2026 FIFA World Cup: Dates, Venues, Tickets, Fixtures & Full Guide

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the 23^rd edition of the quadrennial tournament and will be held from June 11 to July 29 in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first to be hosted by three countries and will be contested by 48 teams, up from 32 from previous editions.

As the host nations, Canada, Mexico, and the United States all automatically qualified. Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan will all make their World Cup debuts. Argentina is the defending champion, having won its third title in 2022.

The United Bid beat a rival one from Morocco and it will be the first time it is co-hosted by multiple countries since South Korea and Japan in 2002 with Mexico staging the World Cup for the third time after 1970 and 1986 while the United States hosted the 1994 tournament.

Afrik-Foot breaks down all you need to know about the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

When is the 2026 FIFA World Cup? Full Schedule & Key Dates

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The opening ceremony and first match between Mexico and South Africa will be held on June 11 at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City while the final will be staged at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 19.

Where Will the 2026 World Cup Be Played? All Venues Across USA, Mexico & Canada

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be staged between 16 host cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

2026 FIFA World Cup Host Venues in USA

·        AT&T Stadium in Arlington Dallas, Texas (94,000)

·        MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey (82,500)

·        Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia (75,000)

·        GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City (73,000)

·        NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas (72,000)

·        Levi’s Stadium aka San Francisco Bay Area Stadium, California (71,000)

·        SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles (70,000)

·        Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia (69,000)

·        Lumen Field in Seattle (69,000)

·        Gillette Stadium in Boston (65,000)

·        Hard Rock Stadium in Miami (65,000)

2026 FIFA World Cup Host Venues in Mexico

·        Estadio Banorte aka Azteca Stadium in Mexico City (83,000)

·        Estadio BBVA in Monterrey (53,500)

·        Estadio Akron in Guadalajara (48,000)

2026 FIFA World Cup Host Venues in Canada

·        BC Place in Vancouver (54,000)

·        BMO Field in Toronto (45,000)

How to Buy 2026 World Cup Tickets: Prices, Phases & FIFA ID Guide

Fans of qualified national teams, including Bafana Bafana, will benefit from a dedicated Supporter Entry Tier.

These tickets will be priced at a fixed rate of R1,005.95 (USD 60) for each of the 104 matches, including the final.

The allocation of these tickets will be managed by each Participating Member Association (PMA), meaning the South African Football Association (SAFA) will oversee the selection and distribution process for Bafana fans. SAFA will set eligibility criteria to ensure the tickets go to supporters closely connected to the national team.

In total, half of each PMA’s allocation will fall within the most affordable categories, 40% in the Supporter Value Tier and 10% in the Supporter Entry Tier. The rest will be split evenly between the Standard and Premier tiers.

FIFA has also confirmed that fans applying through their PMA allocation whose teams fail to reach the knockout stage will have administrative fees waived when refunds are processed.

The current Random Selection Draw ticketing phase remains open until 13 January 2026, with fans able to apply via FIFA.com/tickets.

