2026 FIFA World CupFIFA World Cup United 2026
Copa Mundial de la FIFA Unidos 2026
Coupe du Monde de la FIFA - Unis 2026
Bid logoTournament detailsHost countries Canada
Mexico
United StatesDates June–JulyTeams 48 (from 6 confederations)Venue(s) 16 (in 16 host cities) ← 2022 2030 →

The 2026 FIFA World Cup (Spanish: Copa mundial de la FIFA de 2026; French: Coupe du monde de la FIFA de 2026) will be the 23rd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international men's football championship contested by the national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament will be jointly hosted by 16 cities in three North American countries; 60 matches, including the quarterfinals, semi-finals, and the final, will be hosted by the United States while neighboring Canada and Mexico will each host 10 matches. The tournament will be the first hosted by three nations.[1][2]

The United 2026 bid beat a rival bid by Morocco during a final vote at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow. It will be the first World Cup since South Korea/Japan in 2002 that will be hosted by more than one nation. With its past hosting of the 1970 and 1986 tournaments, Mexico will also become the first country to host all or part of three men's World Cups.

The 2026 World Cup will also see the tournament expanded from 32 to 48 teams.[3]

Contents

• 1 Format
  • 1.1 Slot allocation
    • 1.1.1 Playoff tournament
  • 1.2 Host selection
    • 1.2.1 Voting
• 2 Qualification
• 3 Candidate cities and venues
  • 3.1 Canada
  • 3.2 Mexico
  • 3.3 United States
• 4 Controversies
• 5 Broadcasting rights
• 6 References

Format

Michel Platini, who was then the UEFA president, had suggested in October 2013 an expansion of the tournament to 40 teams,[4][5] an idea that FIFA president Gianni Infantino also suggested in March 2016.[6] A desire to increase the number of participants in the tournament from the previous 32 team format was announced on October 4, 2016. Four expansion options were considered:[7][8][9][10]

• Expand to 40 teams (8 groups of 5 teams) – 88 matches
• Expand to 40 teams (10 groups of 4 teams) – 76 matches
• Expand to 48 teams (opening 32-team playoff round) – 80 matches
• Expand to 48 teams (16 groups of 3 teams) – 80 matches

On January 10, 2017, the FIFA Council voted unanimously to expand to a 48-team tournament.[3]

The tournament will open with a group stage consisting of 16 groups of three teams, with the top two teams progressing from each group to a knockout tournament starting with a round of 32 teams.[11] The number of games played overall will increase from 64 to 80, but the number of games played by finalists remains at seven, the same as with 32 teams, but one group match will be replaced by a knockout match. The tournament will also be completed within 32 days, the same as previous 32-team tournaments.[12]

The European Club Association and its member clubs opposed the proposal for expansion, saying that the number of games was already at an "unacceptable" level and they urged the governing body to reconsider its idea of increasing the number of teams that qualify.[13] They contended that it was a decision taken for political reasons because Infantino would thus satisfy his electorate, rather than for sporting reasons.[14] Liga de Fútbol Profesional president Javier Tebas agreed, affirming the unacceptability of the new format. He told Marca that the football industry is maintained thanks to clubs and leagues, not FIFA, and that Infantino did politics because to be elected he promised more countries in the World Cup; he wanted to keep the electoral promises.[15] German national team coach Joachim Löw warned that expansion, as had occurred for Euro 2016, would dilute the value of the world tournament because players have already reached their physical and mental limit.[16] Another criticism of the new format is that with three-team groups, the risk of collusion between the two teams playing in the last round of the group stage will increase compared with four-team groups (where simultaneous kick-offs have been employed). One suggestion by president Infantino is that group matches that end in draws will be decided by penalty shootouts.[17]

Slot allocation

On March 30, 2017, the Bureau of the FIFA Council (composed of the FIFA president and the presidents of each of the six confederations) proposed a slot allocation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The recommendation was submitted for the ratification by the FIFA Council.[18][19]

On May 9, 2017, two days before the 67th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation in a meeting in Manama, Bahrain. It includes an intercontinental playoff tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup berths.[20]

Confederation FIFA eligible members Places in finals
(including hosts) Percentage of members
with places in finals Places before 2026
(excluding hosts,
including half-places) AFC 46 8 17% 4.5 CAF 54 9 17% 5 CONCACAF 35 6 17% 3.5 CONMEBOL 10 6 60% 4.5 OFC 11 1 9% 0.5 UEFA 55 16 29% 13 Playoff – 2 33% – Total 211 48 23% 31 (+ hosts)

The issue of how to allocate automatic host country qualification given that there are multiple host countries has not yet been resolved and will be decided by the FIFA council.[18][20][21] The United bid anticipated all three host countries being awarded automatic places.[22]

The ratification of slot allocation gives OFC a guaranteed berth in the final tournament for the first time in FIFA World Cup history. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament in which all six confederations have guaranteed berths.

