2026 FIFA World Cup [Part 1/3]

2026 FIFA World Cup

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_FIFA_World_Cup

All statistics correct as of June 26, 2026.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup[A] is the 23rd and current FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international men's soccer championship contested by the national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament began on June 11, 2026, and is scheduled to conclude on July 19.[3] It is jointly hosted by 16 cities – 11 in the United States, 3 in Mexico, and 2 in Canada. The tournament is the first FIFA World Cup to be hosted by three nations and the first to include 48 teams, an expansion from the previous 32-team format.[4]
The United 2026 bid beat a rival bid by Morocco during a final vote at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow. It is the first World Cup since 2002 to be co-hosted by multiple nations. With its past hosting of the 1970 and 1986 tournaments, Mexico became the first country to host or co-host the World Cup three times.[5] The United States previously hosted the World Cup in 1994. By contrast, it is Canada's first time hosting or co-hosting the tournament.[5] The event returned to its traditional June–July schedule after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar was uniquely held in November and December.
As the host nations, Canada, Mexico, and the United States all automatically qualified. Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan all made their World Cup debuts.[5] Argentina is the defending champion, having won its third World Cup in 2022.
The tournament set the record for the highest attendance in World Cup history. On June 25, 2026, total attendance reached 3,605,357 spectators, surpassing the previous record of 3,587,538,[6] which had been held for 32 years by the 1994 FIFA World Cup, also hosted in the United States.

Format
Expansion
The idea of expanding the tournament had been suggested as early as 2013 by then UEFA president Michel Platini,[7][8] and also in 2016 by current FIFA president Gianni Infantino.[9] Opponents of the proposal argued that the number of matches played was already at an unacceptable level, that the expansion would dilute the quality of the matches,[10][11] and that the decision was driven by political rather than sporting concerns, accusing Infantino of using the promise of bringing more countries to the World Cup to win his election.[12]
Starting with this edition, the FIFA World Cup expanded to 48 teams, an increase of 16 teams compared to the previous seven tournaments.[13] As approved by the FIFA Council on March 14, 2023, the teams were split into 12 groups of 4 teams, with the top 2 teams in each group and the 8 best third-place teams progressing to a new round of 32.[14] This is set to be the first expansion and format change since 1998.[15]
The total number of matches played increased from 64 to 104, and the number of matches played by teams reaching the semifinals increased from 7 to 8. The tournament lasts 39 days, an increase from the 32 days of the 2014 and 2018 tournaments.[16][17] Each team still plays three group matches.[18][19] The final matchday at club level for players named in the final squads is May 24, 2026; clubs have to release their players by May 25, with exceptions granted to players participating in continental club competition finals up until May 30. The 56 days of the combined rest, release, and tournament periods remain identical to the 2010, 2014, and 2018 tournaments.[14]

Other expansion formats explored
The expansion to 48 teams had already been approved on January 10, 2017, when it was initially decided that the tournament would include 16 groups of 3 teams, and 80 matches in total, with the top two teams of each group progressing to a round of 32.[13][20] Under this later-superseded format, the maximum number of matches per team would have remained at seven, but each team would have played one fewer group match than before. The tournament would still have been completed within 32 days.[21] This format was initially chosen over three other proposals, ranging from 40 to 48 teams, from 76 to 88 matches, and from one to four minimum matches per team.[22][23][24]
Critics of this format argued that the use of three-team groups with two teams progressing significantly increased the risk of collusion between teams.[25] This prompted FIFA to suggest that penalty shootouts may be used to prevent draws in the group stage,[26] although even then some risk of collusion would remain, and a possibility would emerge of teams deliberately losing shootouts to eliminate a rival.[25] To address these concerns, FIFA continued considering alternative formats[27]—a process that ended with the 2023 announcement that the format would be 12 groups of 4 teams.[28]

New rules
The 2026 FIFA World Cup introduces several rule changes. In accordance with IFAB, these are primarily designed to reduce time-wasting. The new rules for the tournament include:[29]

10-second substitutions: Players being substituted have 10 seconds to exit the pitch, otherwise the substitute must wait for one minute before entering the match.
5-second restarts: A visual 5-second countdown can be shown by the referee for throw-ins and goal kicks in situations of time-wasting. If the ball is not put into play in time, possession is awarded to the opposing team.
Medical treatment: Any outfield player who receives medical attention on the pitch must leave the field and wait for 1 minute before returning to play.
Expanded video assistant referee (VAR): VAR can now review and overturn clear mistakes on given second yellow cards, wrongly awarded corner kicks, expanded mistaken identity, and certain attacking fouls.
Mouth-covering red cards: To stop confrontational or insulting behavior hidden from lip-reading, any player who covers his mouth with his hand, arm, or shirt while confronting an opponent is to be shown a red card.
Player leaving the pitch in protest: Players or officials who leave the field in protest are to be shown a red card.
The tiebreakers for when teams finish the group stage equal on points also changed. The first tiebreaker is now the number of points earned in head-to-head matches between the tied teams, not goal difference.[30][31][32]

Breaks
Cooling or hydration breaks were introduced at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. For the 2026 World Cup, FIFA introduced mandatory 3-minute hydration breaks in every half for all matches. Broadcasters are permitted to run commercials during these pauses.[33]

