The biggest World Cup in history will be played in North America in 2026. Three host nations, a record number of venues, and 48 teams are the most any World Cup has ever seen — and the USA, Canada and Mexico will bring it all to life.
FIFA confirmed back in 2018 that the 2026 World Cup will be played across North America, with 80 matches spread across the continent’s three largest nations.
The tri-national North American bid beat out the competing bid from Morocco, earning 134 votes to Morocco’s 65. The 2026 World Cup will be the second jointly hosted men’s tournament, and the first since 2002 when South Korea and Japan joined forces to bring the event to Asia.
The Sporting News brings you all the details regarding the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
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The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be played across three North American nations: the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Of the 80 games to be contested in the tournament, 60 will be played in the USA, with 10 in Canada and 10 in Mexico.
The United States and Mexico have both previously hosted men’s World Cups, with Mexico set to become the first country to host three men’s tournaments (1970, 1986, and 2026).
After hosting in 1994, the United States will soon join the list of countries to have hosted multiple men’s World Cups, alongside Mexico, Brazil, Italy, France, and Germany.
Canada has hosted a FIFA Women’s World Cup (2015) and a FIFA men’s Under-20 World Cup (2007), making it experienced to welcome the world again on the occasion of a senior men’s tournament.
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🇺🇸 When the USA won the right to host the 1994 World Cup, Ronald Reagan vowed it would be “spectacular” 🎇
🎤🕺 With @Oprah emceeing, engrossing dance acts and @DianaRoss performing ‘I’m Coming Out’, the Opening Ceremony was a spectacular kick-off 💥
📸 #WorldCup Moments pic.twitter.com/yplqMkFRkq
The specific venues and cities to host matches were announced by FIFA on June 16, 2022 at an event held in New York City and broadcast around the world live. There are 16 total venues which were selected by FIFA amongst 23 cities chosen by the ‘United Bid’ who were aiming to host 2026 World Cup matches.
The host venues will be spread across the three countries, with 11 venues in the United States, three in Mexico, and two in Canada.
Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, which staged the 1970 and 1986 World Cup finals will host the tournament opener featuring the Mexico national team. MetLife Stadium in New Jersey has been chosen to host the 2026 World Cup final.
FIFA announced back in 2017 that the 2026 World Cup would be the first to feature an expanded format from the 32-team format used since the 1998 edition in France.
The tournament field will grow by 50 percent to a 48-nation tournament. This will see an additional 16 teams participate in the event, creating an increase in global interest as well as more games across the tournament.
However, FIFA confirmed that the new format would not increase the maximum number of games any team would play, with the cap at seven matches for each finalist.
In the new format for the 2026 World Cup, the group stage will consist of 16 groups of three teams. The top two teams in each group will then advance to an expanded 32-team knockout stage sure to create chaos and intrigue.
Kyle Bonn is a soccer content producer for The Sporting News.
