Every four years, the World Cup arrives with a level of excitement that seems impossible to escape. It is your TV time set for the month. 3 games a go. No need to flick through Netflix to decide on the next boxset. Football is on.

I am usually caught up in the excitement. Will watch almost every game. Head to the local for the group stages and then meet up with those I go down The Arsenal with when we reach the knockouts.

This time, however, I find myself feeling something different: exhaustion.

I have tried to put my finger on the reasons why I am not up for the World Cup. I have come up with a couple.

Football fatigue

After the Champions League defeat, I was exhausted.

Modern football never really stops anymore and we had a 9-month slog where we won the league, and made 2 further finals. That 20 days from West Ham away and the disallowed goal through to the Champions League final defeat was incredible. Through in that night in Islington when Bournemouth drew with Man City and my liver took a hammering.

The come down from Budapest was incredible, and I needed to take a step away. I have not had a drink since.

With what we did, I think I need a break from football to recharge those batteries, and that has led me to having no interest in the World Cup.

“Commercial World Cup”

This does World Cup does not feel as if it is one for the common fans. It is a commercial World Cup for sponsors. It is Americanised which is not a surprise as it is in America.

The tournament has expanded from 32 teams to 48 teams, which is just an attempt to create more matches, more games on TV, more sponsorship exposure, and ultimately more revenue. More games mean more advertising slots, and more television rights income.

The tournament is being hosted across three countries—United States, Canada, and Mexico. The United States, in particular, represents one of the largest sports and advertising markets in the world. The commercial potential of the US market has played a major role in shaping the tournament’s scale and presentation.

World Cup 2026 is a culmination of where football was already going: larger competitions, more matches, global marketing campaigns, premium ticket pricing, and greater emphasis on entertainment value and television audiences.

The ticket prices, the travel prices, and more. It is all aimed at maximising revenue and giving sponsors airtime. And do not get me started on the 30 minute half time.

I am comfortable in admitting that I do not have the energy to immerse myself in the World Cup like I would have done previously. Maybe I will watch a few games. Maybe I will catch the highlights. Maybe a dramatic knockout match will pull me back in and remind me what all the excitement is about.

Or maybe I will simply let the tournament happen without feeling the need to follow every second.

Keenos