Match schedule
The match schedule, without group assignments, was announced on February 4, 2024.[3][34][35] On June 13, 2024, FIFA released an updated schedule, with specific pairings assigned to venues for the knockout stage.[36] In addition, group stage matches were assigned to specific groups (though pairings for non-host groups were not assigned to specific matches until after the final draw; thus the group venues were known, but not for which specific pairing each matchday). The full schedule was unveiled in a live broadcast on December 6, 2025, the day after the draw. Group stage pairings were allocated to specific matches, and the kickoff times were confirmed for all fixtures.[37]
The final match will feature the first-ever Super Bowl-style halftime show in FIFA World Cup history. Produced by Global Citizen and curated by Chris Martin of Coldplay, the performance will co-headline Madonna, Shakira, and BTS to support the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund.[38]
The opening match was announced to include Mexico; it took place on June 11, 2026, at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.[39] The opening match involving Canada took place on June 12 at BMO Field in Toronto, while the United States' opening match took place on the same day at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. Each host nation is scheduled to play each of its three matches in the group stage within its own country.[34]
AT&T Stadium in Arlington hosts the most matches of any venue at the tournament, with nine. The United States host 78 matches, including all quarterfinals, semifinals, and the final to be played at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on July 19. Canada and Mexico each host 13 matches. Each tournament venue, except for the Estadio Akron, host at least one knockout stage fixture.[40] The match schedule overlaps with the 2026 CFL season, resulting in scheduling conflicts and loss of home games for the Toronto Argonauts and BC Lions.[41][42] The match schedule also affects the 2026 Major League Baseball season schedules of the Kansas City Royals, Philadelphia Phillies, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers, whose home stadiums are located near World Cup venues.[43]
Host cities were geographically grouped into three regions:[3]

Western Region (Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles)
Central Region (Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Houston, Dallas, Kansas City)
Eastern Region (Atlanta, Miami, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, New York/New Jersey)

Schedule by round

Stage

Matchday

Date

Group

June 11–17

June 18–23

June 24–27

Knockout

Round of 32

June 28 – July 3

Round of 16

July 4–7

Quarterfinals

July 9–11

Semifinals

July 14–15

Third place

July 18

Final

July 19

Schedule by group

Matchday

Pairings

Groups

Date

1 vs 23 vs 4

June 11

B & D

June 12

B, C & D

June 13

E & F

June 14

G & H

June 15

I & J

June 16

K & L

June 17

1 vs 34 vs 2

A & B

June 18

C & D

June 19

E & F

June 20

G & H

June 21

I & J

June 22

K & L

June 23

4 vs 12 vs 3

A, B & C

June 24

D, E & F

June 25

G, H & I

June 26

J, K & L

June 27

Host selection

The FIFA Council went back and forth between 2013 and 2017 on limitations within hosting rotation based on the continental confederations.[44][45] Finally, the FIFA Council decided to make an exception to potentially grant eligibility to member associations of the confederation of the second-to-last host of the FIFA World Cup in the event that none of the received bids fulfill the strict technical and financial requirements.[46][47] In March 2017, FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirmed that "Europe (UEFA) and Asia (AFC) are excluded from the bidding following the selection of Russia and Qatar in 2018 and 2022 respectively."[48] Therefore, the 2026 World Cup could be hosted by one of the remaining four confederations: CONCACAF (North America; last hosted in 1994), CAF (Africa; last hosted in 2010), CONMEBOL (South America; last hosted in 2014), or OFC (Oceania, never hosted before), or potentially by AFC or UEFA in case no bid from the others met the requirements.[49]
Co-hosting the FIFA World Cup—which had been suspended by FIFA after the 2002 World Cup—was approved for the enlarged 2026 World Cup, though not limited to a specific number, but instead evaluated on a case-by-case basis.[46] Canada, Mexico, and the United States had each publicly considered bidding for the tournament separately, but the United joint bid was announced on April 10, 2017.[50][51] On August 11, 2017, the Moroccan bid was officially announced.[52]

Voting
The voting took place on June 13, 2018, during the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow, and it was opened to all 203 eligible members.[53] The United bid won with 134 valid ballots, while the Morocco bid received 65 valid ballots.[51][54] Iran voted for neither of the two bids, while Cuba, Slovenia, and Spain abstained from voting. Ghana was suspended by FIFA due to a corruption scandal and was therefore ineligible to vote.[55][56][57][58][59] Morocco was later selected as a co-host of the 2030 FIFA World Cup, alongside Portugal, Spain, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