2026 FIFA World Cup Fixtures: Complete Group Stage & Knockout Schedule

Full Group Stage Schedule 

DATE	GROUP	MATCH	TIME (SA Time)	VENUE
June 11, 2026	Group A	Mexico vs South Africa	21:00	Azteca Stadium
June 12, 2026	Group A	South Korea vs TBD	04:00	Akron Stadium
June 12, 2026	Group B	Canada vs TBD	21:00	BMO Field
June 13, 2026	Group D	USA vs Paraguay	03:00	SoFi Stadium
June 13, 2026	Group B	Qatar vs Switzerland	21:00	Levi’s Stadium
June 14, 2026	Group C	Brazil vs Morocco	00:00	MetLife Stadium
June 14, 2026	Group C	Haiti vs Scotland	03:00	Gillette Stadium
June 14, 2026	Group D	Australia vs TBD	06:00	BC Place
June 14, 2026	Group E	Germany vs Curacao	19:00	NRG Stadium
June 14, 2026	Group F	Netherlands vs Japan	22:00	AT&T Stadium
June 15, 2026	Group E	Ivory Coast vs Ecuador	01:00	Lincoln Financial Field
June 15, 2026	Group F	TBD vs Tunisia	04:00	Estadio BBVA
June 15, 2026	Group H	Spain vs Cape Verde	18:00	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 15, 2026	Group G	Belgium vs Egypt	21:00	Lumen Field
June 16, 2026	Group H	Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay	00:00	Hard Rock Stadium
June 16, 2026	Group G	Iran vs New Zealand	03:00	SoFi Stadium
June 16, 2026	Group I	France vs Senegal	21:00	MetLife Stadium
June 17, 2026	Group I	TBD vs Norway	00:00	Gillette Stadium
June 17, 2026	Group J	Argentina vs Algeria	03:00	Arrowhead Stadium
June 17, 2026	Group J	Austria vs Jordan	06:00	Levi’s Stadium
June 17, 2026	Group K	Portugal vs TBD	19:00	NRG Stadium
June 17, 2026	Group L	England vs Croatia	22:00	AT&T Stadium
June 18, 2026	Group L	Ghana vs Panama	01:00	BMO Field
June 18, 2026	Group K	Uzbekistan vs Colombia	04:00	Azteca Stadium
June 18, 2026	Group A	TBD vs South Africa	18:00	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 18, 2026	Group B	Switzerland vs TBD	21:00	SoFi Stadium
June 19, 2026	Group B	Canada vs Qatar	00:00	BC Place
June 19, 2026	Group A	Mexico vs South Korea	03:00	Akron Stadium
June 19, 2026	Group D	USA vs Australia	21:00	Lumen Field
June 20, 2026	Group C	Scotland vs Morocco	00:00	Gillette Stadium
June 20, 2026	Group C	Brazil vs Haiti	03:00	Lincoln Financial Field
June 20, 2026	Group D	TBD vs Paraguay	06:00	Levi’s Stadium
June 20, 2026	Group F	Netherlands vs TBD	19:00	NRG Stadium
June 20, 2026	Group E	Germany vs Ivory Coast	22:00	BMO Field
June 21, 2026	Group E	Ecuador vs Curacao	02:00	Arrowhead Stadium
June 21, 2026	Group F	Tunisia vs Japan	06:00	Estadio BBVA
June 21, 2026	Group H	Spain vs Saudi Arabia	18:00	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 21, 2026	Group G	Belgium vs Iran	21:00	Belgium vs Iran
June 22, 2026	Group H	Uruguay vs Cape Verde	00:00	Hard Rock Stadium
June 22, 2026	Group G	New Zealand vs Egypt	03:00	BC Place
June 22, 2026	Group J	Argentina vs Austria	19:00	AT&T Stadium
June 22, 2026	Group I	France vs TBD	23:00	Lincoln Financial Field
June 23, 2026	Group I	Norway vs Senegal	02:00	MetLife Stadium
June 23, 2026	Group J	Jordan vs Algeria	05:00	Levi’s Stadium
June 23, 2026	Group K	Portugal vs Uzbekistan	19:00	NRG Stadium
June 23, 2026	Group L	England vs Ghana	22:00	Gillette Stadium
June 24, 2026	Group L	Panama vs Croatia	01:00	BMO Field
June 24, 2026	Group K	Colombia vs TBD	04:00	Akron Stadium
June 24, 2026	Group B	Switzerland vs Canada	21:00	BC Place
June 24, 2026	Group B	TBD vs Qatar	21:00	Lumen Field
June 25, 2026	Group C	Morocco vs Haiti	00:00	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 25, 2026	Group C	Scotland vs Brazil	00:00	Hard Rock Stadium
June 25, 2026	Group A	South Africa vs South Korea	03:00	Estadio BBVA
June 25, 2026	Group A	TBD vs Mexico	03:00	Azteca Stadium
June 25, 2026	Group E	Curacao vs Ivory Coast	22:00	Lincoln Financial Field
June 25, 2026	Group E	Ecuador vs Germany	22:00	MetLife Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group F	Tunisia vs Netherlands	01:00	Arrowhead Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group F	Japan vs TBD	01:00	AT&T Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group D	TBD vs USA	04:00	SoFi Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group D	Paraguay vs Australia	04:00	Levi’s Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group I	Norway vs France	21:00	Gillette Stadium
June 26, 2026	Group I	Senegal vs TBD	21:00	BMO Field
June 27, 2026	Group H	Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia	02:00	NRG Stadium
June 27, 2026	Group H	Uruguay vs Spain	02:00	Akron Stadium
June 27, 2026	Group G	New Zealand vs Belgium	05:00	BC Place
June 27, 2026	Group G	Egypt vs Iran	05:00	Lumen Field
June 27, 2026	Group L	Panama vs England	23:00	MetLife Stadium
June 27, 2026	Group L	Croatia vs Ghana	23:00	Lincoln Financial Field
June 28, 2026	Group K	Colombia vs Portugal	01:30	Hard Rock Stadium
June 28, 2026	Group K	TBD vs Uzbekistan	01:30	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 28, 2026	Group J	Algeria vs Australia	04:00	Arrowhead Stadium
June 28, 2026	Group J	Jordan vs Argentina	04:00	AT&T Stadium

