FIFA World Cup 2026: The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be one of its kind as the most popular global event in history is seeing its expansion from 32 teams to 48 teams for the very first time. The World Cup is coming back to the States for the first time since 1994, when Brazil ousted Italy on penalties to win their fourth FIFA World Cup, amidst one of the most iconic and biggest moments in sporting history - Roberto Baggio of Italy missing the decisive penalty kick in the penalty shootout.


The format is now revised and will see 104 games being played, featuring 48 nations. There will be 16 host cities, as United States will not be the only host, as they will be joined by Canada and Mexico. Argentina are the defending champions of FIFA World Cup after their triumphant campaign in Qatar in 2022.


The 48 teams will be divided into 12 groups of 4 teams each and will see Round of 32 feature for the very first time, with 24 teams coming via top 2 finish in each group, and rest 8 to be covered by the best third-place finishes in all of the groups.






 


FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 FULL SCHEDULE


The FIFA World Cup 2026 will commence from Thursday, June 11, with the fixture to be played in the Mexico City, at the Azteca Stadium. So much history has been attached to this stadium, ad it will see one more feather added to its cap, as the venue will the become the first ever in the history to host the first match of the FIFA World Cup on three different occasion, the previous being the 1970 and 1986 editions.


The host cities and their stadiums, and the number of matches to be hosted by them at the FIFA World Cup 2026 are as follows:



  • Dallas: 9, including a semifinal - AT&T Stadium

  • New York/New Jersey: 8, including the final - MetLife Stadium

  • Atlanta: 8, including a semifinal - Mercedez Benz Stadium

  • Los Angeles: 8, including a quarterfinal - SoFi Stadium

  • Miami: 7, including the third-place playoff and a quarterfinal - Hard Rock Stadium

  • Boston: 7, including a quarterfinal - Gilette Stadium

  • Vancouver: 7 - BC Place

  • Houston: 7 - NRG Stadium

  • Kansas City: 6, including a quarterfinal - Arrowhead Stadium

  • Toronto: 6 - BMO Field

  • Philadelphia: 6 - Lincoln Financial Field

  • San Francisco: 6 - Levi's Stadium

  • Seattle: 6 - Lumen Field

  • Mexico City: 5 - Estadio Azteca

  • Guadalajara: 4 - Estadio Akron

  • Monterrey: 4 - Estadio BBVA


 


The final will be played at the MetLife Stadium in New York on Sunday, July 19, which will give the footballing world a new set of immortals.