Playoff tournament

A playoff tournament involving six teams will be held to decide the last two FIFA World Cup berths,[18] consisting of one team per confederation (except for UEFA) and one additional team from the confederation of the host country (i.e. CONCACAF).

Two of the teams will be seeded based on the FIFA World Rankings, and the seeded teams will play for a FIFA World Cup berth against the winners of the first two knockout games involving the four unseeded teams.

The tournament is to be played in the host country(ies) and to be used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup. The existing playoff window of November 2025 has been suggested as a tentative date for the 2026 edition.

Host selection Main articles: Morocco 2026 FIFA World Cup bid and United 2026 FIFA World Cup bid Map of the World with the six confederations

The FIFA Council went back and forth between 2013 and 2017 on limitations within hosting rotation based on the continental confederations. Originally, it was set that bids to be host would not be allowed from countries belonging to confederations that hosted the two preceding tournaments. It was temporarily changed to only prohibit countries belonging to the confederation that hosted the previous World Cup from bidding to host the following tournament,[23] before the rule was changed back to its prior state of two World Cups. However, the FIFA Council did make an exception to potentially grant eligibility to member associations of the confederation of the second-to-last host of the FIFA World Cup in the event that none of the received bids fulfill the strict technical and financial requirements.[24][25] In March 2017, FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirmed that "Europe (UEFA) and Asia (AFC) are excluded from the bidding following the selection of Russia and Qatar in 2018 and 2022 respectively."[26] Therefore, the 2026 World Cup could be hosted by one of the remaining four confederations: CONCACAF (North America; last hosted in 1994), CAF (Africa; last hosted in 2010), CONMEBOL (South America; last hosted in 2014), or OFC (Oceania, never hosted before), or potentially by UEFA in case no bid from those four met the requirements.

After the selection, the map of world cup hosts stayed like this. Remember that some city locations may be wrong

Co-hosting the FIFA World Cup—which had been banned by FIFA after the 2002 World Cup—was approved for the 2026 World Cup, though not limited to a specific number but instead evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Also by 2026, the FIFA general secretariat, after consultation with the Competitions Committee, will have the power to exclude bidders who do not meet the minimum technical requirements to host the competition.[24]

Canada, Mexico and the United States had all publicly considered bidding for the tournament separately, but the United joint bid was announced on April 10, 2017. The United bid contacted 48 venues in 43 cities (3 venues in 3 cities in Mexico, 8 venues in 6 cities in Canada and 37 venues in 34 cities in the United States). This bid was ultimately cut down to 23 venues in 23 cities (3 in Canada, 3 in Mexico and 17 in the United States; the American venues will be cut down to 10 for a total of 16 venues for the tournament). Morocco announced its bid in August 2017, and had 14 proposed venues in 12 cities.

Voting results: Allowed to vote Banned from voting   Voted for United bid   Canada/Mexico/United States   Voted for Moroccan bid   Morocco   Voted for neither   Sanctioned by FIFA   Abstained from voting   Not a FIFA member Voting Main article: 2026 FIFA World Cup bids

The voting took place on June 13, 2018, during FIFA's annual congress in Moscow, and it was reopened to all eligible members.[27] The United bid won receiving 134 valid ballots, while the Morocco bid received 65 valid ballots. Upon the selection, Canada becomes the fifth country to host both men's and women's World Cup—the latter was in 2015, Mexico becomes the first country to host three men's World Cups—previously in 1970 and 1986, and the United States becomes the first country to host both men's and women's World Cup twice each—having hosted the 1994 men's and the 1999 and 2003 women's World Cups.