Round of 32: June 28-July 3, 2026

Round of 16: July 4-7, 2026

Quarter-finals: July 9-11, 2026

Semi-finals: July 14-15, 2026

Final: July 19

Format Explained: How 48 Teams Will Compete in 104 Matches

At the 2026 FIFA World Cup, teams will be split into 12 groups of four teams, with the top two in each group and the eight best third-placed teams progressing to a new Round of 32.

There will then be a Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and then the final.

The total number of games played will increase from 64 to 104, and the number of games played by teams reaching the final four will increase from seven to eight.

Prize Money Breakdown for the 2026 FIFA World Cup

·        Champions: $50m (R836m)

·        Runners-up: $33m (R552m)

·        3rd place: $29m (R485m)

·        4th place: $27m (R451m)

·        5th-8th place: $19m (R318m)

·        9th-16th place: $15m (R251m)

·        17th- 32nd place: $11m (R184m)

·        33rd-48th place: $9m (R150m)

·         $1.5 million (R25 million) – Paid to each team to boost preparations

Meet the Official Mascots and Match Ball – Trionda

The Official Mascots

The official mascots for the 2026 FIFA World Cup are a trio named Maple the Moose (Canada), Zayu the Jaguar (Mexico), and Clutch the Bald Eagle (USA).

Maple™ the Moose

Maple the Moose was born to roam, journeying across all of Canada’s provinces and territories while connecting with people and embracing the country’s rich culture. A street style-loving artist, music enthusiast and dedicated goalkeeper, Maple found purpose through creativity, resilience and unapologetic individuality.

Zayu™ the Jaguar

Zayu the Jaguar, from the jungles of southern Mexico, embodies the rich heritage and vibrant spirit of the country. With a name inspired by unity, strength and joy, Zayu transforms on the pitch as a striker, showcasing exceptional ingenuity and agility that intimidates defenders.

Clutch™ the Bald Eagle

Clutch the Bald Eagle possesses an unquenchable thirst for adventure, soaring across the United States and embracing every culture, game and moment with boundless curiosity and optimism. Fearless on the pitch and uplifting off it, Clutch leads by action — rallying teammates, lifting spirits and turning every challenge into an opportunity to rise higher.

The Match Ball – Trionda

The name TRIONDA can be translated from Spanish as “three waves”, and, alongside other unique and innovative design features, celebrates the fact that, for the first time, three host countries – Canada, Mexico and the United States – are uniting to host the FIFA World Cup.

The ball’s vibrant design features a red, green and blue colour scheme that pays homage to the three host countries, while a brand-new four-panel construction with fluid geometry replicates the waves referenced in the ball’s name.

Travel Tips for Fans Attending the 2026 World Cup

Bafana Bafana fans will travel between two major Mexican host cities and one key US hub, creating a group stage itinerary that spans different climates and travel conditions. Johannesburg and Cape Town will serve as primary departure points for most long-haul journeys.

Travel angle: Flights from South Africa to North America usually require one or two connections, and continuing between Mexico City, Atlanta, and Monterrey adds additional travel segments.

These long multi-leg trips can create fatigue, especially when adjusting to new time zones and high altitudes. Extra comfort, more space, and the ability to rest on long-haul flights can make these transitions smoother for fans following every match.