Voting results

Nation

Vote

Map

Round 1

Canada, Mexico, United States

134

Morocco

None of the bids

Abstentions

Allowed to vote
Ineligible to vote

Voted for United bid
Canada–Mexico–United States

Voted for Moroccan bid
Morocco

Voted for neither
Sanctioned by FIFA

Abstained from voting
Not a FIFA member

Total valid votes

200

Required for majority

101

Venues

1000km621milesWestern regionCentral regionEastern region
During the bidding process, 41 cities with 42 existing, fully functional venues with regular tenants (except the Olympic Stadium in Montreal) and two venues already under construction (Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas and SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles) submitted to be part of the bid (three venues in three cities in Mexico; six venues in six cities in Canada; 35 venues in 32 cities in the United States).[60] A first-round elimination cut nine venues and nine cities. A second-round elimination cut an additional nine venues in six cities, while three venues in three cities (Soldier Field in Chicago, U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, and BC Place in Vancouver) dropped out due to FIFA's unwillingness to negotiate financial details.[61] After Montreal dropped out in July 2021 due to lack of provincial funding and support to renovate Olympic Stadium,[62] Vancouver rejoined the bid as a candidate city in April 2022,[63] bringing the total number to 24 venues, each in its own city or metropolitan area.[64]
On June 16, 2022, the sixteen host cities (two in Canada, three in Mexico, eleven in the United States) were announced by FIFA: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Guadalajara, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Miami, Monterrey, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver.[65] Eight of the sixteen chosen stadiums have permanent artificial turf surfaces that are planned to be replaced with grass under the direction of FIFA and a University of Tennessee–Michigan State University research team. Depending on the venue's climate, the turf used is either a hybrid of 84% Kentucky bluegrass and 16% perennial ryegrass (for cooler temperatures), or Bermuda grass (for warmer temperatures).[66][67][68]
Four venues (Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and Vancouver) are indoor stadiums that use retractable roof systems, all equipped with climate control, while a fifth, Los Angeles, is open-air but has a translucent roof and no climate control.[69] The host of the final match—MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey—was announced by FIFA on February 4, 2024.[70]
Although there are soccer-specific stadiums in Canada and the United States, the largest dedicated soccer-specific stadium in the United States, Geodis Park in Nashville, Tennessee, seats 30,000, which falls short of FIFA's minimum of 40,000 (Toronto's BMO Field is being expanded from 30,000 to 45,500 for this tournament).[71] Stadiums including Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta; Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts; and Lumen Field in Seattle are used by National Football League (NFL) and Major League Soccer (MLS) teams.[72] Although primarily used for gridiron football, with the American stadiums hosting NFL teams and Canada's hosting the Canadian Football League (CFL), all of the Canadian and American stadiums have been used on numerous occasions for soccer and are also designed to host that sport.[73]
Mexico City is the only capital of the three host nations chosen as a venue site; Ottawa and Washington, D.C., joined Bonn (West Germany, 1974) and Tokyo (Japan, 2002) as the only capital cities not selected to host World Cup matches. Washington was a host city candidate, but the poor state of Northwest Stadium caused the city to combine its bid with nearby Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium, which was unsuccessful. Other cities eliminated from the final hosting list were Cincinnati, Denver, Nashville, Orlando, and Edmonton. Ottawa's candidate venue, TD Place Stadium, was eliminated early on for insufficient capacity.[74] Though eight of the metropolitan areas hosting games had previously hosted World Cup games (Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, New York/New Jersey, and Boston in 1994; Guadalajara and Mexico City in both 1970 and 1986; Monterrey in 1986), Estadio Azteca is the only stadium in this tournament that previously hosted World Cup games, having done so in both 1970 and 1986; none of the stadiums used in the 1994 FIFA World Cup were used in this tournament (though MetLife Stadium is located at the same site as one of the 1994 venues, Giants Stadium).[75] Soldier Field in Chicago, the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, and the Rose Bowl in Pasadena (Los Angeles area) were the only stadiums in the bidding process to have hosted games in 1994, but none of them were selected.[60]
FIFA's rules on stadium sponsorships required the venues to use alternative names for the duration of the tournament, shown below in parentheses.[76][77] The capacity is based on information published by FIFA.[77]

Key
† denotes a stadium used for previous men's World Cup tournaments.
‡ denotes an indoor stadium with a fixed or retractable roof with interior climate control.

List of tournament venues

City

Stadium

Number of matches

Capacity

Image

Mexico City

Estadio Azteca†(Mexico City Stadium)

5 (3 group, 2 knockout)

80,824

New York/New Jersey(East Rutherford, New Jersey)

MetLife Stadium(New York New Jersey Stadium)

8 (5 group, 2 knockout, and the final)

80,663

Dallas(Arlington, Texas)

AT&T Stadium‡(Dallas Stadium)

9 (5 group, 4 knockout)

70,649

Los Angeles(Inglewood, California)

SoFi Stadium‡(Los Angeles Stadium)

8 (5 group, 3 knockout)

70,492

Kansas City

Arrowhead Stadium(Kansas City Stadium)

6 (4 group, 2 knockout)

69,045

San Francisco Bay Area(Santa Clara, California)

Levi's Stadium(San Francisco Bay Area Stadium)

6 (5 group, 1 knockout)

68,827

Houston

NRG Stadium‡(Houston Stadium)

7 (5 group, 2 knockout)

68,777

Lincoln Financial Field(Philadelphia Stadium)

6 (5 group, 1 knockout)

68,324

Mercedes-Benz Stadium‡(Atlanta Stadium)

8 (5 group, 3 knockout)

68,239

Seattle

Lumen Field(Seattle Stadium)

6 (4 group, 2 knockout)

66,925

Miami(Miami Gardens, Florida)

Hard Rock Stadium(Miami Stadium)

7 (4 group, 2 knockout, and third-place)

64,478

Boston(Foxborough, Massachusetts)

Gillette Stadium(Boston Stadium)

7 (5 group, 2 knockout)

64,146

Vancouver

BC Place‡(BC Place Vancouver)

7 (5 group, 2 knockout)

52,497

Monterrey(Guadalupe, Nuevo León)

Estadio BBVA(Estadio Monterrey)

4 (3 group, 1 knockout)

51,243

Guadalajara(Zapopan, Jalisco)

Estadio Akron(Estadio Guadalajara)

4 (4 group)

45,664

Toronto

BMO Field(Toronto Stadium)

6 (5 group, 1 knockout)

43,036

Teams
Qualification

Team qualified Team eliminated Team withdrew or suspended Not a FIFA member
On August 31, 2022, FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirmed that six CONCACAF teams would qualify for the World Cup, with Canada, Mexico, and the United States automatically qualifying as hosts.[78][79] This was confirmed by the FIFA Council on February 14, 2023.[80][81]
Immediately prior to the 67th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation in a meeting in Manama, Bahrain.[82][83] This included an inter-confederation playoff tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup spots.[84] The six teams in the playoffs comprised one team from each confederation excluding UEFA, and one additional team from the confederation of the host countries (CONCACAF). Two of the teams were seeded based on the World Rankings, and they played the winners of two knockout matches between the four unseeded teams for the two FIFA World Cup berths. The four-match tournament was played in Mexico, one of the host countries, and was also used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup.[82]
The ratification of slot allocation also gave the OFC a guaranteed berth in the final tournament for the first time: the 2026 FIFA World Cup was the first tournament in which all six confederations have at least one guaranteed berth and also the first time since the 2010 edition in which all confederations had a team qualify for the World Cup finals.[82]
Of the 48 qualified teams, 26 also appeared in the 2022 edition. Highlights include:

Cape Verde,[85] Curaçao,[B][86] Jordan, and Uzbekistan[C][87] made their World Cup debuts.
Qatar qualified for the tournament through qualification for the first time, as its only previous appearance was as host in 2022.[88]
DR Congo[D] and Haiti returned to the tournament after appearing in their only previous tournament in 1974.[86][89]
Iraq returned to the tournament after appearing in its only previous tournament in 1986.[90]
Austria, Norway,[91] and Scotland returned to the tournament after last appearing in 1998.[92]
Four-time champion Italy missed out after being defeated in the European playoff final by Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties, becoming the first former champion to miss out on three consecutive World Cups;[93] as in 2018 and 2022, Italy was the only former champion that did not qualify. With a FIFA Men's World Ranking of 12, Italy was also the highest-ranking team that did not qualify.
The qualified teams, listed by region, with numbers in parentheses indicating final positions in the FIFA Men's World Ranking before the tournament were:[94]

Draw

From left to right, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, US President Donald Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the start of the draw.
The draw took place on December 5, 2025, at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.[95] The draw ceremony began with FIFA presenting the first FIFA Peace Prize to Donald Trump,[96] an award which fueled scrutiny and controversy among human rights groups, analysts, and others.[97][98][99][100]
The 48 teams were divided into four pots of 12. Pot 1 consisted of the three hosts and the top nine teams from the November 2025 FIFA Men's World Ranking. Pots 2, 3, and 4 consisted of the remaining teams according to the ranking. The four winners of the UEFA playoffs and the two winners of the inter-confederation playoffs were not known at the time of the draw and thus were automatically allocated to Pot 4. The 12 groups were randomly formed by selecting one team from each of the four pots. With the exception of UEFA, no group could have more than one team from the same confederation drawn into it.[101][102]
The three host nations were pre-allocated to three groups for scheduling purposes. Mexico was placed in Group A, Canada in Group B, and the United States in Group D.[3][103]
The confederation restriction applied to all three potential winners of the inter-confederation playoffs. FIFA also announced that, "in the interest of ensuring competitive balance", the teams ranked first (Spain), second (Argentina), third (France), and fourth (England) would be drawn into opposite pathways. Therefore, should these teams win their groups, they would be unable to meet until the semifinals.[104] The draw started with Pot 1 and ended with Pot 4, with each team selected and then allocated into the first available group alphabetically. For the purpose of the match schedule, the Pot 1 teams were automatically drawn into position 1 of each group. For the remaining pots, FIFA established a predetermined pattern to define the position of teams based on their pot and the group they were drawn into.

Pots[M]

Pot 1

Pot 2

Pot 3

Pot 4

United States (co-host) (14) Mexico (co-host) (15) Canada (co-host) (27) Spain (1) Argentina (2) France (3) England (4) Brazil (5) Portugal (6) Netherlands (7) Belgium (8) Germany (9)

Croatia (10) Morocco (11) Colombia (13) Uruguay (16) Switzerland (17) Japan (18) Senegal (19) Iran (20) South Korea (22) Ecuador (23) Austria (24) Australia (26)

Norway (29) Panama (30) Egypt (34) Algeria (35) Scotland (36) Paraguay (39) Tunisia (40) Ivory Coast (42) Uzbekistan (50) Qatar (51) Saudi Arabia (60) South Africa (61)

Jordan (66) Cape Verde (68) Ghana (72) Curaçao (82) Haiti (84) New Zealand (86) UEFA Path A winner[N] UEFA Path B winner[N] UEFA Path C winner[N] UEFA Path D winner[N] IC Path 1 winner[N][O] IC Path 2 winner[N][P]

Team base camps

Base camps were used by the 48 squads to stay and train at before and during the World Cup tournament.[106][107][108][109]

Squads

Before submitting their final squad for the tournament, teams named a provisional squad of between 35 and 55 players one month prior to the tournament. Teams were required to name their final squads by June 2. If a player becomes too injured or ill to participate in the tournament, he can be replaced by another player from the provisional squad until 24 hours before the team's first match. However, an injured or ill goalkeeper may be replaced by another goalkeeper from the provisional squad at any time during the tournament.[110]

Officiating

On April 9, 2026, FIFA announced the list of 52 referees, 88 assistant referees, and 30 video assistant referees for the tournament.[111][112]

Ceremonies
Opening ceremonies

The tournament featured three opening ceremonies, one for each of the hosts.[113] The opening ceremony in Mexico took place on June 11, 2026, at Estadio Banorte.[114] Mexican singer Alejandro Fernández performed "Himno Nacional Mexicano" and South African singer Tyla performed the "National anthem of South Africa"[115] The next day, on June 12, 2026, the opening ceremony in Canada took place at BMO Field in Toronto. Canadian-American musician Alanis Morissette performed "O Canada" while Serbian-Canadian violinist Aleksandar Gajić performed "Državna himna Bosne i Hercegovine".[116] On the same day, the opening ceremony in the United States took place at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. American country duo Dan + Shay performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" while Paraguayan soul duo Purahei Soul performed "Himno Nacional Paraguayo".[117]

Independence Day ceremonies
In addition, two special ceremonies will take place on July 4, 2026, to honor the United States Semiquincentennial at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia and NRG Stadium in Houston.[118]

Group stage
Result of countries participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Champion Runner-up Third place Fourth place Quarterfinals Round of 16 Round of 32 Group stage
The round-robin group stage is being played in twelve groups (A to L) of four teams each, from June 11 to 27.[119] Teams are awarded three points for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. Following the conclusion of group play, the top two teams of each group, along with the eight best third-place teams, will advance to the knockout stage.
All times are local.

