Staff Reporter
THE 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the largest edition of the tournament in history, featuring 48 teams competing in 104 matches across the United States, Mexico and Canada from 11 June to 19 July 2026.
The expanded tournament marks several historic firsts for football’s premier event. It will be the first FIFA World Cup hosted by three countries and the first to feature 48 teams, up from the previous 32-team format.
A total of 16 host cities will stage matches, with 11 located in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada. The opening match will take place at Mexico City Stadium on 11 June, while the final is scheduled for 19 July at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
The tournament follows the successful United 2026 bid, which defeated Morocco during a vote at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow. It also marks the first men’s World Cup since 2002 to be jointly hosted by multiple nations.
Mexico will make history as the first country to host or co-host the men’s World Cup three times, having previously staged the tournament in 1970 and 1986. The United States last hosted the competition in 1994, while Canada will host the men’s World Cup for the first time.
Host nations Canada, Mexico and the United States qualified automatically. Four countries — Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan — will make their FIFA World Cup debuts.
Defending champions Argentina enter the tournament aiming to retain the title they won at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The group stage will run from 11 to 27 June and feature several high-profile fixtures, including Brazil against Morocco, France versus Senegal, England against Croatia, and Argentina against Algeria.
The knockout phase begins with the newly introduced Round of 32 on 28 June, followed by the Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, a third-place playoff and the final.
The semi-finals are scheduled for Dallas and Atlanta on 14 and 15 July respectively, while Miami will host the third-place playoff on 18 July before the championship match takes place in New York New Jersey the following day.
With an expanded field, additional knockout round and matches spread across North America, FIFA expects the 2026 edition to be the biggest World Cup ever staged, bringing together nations from every continent in a month-long celebration of football.
Photo: FIFA
