The 2026 World Cup will be a landmark event, kicking off on 11 June across three host nations: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. This historic tournament, which concludes on 19 July, introduces an expanded 48-team format. With 104 matches scheduled in 16 different cities, the competition's new scale will change how fans engage with the tournament and how the betting landscape is approached.

Keep up to date with everything you need to know about the World Cup with LiveScore. Our expert writers cover everything from predictions, player and team news to analysis, stats and match reports.

LiveScores' Guide to World Cup 2026

The Host Nations, Cities, and Stadiums

For the first time, the World Cup will be co-hosted by three countries. FIFA has selected 16 host cities: 11 in the United States, three in Mexico, and two in Canada.

Key Venues:

• The final on 19 July will be held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, which has a capacity of 82,500.
• The tournament opener will take place at Mexico City's iconic Estadio Azteca on 11 June.
• In the US, Los Angeles' SoFi Stadium will host the opening match for the US team, while AT&T Stadium in Dallas is another key venue for group and knockout games.
• Canada's matches will be played at BMO Field in Toronto and BC Place in Vancouver.

For viewers in the UK and Ireland, the time difference is a major factor. Games on the US East Coast will often have evening kick-offs (e.g., 3 p.m. ET is 8 p.m. BST), whereas matches on the West Coast will run late into the night. Environmental conditions may also play a role; the summer heat in cities like Dallas could lead to a slower pace of play, which has historically resulted in fewer goals.

Tournament Schedule and Key Dates

The World Cup will take place from 11 June to 19 July 2026, a 39-day period featuring 104 matches—a significant increase from the 64 matches in the 2022 edition.

Schedule of Rounds:

• Group Stage: 11–27 June
• Round of 32: 28 June–1 July
• Round of 16: 2–6 July
• Quarter-finals: 10–11 July
• Semi-finals: 14–15 July
• Final: 19 July

The group stage will be packed with fixtures, often with three or four matches per day. As the tournament progresses to the knockout rounds, the stakes will increase, and betting markets will become more specialised.

Understanding the New 48-Team Format

The 2026 World Cup introduces a new 48-team structure, which changes how teams progress through the tournament.

Group Stage: The teams will be divided into 12 groups of four. Each team plays the others in their group once. The top two teams from every group, along with the eight best-performing third-placed teams, will advance to the knockout stage. In the event of a tie in points, the tiebreakers will be goal difference, followed by goals scored, and then the head-to-head result.

Knockout Stage: The 32 teams that qualify from the group stage will enter a knockout bracket, beginning with the Round of 32. If any match is level after 90 minutes, it will go to 30 minutes of extra time and then, if necessary, a penalty shootout. This is an important distinction for betting, as markets for the "match result in 90 minutes" are different from "to qualify" for the next round.

Countries Qualified For World Cup So Far

Host Nations (Automatically Qualified)

• Canada
• Mexico
• United States

Qualified Nations by Confederation

AFC (Asia)

• Australia
• Iran
• Japan
• Jordan
• Qatar
• Saudi Arabia
• South Korea
• Uzbekistan

CAF (Africa)

• Algeria
• Cape Verde
• Egypt
• Ghana
• Ivory Coast
• Morocco
• Senegal
• South Africa
• Tunisia

CONCACAF (North, Central America & Caribbean)

• Curaçao
• Haiti
• Panama

CONMEBOL (South America)

• Argentina
• Brazil
• Colombia
• Ecuador
• Paraguay
• Uruguay

OFC (Oceania)

• New Zealand

UEFA (Europe)

• Austria
• Belgium
• Croatia
• England
• France
• Germany
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Portugal
• Scotland
• Spain
• Switzerland