Tie-breaking criteria for group stage ranking

The ranking of teams in each group is determined by the points obtained in all group matches. If two or more teams are equal on points, the following criteria are used to determine the ranking:[120]
Most points obtained in the group matches played between the teams concerned;Superior goal difference in the group matches played between the teams concerned;Most goals scored in the group matches played between the teams concerned;
If, after having applied criteria a to c, teams still have an equal ranking, criteria a to c are reapplied exclusively to the matches between the teams who are still level to determine their final rankings.[Q] If this procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria d to h apply.

Superior goal difference in all group matches;Most goals scored in all group matches;Highest team conduct ("fair play") score in all group matches (only one deduction can be applied to a player or team coach/official in a single match): Yellow card: −1 point;Indirect red card (second yellow card): −3 points;Direct red card: −4 points;Yellow card and direct red card: −5 points;Better position in the most recent FIFA Men's World Ranking;Better position in progressively older FIFA Men's World Rankings until teams can be separated.

Group A

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Mexico (H, A)

Advance to knockout stage

South Africa (A)

−1

South Korea

−1

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

Czech Republic (E)

−4

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (H) Hosts

Group B

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Switzerland (A)

Advance to knockout stage

Canada (H, A)

4[a]

Bosnia and Herzegovina (A)

−1

4[a]

Qatar (E)

−8

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (H) HostsNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Tied on head-to-head result (Canada 1–1 Bosnia and Herzegovina). Overall goal difference was used as the tiebreaker.

Group C

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Brazil (A)

7[a]

Advance to knockout stage

Morocco (A)

7[a]

Scotland

−3

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

Haiti (E)

−6

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) EliminatedNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Tied on head-to-head result (Brazil 1–1 Morocco). Overall goal difference was used as the tiebreaker.

Group D

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

United States (H, A)

Advance to knockout stage

Australia (A)

4[a]

Paraguay (A)

−2

4[a]

Turkey (E)

−2

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (H) HostsNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Tied on head-to-head result (Paraguay 0–0 Australia). Overall goal difference was used as the tiebreaker.

Group E

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Germany (A)

6[a]

Advance to knockout stage

Ivory Coast (A)

6[a]

Ecuador (A)

Curaçao (E)

−8

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) EliminatedNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Head-to-head result: Germany 2–1 Ivory Coast.

Group F

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Netherlands (A)

Advance to knockout stage

Japan (A)

Sweden (A)

Tunisia (E)

−10

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated

Group G

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Belgium (A)

5[a]

Advance to knockout stage

Egypt (A)

5[a]

Iran

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

New Zealand (E)

−6

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) EliminatedNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Tied on head-to-head result (Belgium 1–1 Egypt). Overall goal difference was used as the tiebreaker.

Group H

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

Spain (A)

Advance to knockout stage

Cape Verde (A)

Uruguay (E)

−1

2[a]

Saudi Arabia (E)

−4

2[a]
Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) EliminatedNotes:
^ Jump up to: a b Tied on head-to-head result (Saudi Arabia 1–1 Uruguay). Overall goal difference was used as the tiebreaker.

Group I

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Qualification

France (A)

Advance to knockout stage

Norway (A)

Senegal (A)

Iraq (E)

−11

Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated

Group J

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Position will qualify for:

Argentina (A)

Knockout stage

−2

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

Jordan (E)

−3

Updated to match(es) played on June 22, 2026. Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated

Group K

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Position will qualify for:

Colombia (A)

Knockout stage

Portugal (A)

DR Congo

−1

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

Uzbekistan

−7

Updated to match(es) played on June 23, 2026. Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round

Group L

Pos

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Position will qualify for:

England (A)

Knockout stage

Ghana (A)

−1

Possible knockout stage based on ranking

Panama (E)

−2

Updated to match(es) played on June 23, 2026. Source: FIFA(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated

Ranking of third-place teams

Pos

Grp

Teamvte

Pld

Pts

Position will qualify for:

Sweden (A)

Knockout stage

Ecuador (A)

Bosnia and Herzegovina (A)

−1

Paraguay (A)

−2

Senegal (A)

Iran

−1

South Korea

−1

−2

Scotland

−3

Uruguay (E)

−1

DR Congo

−1

1
Updated to match(es) played on June 26, 2026. Source: FIFARules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Team conduct ("fair play") score; 5) Latest FIFA ranking (June 11, 2026); 6) Previous FIFA ranking(s) report.(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated
The specific matchups involving the third-place teams depend on which eight third-place teams qualify for the round of 32. The 495 possible combinations were published in Annex C of the tournament regulations.[120]
For the list of all 495 possible combinations, see 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout stage § Combinations of matches in the round of 32.

