Los Angeles ranks as the most confident sporting city in the US, according to new research commissioned by operator Ignition Casino, with 30% of respondents saying they believe they could score a goal for the USMNT at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The nationwide survey, conducted by Censuswide among 1,000 respondents between April 14 and April 17 2026, asked Americans about their confidence across multiple sports scenarios, including scoring for the USMNT at the World Cup, scoring a point against LeBron James one-on-one, or kicking a game-winning Super Bowl field goal.
After Los Angeles, Miami placed second on the World Cup scoring question at 29%, followed by Dallas at 27.1%, according to the research. Ignition Casino said that excluding Columbus, every city in the top 10 recorded at least 17% of respondents believing they could score for the USMNT at the tournament.
At state level, California topped the rankings. The survey found 29.7% of Californians believe they could score for the national team at the World Cup, and California also ranked first overall for combined sporting confidence with an average score of 32.8%. The release also cited Georgia, Illinois and Virginia as posting “more than a quarter” of respondents in each state believing they could score for the USMNT.
The survey also included non-football confidence measures. Ignition Casino said 32.3% of Miami respondents and 37.5% of Californians believe they could score at least one point against LeBron James in a one-on-one basketball game, while 32.5% of Los Angeles respondents and 36.7% of Virginians believe they could kick a Super Bowl-winning field goal.
