FIFA has released the FIFA World Cup 2026 schedule. According to the schedule, the 2026 final will be held on July 19 in New Jersey. Before that, the opening match of the tournament will be held in Mexico on June 11.
The three co-hosts, Mexico, the US and Canada, will play three group stage matches on their home soil.
For the first time, 48 countries will compete in the World Cup, which will be contested in 12 groups consisting of four teams each.
104 matches will be played in the World Cup in 16 cities. There will be games in 11 cities in the US, 3 in Mexico and 2 in Canada. There will be 78 games in the US, while Cadna and Mexico will have 13 games each.
After the final draw at the end of 2025, the start time will be decided. There will be four matches per day at four kick-off times for group stage matches. There will be 6 matches per day for the last four matches of the group stage.
A total of 32 teams, including the top two teams from 12 groups and the best 8 teams in third place, will advance to the second round.
For the World Cup 2026, 8 teams from Asia, 9 teams from Africa, 6 teams from North America, 6 teams from South America, 1 team from Oceania and 16 teams from Europe will be selected from the regional competition. The remaining two teams will be selected from the intercontinental playoffs. There will be a playoff quota for regions other than Europe.