World Cup 2026 Schedule: Full Fixture List

Tournament structure

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the first tournament with 48 teams, the first hosted across three nations (USA, Canada, Mexico) and the most expansive World Cup in history. The expanded format means more matches, more genuine contenders, and longer paths to the final than in any previous tournament. The format breaks down as:

Group stage (June 11 to June 27): 12 groups of 4 teams. Each group plays 6 matches across 3 matchdays. 72 matches total. Top two from each group plus the eight best third-placed teams advance to the Round of 32.

Round of 32 (June 28 to July 3): 16 matches. Single-elimination knockout. Group winners face third-placed sides; runners-up face other runners-up. The first knockout round added to the format because of the 48-team expansion.

Round of 16 (July 4 to July 7): 8 matches. The traditional last-16 stage. Half the field is eliminated.

Quarter-finals (July 9 to July 11): 4 matches across two days. The defining stage where the genuine title contenders separate from the rest.

Semi-finals (July 14 to July 15): 2 matches. AT&T Stadium Arlington and MetLife Stadium East Rutherford host.

Third-place playoff (July 18): Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens. Often produces a goal feast because both teams are eliminated from the title race.

Final (July 19): MetLife Stadium East Rutherford. Kick-off 15:00 ET / 21:00 CEST. Capacity 82,500.

Group stage schedule (June 11 to June 27)

All 72 group-stage matches in chronological order. Local time first, CEST in parentheses. Click any fixture to read BetBot's full preview with predicted lineups, captain bios, value tips and goalscorer picks.

Knockout stage schedule (June 28 to July 19)

The Round of 32 begins the day after the group stage closes. Specific matchups depend on group standings and will be confirmed by FIFA when the group stage finishes on 27 June. Below is the framework with dates and venues.

Round of 32 (June 28 to July 3)

16 matches across 6 days. Group winners face third-placed sides; runners-up face other runners-up. Most matches kick off in two waves per day (afternoon Eastern Time and early evening Eastern Time). The Round of 32 is the new stage added because of the 48-team format expansion: in the old 32-team format, the tournament went straight from groups to a Round of 16.

Bracket positions and matchups will appear on this page as the group standings finalise. Bookmark and check back the morning of each fixture for confirmed kick-off times.

Round of 16 (July 4 to July 7)

8 matches across 4 days. The traditional last-16 stage where the genuine title contenders are usually still represented. Two matches per day typically, one in an afternoon Eastern Time slot and one in an evening slot.

Quarter-finals (July 9 to July 11)

4 matches across two days. The defining knockout stage where the title contenders separate from the rest. Likely venues based on FIFA's stadium allocation: AT&T Stadium (Arlington), Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia), Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta), and Estadio Azteca (Mexico City).

Semi-finals (July 14 and July 15)

2 matches. One per day. Venues are AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas (the largest soccer-configured venue at the tournament with 92,967 capacity) and MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Both 21:00 ET (03:00 CEST) kick-offs.

Third-place playoff (Saturday 18 July)

1 match. Venue: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Kick-off 15:00 ET (21:00 CEST). The two semi-final losers compete for bronze. The third-place playoff has produced some of the most goal-rich matches in World Cup history because both teams play without pressure of the title final.

FIFA World Cup Final (Sunday 19 July 2026)

Venue: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Kick-off 15:00 ET (21:00 CEST). The largest single-event broadcast in football history, with projected global audience over 1.5 billion viewers. MetLife's capacity of 82,500 makes it one of the largest finals venues in modern World Cup history.

TV broadcast partners by region

FIFA has secured broadcast partners in every major market. The main rights holders include:

United States: Fox (English language, all 104 matches) and Telemundo (Spanish, all 104 matches). Both stream via their respective apps and partner streaming services.

Canada: CBC (English, free-to-air for key matches) and TSN/RDS (full coverage on subscription). Available via cbc.ca, tsn.ca and the CBC Gem streaming service.

Mexico: Televisa, TV Azteca, and ViX streaming. National team matches receive heavy local coverage.

United Kingdom: BBC and ITV split the rights with both broadcasters covering all matches. BBC iPlayer and ITVX provide streaming. Free-to-air in the UK throughout.

Norway: NRK and TV 2. Free-to-air on NRK1 and NRK Sport for key matches; TV 2 Sport carries the deeper coverage.

Germany: ARD and ZDF split key matches with free-to-air access via Das Erste and ZDF Mediathek.

France: TF1 (free-to-air) and beIN Sports (subscription) split the coverage.

Spain: RTVE (La 1, La 2, RTVE Play) carries all matches free.

Italy: RAI carries all matches across RAI 1, RAI 2 and the RaiPlay streaming service.

Australia: SBS provides free-to-air coverage; Optus Sport carries the subscription package.

Brazil: Globo (free-to-air) and SporTV (subscription).

Argentina: TyC Sports and Telefe (free-to-air for Argentina national team matches).

Africa: SuperSport across sub-Saharan Africa; SABC in South Africa covers their national team matches free.

Asia: beIN Sports for the Middle East; NHK and TBS in Japan; SBS in South Korea; CCTV in China.

Global free option: FIFA+ (fifa.com) streams highlights and select matches globally with no subscription required.

Time zones explained

The 2026 World Cup spans five time zones across three host nations. The schedule includes matches in:

Eastern Time (ET): Used by Atlanta, Boston/Foxborough, East Rutherford, Miami, Philadelphia and Toronto. ET is 6 hours behind CEST and 4 hours behind UTC.

Central Time (CT): Used by Arlington/Dallas, Houston and Kansas City. CT is 7 hours behind CEST.

Pacific Time (PT): Used by Inglewood/Los Angeles, San Francisco/Santa Clara, Seattle and Vancouver. PT is 9 hours behind CEST.

Central Daylight Time, Mexico (CDT): Used by Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey. Mexico moved away from daylight saving in 2022 so Mexico City time aligns with US Central Time during summer.

For European viewers, most match kick-offs translate to evening or late-night CEST. Group stage afternoon kick-offs in the US are typically 18:00-21:00 CEST (good viewing window for European fans); late-night US kick-offs become early-morning Saturday/Sunday CEST. The final on 19 July 2026 at 15:00 ET / 21:00 CEST is well-timed for European prime-time audiences.

Match volume by day

The schedule is densest during matchday 2 and matchday 3 of the group stage:

Opening matches (June 11-12): 1-2 matches per day. Tournament builds slowly.

Matchday 1 conclusion (June 13-17): 3-5 matches per day as all 12 groups complete their openers.

Matchday 2 (June 18-22): 4 matches per day. The strategic mid-tournament phase.

Matchday 3 (June 23-27): 4-6 matches per day. The final group matches play simultaneously to prevent collusion (FIFA's traditional rule).

Round of 32 (June 28-July 3): 2-3 matches per day across 6 days.

Round of 16 onwards: 1-2 matches per day, building to single-match days for semi-finals and the final.

Frequently asked questions