2026 World Cup: A Complete Guide

Charlie Zschau Updated: May 20 2026 17:56

The World Cup is a global celebration of culture and sport, taking place every four years.

The 2026 edition of the World Cup will be the largest ever, featuring 48 teams compared to the 32 that was standard since 1982. The 2026 World Cup will be hosted in North America, across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The three host nations have earned automatic qualification to the tournament, and will be joined by 45 other nations across the world from six soccer federations.

Lionel Messi and Argentina won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and will look to become just the third country to win back-to-back World Cup's in the history of the competition, and the first since Brazil did it in 1958 and 1962.

Curacao has become the smallest nation, and Cape Verde has become the third smallest nation to ever qualify for a World Cup. Both countries will look to be major Cinderella stories in 2026.

The 2026 World Cup Final will be played on July 19, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey - just outside of New York City.

When is the 2026 World Cup?

The 2026 World Cup will begin on June 11, and conclude on July 19, 2026.

The majority of nations will have qualified by the group stage draw, however intercontinental qualification tournaments will run through March 2026 to determine the final teams to join the tournament.

Group Draw - December 5, 2025
- John F. Kennedy Center, Washington DC
Group Stage - June 11 - June 27, 2026
Round of 32 - June 28 - July 3, 2026
Round of 16 - July 4 - July 7, 2026
Quarter-finals - July 9 - July 11, 2026
Semi-finals - July 14- July 15, 2026
Third Place Game - July 18, 2026
World Cup Final - July 19, 2026
- New York New Jersey Stadium

World Cup Tournament Format

The 2026 World Cup is an expanded tournament and will be played throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

48 teams who qualify will be divided into 12 groups of four. Each nation will play the teams in their group once. The top-two teams in the group, and the eight best third-place teams will advance to the 32-team knockout stage.

The knockout stage will include the round of 32, round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, a third-place match, and eventually the final.

Group stage pots will be used to balance the groups, with host nations guaranteed to be placed in different groups. Teams from the same federation will be kept apart, with a maximum of two European nations per group.

104 matches will be played in 2026, up from 64 during the 2022 World Cup.

Where will World Cup games be played?

How do teams qualify for the World Cup?

Teams qualify for the World Cup through their regional federations. The six regional confederations determine which teams from their federation qualify for the World Cup using a qualifying tournament, specific to each federation.

decides the amounts of teams from each federation. Here is the breakdown:

AFC: Eight direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
CAF: Nine direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
Concacaf: Six direct spots + two Play-Off Tournament place
CONMEBOL: Six direct spots + one Play-Off Tournament place
OFC: One direct spot + one Play-Off Tournament place
UEFA: 16 direct spots

Where to Watch the World Cup

Every match of the 2026 World Cup will be broadcast on Fox, or Fox Sports 1 in the United States. Streaming may be available on the Fox Sports App and Peacock.

A Spanish language broadcast will be available for every match on Telemundo or Universo.

History of the World Cup

Eight different nations have won a World Cup since it was founded in 1930.

Uruguay won the inaugural tournament in 1930 as the host nation of the tournament. All matches were held in the capital city of Montevideo, with most matches held at the Estadio Centenario.

Brazil have won the most World Cups (5) in the history of the tournament. All 22 winners of the World Cup have been from either Europe or South America.

Read a complete history of the World Cup on site.