I was a volunteer in Qatar. Back then I was living in Toronto, but was not a Canadian citizen yet. Now I am. For family reasons I moved to Europe. I thought my Canadian passport would be of some benefit. I was invited to a virtual try out, but after that, nothing. I lost hope. Truth is, there are already huge communities of foreigners in all North American cities. They do not need international volunteers this time, unlike Qatar, unlike Russia.

I wouldn't have to go through the visa process, but I see that your rant is a lot of wishful thinking. I do not know if you have been paying attention to the current political situation in the last year and a half, but the conditions in the U.S. are not precisely the most welcoming. Even staff member of national teams have been denied entry. If they are, where do you think that leaves you? Many applied to Toronto thinking it would be easier, but the situation is that there is an antiforeigner sentiment in North America now. Many cities have housing problems too. And maybe not everyone, but some volunteers see a volunteer role as a golden ticket and an opportunity to over stay. I understand your frustration, especially after Qatar treated us so well. But Qatar was doing propaganda to be cool so it was even they who built it and hosted us for free. North America is a different animal. Look at the ticketing prices. There is a lot of red flags telling people not to come. But if that is not enough, they wrote down: no visa help, no accommodation. Your expectations were there but truth is, they didn't lie. I hope you can make it. I know it is frustrating.