NRG Stadium Changing Names for 2026 FIFA World Cup?
From concerts to College Football Playoff games, the Houston Texans are no strangers to sharing NRG Stadium.
In 2026, though, the Texans won’t be sharing it with trending pop stars or rising seniors, but with the most famous sporting event in the world. The 2026 FIFA World Cup is coming to the United States, and Houston has been selected as a host city.
For the privilege of bringing in the attention of such a high-stakes event, certain conditions must be met. There will be World Cup games played in Houston, but its venue – NRG Stadium – will have to give up its name.
Troy Taormina-USA Today
“FIFA refuses to acknowledge corporate stadium names, despite many naming rights agreements being in palace long before host cities even put in a bid to lure the tournament to town,” the Houston Chronicle reported. “So, due to FIFA regulations, the seven matches at NRG Stadium actually will be played at ‘Houston Stadium.’”
The temporary name change is one NRG, who owns the naming rights to the building, had to agree to before the city could sign its deal with FIFA.
“Going way back to the big process, there’s always things that you work through before you even bid for an event, so we are super thankful to our corporate community, especially NRG in this case for stepping up and agreeing even before we put the bid in to help us with this,” said Janis Burke, the CEO of Harris County Houston Sports Authority.
This isn’t a new development, nor does it only affect Houstonians.
The World Cup is slated to play games at MetLife Stadium, SoFi Stadium, and AT&T Stadium, homes of the New York Jets and Giants, Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, and Dallas Cowboys, respectively. Humorously enough, MetLife will be called “New York/New Jersey Stadium” while Sofi Stadium will be called “Los Angeles Stadium” and Jerry World will be dubbed “Dallas Stadium.”
Notably, neither Sofi Stadium nor AT&T Stadium are in the cities they represent.
Houston already got its fair share of heart-stopping moments from this season’s worth of Texans games, but many more are on the way. The Houston faithful hope they get to hoist a trophy of their own before the run to a World Cup championship comes through its doors.
