World Cup 2026 schedule in FULL: Tournament to break new ground with 48 teams, format shake up, three host countries and 16 stadiums

The 2026 World Cup is set to break new ground as FIFA continues to expand and develop its showpiece tournament.

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar was unlike any other, being held over winter due to concerns about the weather, causing huge disruptions to domestic football around the globe.

There will be major changes from the World Cup in Qatar

And there are set to be more changes to the next tournament as well.

The World Cup is held every four years, being staged on a different continent each time.

After Brazil 2014 and Russia 2018, the famous competition headed to the Persian Gulf and will be on the move again for the next edition with a host of new introductions.

World Cup 2026: Location

Like the Qatar tournament, the 2026 World Cup will also break new ground for FIFA.

That’s because it will be held across three countries - United States, Canada and Mexico.

The trio's bid was voted ahead of the proposal from Morocco.

The 2002 tournament was held in South Korea and Japan but the World Cup has never had three host nations before - all of whom will automatically qualify.

MetLife Stadium has been chosen to host the World Cup finalCredit: Getty Images - Getty

There will be 16 host cities, 11 from the USA, two in Canada and three in Mexico.

The stadiums being used include the 83,264-capacity Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, New York’s MetLife Stadium and Vancouver’s BC Place.

Several NFL venues will be used to provide huge crowds with 12 of the 16 stadia having capacities over 65,000.

It has also been confirmed that the MetLife Stadium, which holds 82,500 people, will host the final.

The opening game of the tournament will be held at the Estadio Azteca.

World Cup 2026: Stadiums

United States

SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles, California: 70,240 capacity MetLife Stadium, New York City, New York: 82,500 capacity AT&T Stadium, Dallas, Texas: 80,000 capacity Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri: 76,416 capacity NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas: 72,220 capacity Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia: 75,000 capacity Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 67,594 capacity Lumen Field, Seattle, Washington: 68,740 capacity Levi’s Stadium, San Francisco, California: 68,500 capacity Gillette Stadium, Boston, Massachusetts: 65,878 capacity Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, Florida: 65,326 capacity

Mexico

Estadio Azteca, Mexico City: 83,264 capacity Estadio BBVA Bancomer, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon: 53,500 capacity Estadio Akron, Guadalajara, Jalisco: 46,355 capacity

Canada

BC Place, Vancouver, British Columbia: 54,500 capacity BMO Field, Toronto, Ontario: 40,000 capacity The Estadio Azteca will host the opener

World Cup 2026: Teams and group format

The 2026 World Cup will be the first to include 48 teams, up from 32.

The expanded format has been green-lit by the FIFA Council and it will feature a new-look of 12 groups of four.

Winners and runners-up in each of those 12 four-team groups will advance to a new round of 32, where they will be joined by the eight best third-placed teams.

It adds up to a total of 104 matches, up from 64 in Qatar.

Canada, Mexico and the United States will host the much-changed 2026 World Cup

World Cup 2026: Dates

The dates for the 2026 World Cup have been confirmed.

The expanded tournament will run over 39 days - an extra week compared to the current format.

It will get underway on Thursday, June 11, 2026 and run until the final on Sunday, July 19.

FIFA is eager to keep the tournament’s 'footprint' to 57 days meaning there would be 16 days of preparation and then 39 days of competition.

That would mean an earlier finish to the European domestic season but it remains to be seen how FIFA will slot everything in.

World Cup 2026: Schedule

Group stages: June 11-27

Matches to be played in Vancouver, Toronto, Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Seattle, San Francisco. Los Angeles, Houston. Dallas, Kansas City, Atlanta. Miami, Boston, Philadelphia and New York.

Round of 32: June 29-July 3

Matches to be played in Vancouver, Toronto, Mexico City, Monterrey, Seattle, San Francisco. Los Angeles, Houston. Dallas, Kansas City, Atlanta. Miami, Boston, and New York.

Round of 16: July 4-7

Matches to be played Vancouver, Seattle, Mexico City, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Philadelphia and New York/New Jersey.

Quarter-finals: July 9-11

Matches to be played in Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami and Boston.

Semi-finals: July 14-15

Matches to be played in Dallas and Atlanta.

Third place play-off: July 18

Penultimate game to be played in Miami.

Final: July 19

Final to be held at MetLife Stadium in New York.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has made lots of changes for this edition of the World CupCredit: Getty

World Cup 2026: Ticket information

Tickets for the next World Cup 2026 aren't on sale yet.

However, you can register your interest in tickets on the FIFA website.

There will almost certainly be further information to follow in the coming months as we gear up for the biggest World Cup ever.