.S. star Landon Donovan, the club’s all-time top scorer. Today’s Galaxy squad comprises players from five continents, reflecting the city’s global population.

Although Inglewood’s state-of-the-art SoFi Stadium, which will host eight FIFA World Cup 2026 matches including the U.S. Men’s National Team opener, opened just five years ago, it has already hosted a number of major, sold-out soccer matches. These include a friendly between LA Galaxy and Guadalajara in front of more than 70,000 frenzied fans; the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup final between Mexico and Panama; two CONMEBOL Copa America 2024 matches (Brazil v. Costa Rica and Mexico v. Venezuela); and an 8-goal thriller friendly between England’s Arsenal and Spanish giants Barcelona.

Legendary players that have played professionally in LA include English superstar David Beckham; flamboyant former Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, and Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic; and Landon Donovan, who is widely considered the greatest U.S. men’s player of all time. These three, as well as the likes of German international Marco Reus and Mexican World Cup veteran Luis Hernández, were all Galaxy players (Reus still is), but LA’s other pro teams also boast global stars. Despite its short history, LAFC has fielded Gareth Bale, regarded as Wales’ all-time best player; Italy’s five-time Serie A Defender of the Year and Euro 2020 winner Giorgio Chiellini; and former El Salvador international Rodolfo Zelaya. Angel City FC’s current squad includes England international midfielder Katie Zelem; French national team forward Julie Dufour; and Japanese international defender Miyabi Moriya.

Along with homegrown players like New Zealand internationals Ali Riley and Rebecca Smith, ex-Mexico national team defender Nancy Gutiérrez, and LAFC midfielder Adam Saldana, top soccer players from around the world have owned homes in LA. These include Landon Donovan, David Beckham (and his celeb wife Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham), and ex-LAFC and Mexico star Carlos Vela.

Some global soccer stars love to rub shoulders with Hollywood entertainment celebs in LA. This is a city where they can mingle with fellow famous faces, yet where many can walk down the street without being pestered for autographs and photos. Big-name players who’ve been spotted out and about in Tinseltown include Portuguese idol Cristiano Ronaldo, who has acting aspirations and famously had a brief relationship with Paris Hilton; ex-Wales/Leeds Utd. hardman and (often typecast) award-winning actor Vinnie Jones; and former USA and Germany international midfielder Jermaine Jones.

LA's incredibly diverse and cosmopolitan population makes the city all the more appropriate as a FIFA World Cup host. For example, there are around 3.5 million Mexicans in LA County; 310,000 Italians and 200,000 Brits. With soccer fans from across the globe residing here, World Cup fever will sweep the city in 2026, with every team that qualifies for the finals enjoying local support that will welcome traveling fellow fans of “their” teams. As well as the LA-hosted matches, televised World Cup matches will spawn passionate parties in bars, restaurants, homes and backyards across Los Angeles.

LA is home to 230+ amateur soccer leagues, more than 2,000 teams and 160,000 active players. In the past, there were also more pro clubs in the city, including Chivas USA, a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. Guadalajara, which competed in the MLS 2005-2014; the short-lived Los Angeles Wolves, comprising a predominantly English squad, which won the United Soccer Association championship in front of 18,000 fans at Los Angeles Coliseum in 1967; Maccabee Los Angeles, five-time winners of the US Open Cup, which fielded multinational teams in the 1970s and early ‘80s; and Los Angeles Sol, which played in the now defunct Women’s Professional Soccer league.

With over 50,000 teams and more than 630,000 participants, the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) is the grassroots heartbeat of youth soccer in the U.S. This non-profit organization for players aged 4 through 19 formed right here in Torrance in 1964 and is still based in the coastal city. Run primarily by volunteers, AYSO today has local programs in all 50 states as well as in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Trinidad and Tobago. A parade of prominent pro players started their careers in AYSO programs, including Landon Donovan, Carlos Bocanegra, twice voted MLS Defender of the Year; two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Julie Foudy; and one of the first Americans to play professionally in Europe, LA’s own Eric Wynalda.