Knockout stage

The knockout stage will be played in a single-elimination format, starting with the newly-introduced round of 32 on June 28 and culminating with the final on July 19. On the day prior, a match for third place will also be played. In the knockout stage, if the scores are level when normal playing time expires, 30 minutes of extra time will be played. If still tied at the end of extra time, a penalty shootout will be used to determine which team advances to the next round.[120]

Qualified teams

Group

Winners

Runners-up

Best eightthird-place teams

Qualified(position TBD)

Mexico

South Africa

Switzerland

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Brazil

Morocco

United States

Paraguay

Germany

Ivory Coast

Ecuador

Netherlands

Japan

Sweden

Belgium

Egypt

Spain

Cape Verde

N/a

France

Norway

Senegal

Colombia Portugal

England Ghana

Bracket
Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal June 29 – Foxborough GermanyJuly 4 – Philadelphia ParaguayWinner Match 74June 30 – East RutherfordWinner Match 77 FranceJuly 9 – Foxborough SwedenWinner Match 89June 28 – InglewoodWinner Match 90 South AfricaJuly 4 – Houston CanadaWinner Match 73June 29 – GuadalupeWinner Match 75 NetherlandsJuly 14 – Arlington MoroccoWinner Match 97July 2 – TorontoWinner Match 98Runner-up Group KJuly 6 – ArlingtonRunner-up Group LWinner Match 83July 2 – InglewoodWinner Match 84 SpainJuly 10 – InglewoodRunner-up Group JWinner Match 93July 1 – Santa ClaraWinner Match 94 United StatesJuly 6 – Seattle Bosnia and HerzegovinaWinner Match 81July 1 – SeattleWinner Match 82 BelgiumJuly 19 – East Rutherford3rd Group A/I/JWinner Match 101June 29 – HoustonWinner Match 102 BrazilJuly 5 – East Rutherford JapanWinner Match 76June 30 – ArlingtonWinner Match 78 Ivory CoastJuly 11 – Miami Gardens NorwayWinner Match 91June 30 – Mexico CityWinner Match 92 MexicoJuly 5 – Mexico City3rd Group C/EWinner Match 79July 1 – AtlantaWinner Match 80Winner Group LJuly 15 – Atlanta3rd Group I/J/KWinner Match 99July 3 – Miami GardensWinner Match 100Match for third place ArgentinaJuly 7 – AtlantaJuly 18 – Miami Gardens Cape VerdeWinner Match 86Loser Match 101July 3 – ArlingtonWinner Match 88Loser Match 102 AustraliaJuly 11 – Kansas City EgyptWinner Match 95July 2 – VancouverWinner Match 96 SwitzerlandJuly 7 – Vancouver3rd Group G/JWinner Match 85July 3 – Kansas CityWinner Match 87Winner Group K3rd Group E/I/L
Round of 32

Round of 16

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Match for third place

Final

Statistics

Goalscorers
There have been 196 goals scored in 66 matches, for an average of 2.97 goals per match (as of June 26, 2026). Players highlighted in bold are still active in the competition.

5 goals
Lionel Messi
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
1 own goal
Discipline
A player or team official is automatically suspended for the next match of the tournament for the following offenses:[120]

Receiving a red card (red card suspensions may be extended for serious offenses).
Receiving two yellow cards in the tournament;[S] yellow cards expire after the completion of the group stage and again after the quarterfinals.[122]
During qualification, Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for violent conduct in Portugal's penultimate match against the Republic of Ireland, with such an offense typically resulting in a ban of at least two matches. Ronaldo was handed a three-match ban, though the final two matches of the ban were suspended for a one-year probationary period, making him eligible to appear in Portugal's opening World Cup match.[123] On May 8, 2026, the Bureau of the FIFA Council amended the tournament regulations so that pending one- or two-match suspensions resulting from red cards for two yellow cards, denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity, or serious foul play during qualification would no longer be carried forward to the final competition.[124] This exempted Argentina's Nicolás Otamendi, Ecuador's Moisés Caicedo, and Qatar's Tarek Salman from serving their qualifying-round suspensions during the tournament, with the bans to instead be served in a subsequent competition.[125]
The following suspensions were accumulated during the tournament:

Awards
Prize money
In April 2026, FIFA confirmed the prizes for all participating nations, with a total distribution for the expanded tournament of $871 million, which is nearly double the prize pool of the previous tournament. Performance-based prizes amount to $671 million of the $871 million total, with the remaining $200 million paid out among teams regardless of performance. Each qualified team received preparation money in the amount of $2.5 million; combining this with an elimination in the group stage, the minimum total amount received per team is $12.5 million, with the winner receiving up to $62.5 million.[128][129][130]

Performance-based prize money

Place

Teams

Amount (in millions)

Per team

Total

Champions

$50

Runners-up

$33

Third place

$29

Fourth place

$27

5th–8th place (quarter-finals)

$19

$76

9th–16th place (round of 16)

$15

$120

17th–32nd place (round of 32)

$11

$176

33rd–48th place (group stage)

$10

$160

Total

$671

Individual and team awards

The following awards are to be presented at the end of the tournament.[131]

Golden Boot: Awarded to the tournament's top goal scorer.
Golden Glove: Awarded to the tournament's best goalkeeper.
Golden Ball: Awarded to the best overall player of the tournament.
FIFA Young Player Award: Awarded to the best overall player of the tournament under the age of 21.
FIFA Fair Play Trophy: Awarded to the team with the best disciplinary record that reached the knockout stage.
Additionally, a "superior player of the match" is presented after each fixture to the player deemed to have delivered the most outstanding performance and greatest impact in that match. The recipient is selected through a public online vote conducted by FIFA. The award is sponsored by Michelob Ultra.[132]

Marketing
Branding
Countdown clock on Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City
The official emblem and brand identity was unveiled on May 17, 2023, at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California; its basic form consists of a stacked "26" with an image of the FIFA World Cup Trophy in front of it, designed to be adaptable to different backdrops. This is the first time that the trophy has been depicted in a World Cup emblem as a photo, as opposed to a stylized representation.[133][134] The next day, FIFA unveiled variants of the emblem for each of the host cities, which feature color variants and designs that reflect local landscapes or culture. For example, the Los Angeles features a stylized sun and wave, Monterrey features the Cerro de la Silla mountain, and Toronto features the city skyline and the CN Tower.[135][136]
Reaction to the logo from the initial unveiling was largely negative, with many feeling that the design was either unfinished or uncreative compared to the emblems of past FIFA World Cup tournaments. Others, such as United States player Jesús Ferreira, described the emblem as "beautiful".[134][137][138]

