FIFA World Cup 2026

About the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the 23rd edition of the men's World Cup and the first to be co-hosted by three nations — the United States, Canada and Mexico. It runs from 11 June to 19 July 2026, with 48 teams playing 104 matches across 16 host cities. This is the first World Cup to use the expanded 48-team format, replacing the 32-team structure that had been in place since France 1998. For Mexico it is a record third time hosting the men's World Cup, having previously staged the tournament in 1970 and 1986. For Canada it is the first time hosting men's World Cup matches.

Format and key dates

The 48 teams are split into 12 groups of four. Each side plays three group-stage matches, with the top two from every group plus the eight best third-placed teams advancing to a new Round of 32. From there the tournament follows a familiar straight knockout path: Round of 16, quarter-finals on 9–11 July, semi-finals on 14–15 July, the third-place play-off on 18 July and the final at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey on 19 July 2026 with a 21:00 ET kick-off (20:00 CT, 18:00 PT, 02:00 BST 20 July). The opening match takes place at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on 11 June and the United States, Canada and Mexico are the three guaranteed host-nation entrants.

Host cities and stadiums

Matches are spread across 16 host cities: 11 in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada. The US slate features New York/New Jersey (MetLife Stadium), Los Angeles (SoFi Stadium), Dallas (AT&T Stadium), San Francisco Bay Area (Levi's Stadium), Miami (Hard Rock Stadium), Atlanta (Mercedes-Benz Stadium), Seattle (Lumen Field), Boston (Gillette Stadium), Philadelphia (Lincoln Financial Field), Houston (NRG Stadium) and Kansas City (Arrowhead Stadium). Canada hosts at BMO Field in Toronto and BC Place in Vancouver, while Mexico's three venues are Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Estadio Akron in Guadalajara and Estadio BBVA in Monterrey. Most US stadiums are NFL grounds temporarily reconfigured to FIFA-regulation grass and dimensions for the tournament.

Time zones and watching from abroad

Because the three hosts span five time zones — from Eastern Time on the US east coast across to Pacific Time on the west coast — kick-off times for fans outside North America vary wildly from one match to the next. A 21:00 ET evening fixture in New York is 02:00 BST the following morning in the UK, 03:00 CEST in continental Europe, 10:00 AWST in Perth and 11:00 AEST in Sydney. A 12:00 ET noon kick-off, by contrast, is a much friendlier 17:00 BST / 18:00 CEST evening watch in Europe but a 02:00 AEST middle-of-the-night start in eastern Australia. Pacific Time matches kicking off at 18:00 PT land at 02:00 BST in the UK. Group-stage scheduling is built to deliver at least one televised slot per day that works in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, and at least one that works in Asia and Oceania.

Broadcasters and where to watch

FIFA's main broadcast partners include FOX and Telemundo in the United States, BBC and ITV in the United Kingdom, CTV/TSN/RDS in Canada, TUDN/Televisa in Mexico, beIN Sports across the Middle East and North Africa, Optus Sport in Australia, SBS in South Korea, NHK in Japan, and Sony in India. Coverage typically includes free-to-air access for at least the host nation's matches and the final in most major markets. Streaming is widely available through the official broadcast partners' apps in each country.

What's at stake

The expanded tournament brought 48 teams together across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Use the tabs above to revisit the schedule, groups, statistics, ratings and lineups, or compare players using the available club-season data.