Qualification

The 2026 World Cup's qualification process has yet to be decided. The FIFA Council is expected to decide which hosts, if any, will receive automatic qualifications to the tournament.[18][20][21] The United Bid personnel anticipated that all three host countries would be awarded automatic places.[22]

• CAF (Africa): 9 slots
• AFC (Asia): 8 slots
• UEFA (Europe): 16 slots
• CONCACAF (North and Central America and Caribbean): 3 slots
• OFC (Oceania): 1 slot
• CONMEBOL (South America): 6 slots
• Playoff: 2 slots

Candidate cities and venues

During the bidding process, there were 49 venues in 43 cities contacted to be part of the bid. 41 cities with 45 venues responded and submitted to be part of the bid (3 venues in 3 cities in Mexico, 8 venues in 6 cities in Canada and 38 venues in 34 cities in the United States). A first round elimination cut 9 venues and 9 cities, then a second round elimination cut 9 venues in 6 cities, reducing the total number to 23 venues, each in their own city or metropolitan area. The 23 candidate cities and venues will be narrowed down to 16 in 2020 or 2021 (3 in Canada, 3 in Mexico, and 10 in the United States):

A denotes a stadium used for previous men's World Cup tournaments (United States and Mexico only)

A denotes an indoor stadium with a fixed or retractable roof.

Canada Montreal[28] Edmonton[28] Toronto[28] Olympic Stadium Commonwealth Stadium BMO Field Capacity: 61,004
(Bid book capacity: 55,822)
(Expandable to 73,000) Capacity: 56,302
(Bid book capacity: 56,418) Capacity: 30,000
(Expanding to 45,500 for tournament) EdmontonMontrealToronto Canadian candidate cities Mexico Mexico City[28] Monterrey[28] Guadalajara[28] Estadio Azteca Estadio BBVA Bancomer Estadio Akron Capacity: 87,523 Capacity: 53,500
(Bid book capacity: 53,460) Capacity: 46,232
(Bid book capacity: 48,071) Mexico CityMonterreyGuadalajara Mexican candidate cities United States Los Angeles[28] New York City[28] Washington, D.C.[28] Dallas[28] Rose Bowl
(Pasadena, California) MetLife Stadium
(East Rutherford, New Jersey) FedExField
(Landover, Maryland) AT&T Stadium
(Arlington, Texas) Capacity: 92,000
(Bid book capacity: 88,432) Capacity: 82,500
(Bid book capacity: 87,157) Capacity: 82,000
(Bid book capacity: 70,249) Capacity: 80,000
(Bid book capacity: 92,967)
(expandable to 100,000) Kansas City[28] Denver[28] Houston[28] Baltimore[28] Arrowhead Stadium Broncos Stadium at Mile High NRG Stadium M&T Bank Stadium Capacity: 76,416
(Bid book capacity: 76,640) Capacity: 76,125
(Bid book capacity: 77,595) Capacity: 71,795
(Bid book capacity: 72,220) Capacity: 71,006
(Bid book capacity: 70,976) Atlanta[28] AtlantaBaltimoreBostonCincinnatiDallasDenverHoustonKansas CityLos AngelesMiamiNashvilleNew York CityOrlandoPhiladelphiaSan Francisco Bay AreaSeattleWashington, D.C. United States candidate cities Mercedes-Benz Stadium Capacity: 71,000
(Bid book capacity: 75,000)
(expandable to 83,000) Philadelphia[28] Nashville[28] Seattle[28] San Francisco Bay Area[28] Lincoln Financial Field Nissan Stadium CenturyLink Field Levi's Stadium
(Santa Clara, California) Capacity: 69,176
(Bid book capacity: 69,328) Capacity: 69,143
(Bid book capacity: 69,722)
(expandable to 75,000) Capacity: 69,000
(expandable to 72,000) Capacity: 68,500
(Bid book capacity: 70,909)
(expandable to 75,000) Boston[28] Cincinnati[28] Miami[28] Orlando[28] Gillette Stadium
(Foxborough, Massachusetts) Paul Brown Stadium Hard Rock Stadium
(Miami Gardens, Florida) Camping World Stadium Capacity: 65,878
(Bid book capacity: 70,000) Capacity: 65,515
(Bid book capacity: 67,402) Capacity: 64,767
(Bid book capacity: 67,518) Capacity: 60,219
(Bid book capacity: 65,000) Controversies

FIFA president Gianni Infantino criticized the U.S. travel ban on several Muslim-majority nations. Infantino said, "When it comes to FIFA competitions, any team, including the supporters and officials of that team, who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup. That is obvious."[29]

However, assurances were later given by the government that there would be no such discrimination.[30][31]

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened the countries that intended to support the Morocco bid to host the 2026 World Cup, tweeting: "The US has put together a STRONG bid w/ Canada & Mexico for the 2026 World Cup. It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid. Why should we be supporting these countries when they don't support us (including at the United Nations)?"[32]

