Chris Canetti moved from president of MLS’s Houston Dynamo and the NWSL’s Houston Dash in 2018 to preside over Houston’s successful bid to host seven 2026 World Cup games — then became the city’s host committee president.

The Connecticut-native joined the Dynamo ahead of its first season in 2006. During Canetti’s tenure, the Dynamo won MLS Cups in 2006 and 2007, finished runner-up twice, lifted the 2018 Open Cup, and moved into its new soccer-specific stadium, in 2012. The Dash became the NWSL’s first expansion team in 2014.

SOCCER AMERICA: I understand you played baseball at Quinnipiac University. What was your early soccer history?

CHRIS CANETTI: I grew up in a town called Guilford, Connecticut —  a massive soccer town. In fact, when I was in high school, both the boys and girls high school teams were ranked No. 1  in the USA Today polls. That’s probably why I didn’t play — I wasn’t good enough. I did play soccer up to 8th grade, but baseball was my sport.

SOCCER AMERICA: How did you get back into soccer?

CHRIS CANETTI: I was the general manager of a Double A baseball team in New Haven Connecticut, affiliated with the Seattle Mariners. I had become the general manager of this baseball team at age 26 and I thought I was on a pathway to becoming a Major League Baseball general manager.

Then I got a call from Nick Sakiewicz, the president/CEO of the New York/New Jersey, MetroStars. He had just come in and taken over for Charlie Stillitano and was rebuilding the organization. 

Somehow they recruited me when soccer wasn’t on my radar at all. I thought it was a cool opportunity to leave my hometown, New Haven, go to the big city, Giants Stadium, the Madison Square Garden Network.

I didn’t get into it thinking I was going to have this 25-plus year career in soccer. I thought it was just going to be my entree into pro sports in the new market. But I ended up really enjoying my time with the MetroStars and advancing up to near the top.

SA: Then Red Bull bought the MetroStars in 2006 …

CHRIS CANETTI: We all got fired by Red Bull. That’s how I ended up in Houston.

SA: Is there anything about soccer you find particularly attractive that influenced it becoming your career for so long?

CHRIS CANETTI: I love the sport and I love the culture around it. I love the internationalism of it. I really do enjoy it. It’s given me a great, fantastic career. My daughter’s a Division I college soccer player. So the sport really became a big part of my life and our family.

After 19 years in MLS — six in New York, 13 in Houston — the city asked me to lead its World Cup bidding efforts. In 2022 when we were given host city status, I transitioned over from the bid committee to the host committee.

I think I learned a lot over 19 years about soccer and the culture of soccer that put me in a position to successfully lead the bid, and then to be in a good position to lead the host committee as well.

SA: What drove Houston to bid for 2026 World Cup games?

CHRIS CANETTI: Houston is a big event sports town. 

Since 2004, we’ve hosted more major sporting events than any other city in North America: Super Bowls [2004, 2017], NCAA basketball Final Fours, all-stars games, major international soccer events. We have the world’s largest rodeo that 2.7 million people attended this year.

Houston has its hands up every time there’s a big sporting event. We have leadership in our city, at our county level and at our state level, who believe in the value of big sporting events and how they can enhance a community.

There’s a strong culture here, from our elected officials on down, of valuing major sporting events.

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SA: What do you think Houston is known for around the world and what might World Cup visitors not know?

CHRIS CANETTI: I think people have a lot to learn about Houston. We don’t take for granted that people know that Houston is the fourth largest city in the United States. Houston is an up and coming city. It’s on the rise both domestically and internationally. 

It’s obviously known as the energy capital of the world. We have the big space museum, Space Center Houston. It’s also got the largest medical center in the world. A lot of people come here to be treated and to work in the medical field in treatment and research. 

Houston is one of the most diverse communities in all of North America. Diversity is a big part of who we are and the culture here, which ties into the food, the music and many things … and it also lines up very well for soccer.

There’s over 40 languages spoken in Houston, and one out of every four people here is foreign-born. It’s a very international city. I don’t know if people quite realize that.

SA: I visited Houston in 2008 for the U.S. men’s game against Mexico. I liked it very much thanks to advice from locals on where to go. But it seemed not an easy city to navigate for a first-time visitor.

CHRIS CANETTI: It’s a very spread-out city, large geographically with lots of different areas. We’ll go to great lengths to communicate and to share where all the points of interest are.

You could go all the way out to Galveston, which is a good 50 miles from here. Even Space Center Houston is a little bit outside the city. We’ve got the zoo, we’ve got museums, we’ve got fine arts. There’s a lot of different things to do here. We’re going to be working with our partners, an organization called Houston First, which is the marketing arm for the City of Houston, on all aspects of tourism and making sure that we can show people where to go to have a good time.

SA: How’s the public transportation?