Official poster
In March and April 2025, FIFA unveiled a set of 16 posters representing each of the 2026 World Cup host cities. The posters, designed by local artists, were intended to reflect the "distinct identity and heritage" of each host city.[139][140] On March 3, 2026, the official poster was unveiled. For the first time, three artists combined their artistic styles to create the official poster: Carson Ting (Canada), Minerva GM (Mexico), and Hank Willis Thomas (United States).[141]

Broadcasting rights

On February 12, 2015, FIFA renewed the United States and Canadian broadcasting rights contracts for Fox Sports (US English), Telemundo Deportes (US Spanish), and Bell Media (Canada) to cover the 2026 World Cup, without accepting any other bids. A report in The New York Times asserted that this extension was intended as compensation for the rescheduling of the 2022 World Cup to November–December rather than its traditional June–July scheduling, as it created considerable conflicts with major professional sports leagues that are normally in their offseasons during the World Cup.[142][143][144]

Bell Media broadcast studio located at Jack Poole Plaza in Vancouver. TSN is the primary broadcaster, while select matches are on CTV and Crave in Canada.
The International Broadcast Center (IBC) is located at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas.[145][146][147] Bell Media constructed a broadcast studio at Jack Poole Plaza in Vancouver for the tournament (mirroring an arrangement used by Fox during the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup), which is operating through the final match played in Vancouver on July 7.[148]
On January 8, 2026, FIFA signed a deal to make TikTok a "preferred platform" for World Cup video content. As part of the agreement, broadcasters may stream parts of matches at a dedicated hub on the TikTok app.[149] FIFA then made a similar "preferred platform" deal with YouTube on March 17, allowing broadcasters to stream select matches in full on their respective YouTube channels, as well as stream the first 10 minutes of every match on the platform as "an appetizer encouraging young fans then to watch on traditional channels".[150]
A number of internet content creators have also been involved in coverage of the tournament; in Brazil, Casimiro Miguel's CazéTV renewed its digital rights to the World Cup in Brazil, streaming all matches on its YouTube channel.[151][152] American influencer IShowSpeed has conducted streams from matches during the tournament, and later reached an agreement with Fox Sports to offer altcasts of selected matches on Fox One and its YouTube channel featuring his streams combined with the Fox telecasts.[153][154][155][154]

FIFA-level sponsorship tiers include partners, sponsors, and supporters. There are also regional supporters by geography.

Advertising
On May 7, 2026, Adidas released Backyard Legends: the Greatest Football Story Ever Told, a 5-minute short film.[156][157] On June 4, 2026, Nike released Rip The Script, a 6-minute short film.[158][159]

FIFA fan festivals
FIFA is staging fan festivals in cities across the host nations, featuring matches on giant screens and live entertainment.[160] Among the confirmed fan fest locations are Liberty State Park in Jersey City,[160] Fairmount Park in Philadelphia,[161] Fort York and The Bentway in Toronto,[162] Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta,[163] and East Downtown Houston.[164]

Fan Festival at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum during the U.S. team's first game of the tournament
Tickets

Ticket prices for the 2026 FIFA World Cup initially ranged from $60 for group stage matches to $6,730 for the final—largely increased from the USD equivalent of $69 to $1,607 in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, in September 2025, FIFA confirmed it would use dynamic pricing for tickets for the first time, following the practice used in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.[165] Hospitality seats were made available in April 2025 via FIFA's ticket partner for the event.[166]
An initial draw period for non-hospitality seats occurred between September 10–19, 2025, limited to Visa cardholders. A second phase ran from October 27–31, and a third phase started after the final draw of teams on December 5. Sales are capped at four tickets per person per match, and no person is able to purchase more than 40 tickets for the overall tournament. FIFA's official resale platform went live on October 2, 2025.[165][167]
A final "last-minute" sales phase reopened on April 22, 2026, approximately 50 days before the start of the tournament, with tickets for all 104 matches made available on a first-come, first-served basis. By that stage, more than five million tickets had been sold out of an expected total exceeding six million, with additional tickets scheduled to be released in phases up to the final, subject to availability.[168]
Every city hosting the World Cup in the United States has passed a law stating that ticket sales to World Cup events are exempt from state and local sales taxes.[169][170][171]

Attendance
The tournament set the record for the highest cumulative attendance in World Cup history. On June 25, 2026, during the Group E match between Ecuador and Germany at MetLife Stadium, total attendance reached 3,605,357 spectators. This surpassed the previous record of 3,587,538,[6] which had been held for 32 years by the 1994 FIFA World Cup, also hosted in the United States. The record was broken with 44 matches remaining in the tournament.[172] Across the first 60 matches, venues operated at an average occupancy rate of 99.7%.[173][174] Additionally, a single-day World Cup attendance record was established on June 16, 2026, when 281,223 fans attended four group stage matches.[175]

Merchandise
Video games

On October 2, 2025, FIFA announced the video game FIFA Heroes, scheduled for release in 2026 on Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms.[176]
In May 2026, the Football Manager 26 video game also announced the addition of licensed 2026 FIFA World Cup content.[177]
In December 2025, Netflix announced a new simulation-type game featuring the World Cup, produced by Delphi Interactive and Refactor Games.[178][179] In May 2026, it was announced the Netflix-published game would be titled "FIFA World Cup – Launch Edition" and would be released in June 2026.[180]
In the same May 2026 announcement, FIFA also confirmed that they would adopt a non-exclusive "Digital Football" ecosystem, with games of various genres adopting the FIFA license. Alongside the new World Cup game, were mentioned FIFA Heroes, FIFA Rivals, FIFA Super Soccer, Football Manager, eFootball and Rocket League, with more games joining the ecosystem in the following months.[180][181]

