In honor of the 2026 FIFA World Cup expanding to an unprecedented 48 teams, Sports Illustrated’s upcoming World Cup preview issue is also expanding through an innovative print execution for its June 2026 Issue. Sports Illustrated’s Editor-in-Chief is Steve Cannella and the Creative Director is Stephen Skalocky.
The preview issue will spotlight all competing nations and their teams with 48 illustrated digital covers and 4 print covers — USA, Mexico, Argentina and France. Each cover, says the publisher, is inspired by national traditions, colors, symbols and fan culture with artwork going beyond the players themselves to capture the cultural heartbeat of fans. And each cover is intended to serve as a visual anthem celebrating pride, identity and the fútbol community of that nation.
To create the covers, SI worked with 48 artists from around the globe, with an emphasis on different artistic styles and backgrounds. Eligibility for each illustrator to be involved in the project required they either have to live in the country represented or have been born there, loosely following the FIFA requirements for players competing in the World Cup.
The group of Illustrators include a former Sports Illustrated Art Director, a TV cartoonist, an Art Directors Club Hall of Fame artist, and more.