Other products
A pop-up truck selling FIFA 2026 merchandise at Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco
Panini sticker albums were again announced for the 2026 World Cup. Due to the expansion of the tournament, each pack now contains seven stickers as opposed to the usual 5. In the United States and Canada, a set of 12 stickers was reserved for stickers that could only be obtained from Coca-Cola bottles, with each bottle containing a sticker printed inside the label.[182] In May 2026, it was announced that the 2026 World Cup would be Panini's second-to-last tournament with a sticker album, after FIFA announced that Fanatics (via their Topps brand) would distribute collectables for FIFA tournaments from 2031.[183]
In conjunction with the tournament, the Lego Group released a series of officially licensed FIFA World Cup 2026-themed construction sets. The collection included models of the FIFA World Cup Trophy, the official tournament emblem, a brick-built Adidas Trionda soccer ball containing a miniature stadium, and player-focused sets based on soccer players Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé, and Vinícius Júnior. Several sets featured hidden references to the players' careers, alternative display poses, and commemorative World Cup-themed designs.[184][185] To promote the product line, Lego organized FIFA World Cup 2026-themed activations in several markets, including a soccer festival and pop-up experience in Singapore. The events featured interactive soccer challenges, soccer-themed Lego builds, displays of player-inspired models, and promotional giveaways tied to the World Cup collection.[186][187]

Symbols
Mascots

The tournament mascots: Maple the Moose, Zayu the Jaguar, and Clutch the Bald Eagle
The official mascots of the tournament were revealed on September 25, 2025, and are Maple, Zayu and Clutch. Maple is a moose, Zayu is a jaguar, and Clutch is a bald eagle, representing Canada, Mexico, and the United States, respectively.[188] They were designed to reflect the cultural heritage of their respective countries.[189]

Match ball

Adidas Trionda, the match ball
On May 2, 2025, reports surfaced that the match ball would be called Adidas Trionda. The design features red, green, and blue (the three colors representing Canada, Mexico, and the United States, respectively, and also featured on the host countries' flags), as well as a white wave connecting each of the colors, hence the name using the Spanish words for three (tri) and wave (onda).[190] The design also features the national symbols of the three host countries (a maple leaf for Canada, a golden eagle for Mexico, and a five-pointed star for the United States) as well as gold embellishments to represent the World Cup Trophy.[191]
On June 11, 2025, and in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, NASA conducted experiments aboard the International Space Station using soccer balls to study how mass distribution and embedded sensor technology affect ball motion and stability in microgravity. According to NASA, the research contributed to the development and evaluation of technologies used in the 2026 FIFA World Cup official match ball.[192]

Music

The tournament's official instrumental theme music was composed by Zachary Aaron Golden. Throughout March 2025, FIFA released remixes of the theme for each host city by local producers.[193]
The official song "Dai Dai" by Colombian singer Shakira and Nigerian singer Burna Boy was released on May 15, 2026,[194] followed by the official anthem "DNA (More Than a Game)" by French producer David Guetta, featuring Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, South Korean-American singer Ejae, and American rapper Megan Thee Stallion, on June 10, 2026.[195]
The official soundtrack album was released on June 5, 2026, with its first single "Lighter" by Jelly Roll and Carín León having been released on March 20, 2026; the song had garnered a mixed reception from listeners and critics, with some having falsely assumed that it was meant to be the tournament's official song before "Dai Dai" was released.[196][197][198]
Instrumental song "Sirius" by British rock band the Alan Parsons Project, known for having been played at Chicago Bulls home games since 1984, was used as the theme song for the entrances of the national teams before each game during the first matchday of the group stage, as well as those of the United States team in subsequent matchdays.[199][200] For all other games, a special walkout remix of "Dai Dai" is used.[201]

Controversies

The tournament has been accompanied by a number of controversies relating to political, logistical, environmental, and human rights issues, particularly over the United States' immigration and visa policies under the second Trump administration affecting qualified teams and their fans, Iran's participation during the ongoing 2026 Iran war, security concerns surrounding drug cartel violence in Mexico, and FIFA's use of dynamic ticket pricing.

See also
FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup hosts
2025 FIFA Club World Cup
2027 FIFA Women's World Cup
Notes

^ Also marketed as FIFA World Cup 26[1] and FIFA World Cup 2026.[2]

^ Curaçao is the smallest country by area and the least populous to qualify for the World Cup. Excluding teams from the United Kingdom, Curaçao is also the first team representing a non-sovereign nation to qualify for the World Cup since the Dutch East Indies (currently Indonesia) in 1938.

^ Until 1991, Uzbekistan was part of the Soviet Union, which competed at seven World Cup tournaments. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan became the third former Soviet republic to compete as an independent nation after Russia (1994, 2002, 2014 and 2018) and Ukraine (2006). FIFA considers Russia to be the successor team of the Soviet Union.

^ From 1971 to 1997, DR Congo competed as Zaire. This was the first time the country competes under DR Congo.

^ Recognized as IR Iran by FIFA

^ Recognized as Korea Republic by FIFA

^ Recognized as Cabo Verde by FIFA

^ Recognized as Congo DR by FIFA

^ Recognized as Côte d'Ivoire by FIFA

^ Recognized as USA by FIFA

^ Recognized as Czechia by FIFA

^ Recognized as Türkiye by FIFA

^ The number in parentheses indicates the FIFA ranking of teams as of November 19, 2025.[105]

^ Jump up to: a b c d e f The winners of the UEFA playoffs and inter-confederation playoffs were not known at the time of the draw, as those matches were held on 26 and 31 March 2026.