Broadcasting rights

•  Canada – CTV, TSN, RDS[33]
•  United States – Fox, Telemundo[34]

On February 12, 2015, Fox, Telemundo, and Bell Media's rights to the tournament were renewed by FIFA to cover 2026, without accepting any other bids. The New York Times believed that this extension was intended as compensation for the rescheduling of the 2022 World Cup to November–December rather than its traditional June–July scheduling, which falls during the heart of the regular season for several major North American sports leagues (including the National Football League; Fox is a main U.S. rightsholder).[35][36][37]

References

1. ^ "World Cup 2026: Canada, US & Mexico joint bid wins right to host tournament". BBC. June 13, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018. 
2. ^ Carlise, Jeff (April 10, 2017). "U.S., neighbors launch 2026 World Cup bid". ESPN. Archived from the original on April 11, 2017. 
3. ^ a b "Unanimous decision expands FIFA World Cup™ to 48 teams from 2026". FIFA. January 10, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2017. 
4. ^ "Michel Platini calls for 40-team World Cup starting with Russia 2018". The Guardian. October 28, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2015. 
5. ^ "BBC Sport — Michel Platini's World Cup expansion plan unlikely — Fifa". BBC Sport. October 29, 2013. Archived from the original on April 21, 2014. Retrieved January 24, 2015. 
6. ^ "Infantino suggests 40-team World Cup finals". Independent Online. South Africa: IOL. Reuters. March 30, 2016. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. 
7. ^ "New Fifa chief backs 48-team World Cup". HeraldLIVE. October 7, 2016. Archived from the original on October 10, 2016. It's an idea, just as the World Cup with 40 teams is already on the table with groups of four or five teams. 
8. ^ "Fifa's 5 options for a 2026 World Cup of 48, 40 or 32 teams". Yahoo! Sports. Associated Press. December 23, 2016. Archived from the original on January 10, 2017. 
9. ^ "FIFA World Cup format proposals" (PDF). FIFA. December 19, 2016. 
10. ^ "Federations 'overwhelmingly in favour' of 48-team World Cup – Infantino". ESPN. December 28, 2016. 
11. ^ "Fifa approves Infantino's plan to expand World Cup to 48 teams from 2026". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 10, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2017. 
12. ^ "World Cup: Gianni Infantino defends tournament expansion to 48 teams". BBC Sport. January 10, 2017. Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. 
13. ^ "World Cup: Europe's top clubs oppose FIFA's expansion plans". CNN. December 15, 2016. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. 
14. ^ "Críticas a decisión de la FIFA de jugar el Mundial 2026 con 48 selecciones". El Universo (in Spanish). Agence France-Presse. January 10, 2017. Archived from the original on January 12, 2017. 
15. ^ "Mundial de 48 equipos: durísimas críticas en Europa". Clarín (in Spanish). January 10, 2017. Archived from the original on January 12, 2017. 
16. ^ "Low confirms opposition to 40-team World Cup". sbs.com.au. Australian Associated Press. October 2, 2016. Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. 
17. ^ George Flood (January 10, 2017). "How 48-team World Cup in 2026 will work and what is left to be decided". International Business Times. Archived from the original on January 11, 2017. 
18. ^ a b c d "Bureau of the Council recommends slot allocation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup". FIFA. March 30, 2017. Archived from the original on April 9, 2017. 
19. ^ "World Cup 2026: Fifa reveals allocation for 48-team tournament". BBC. March 30, 2017. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. 
20. ^ a b c "FIFA Council prepares Congress, takes key decisions for the future of the FIFA World Cup™". FIFA. May 9, 2017. Archived from the original on June 18, 2017. 
21. ^ a b "World Cup 2026: Canada, US & Mexico joint bid wins right to host tournament". BBC Sport. June 13, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018. 
22. ^ a b "United 2026 bid book" (PDF). Retrieved June 13, 2018. 
23. ^ "Current allocation of FIFA World Cup™ confederation slots maintained". FIFA. May 30, 2015. Archived from the original on May 30, 2015. 
24. ^ a b "FIFA Council discusses vision for the future of football". FIFA. October 14, 2016. Archived from the original on October 17, 2016. 
25. ^ "FIFA blocks Europe from hosting 2026 World Cup, lifting Canada's chances". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Associated Press. October 14, 2016. Archived from the original on October 14, 2016. 
26. ^ "Trump travel ban could prevent United States hosting World Cup". The Guardian. March 9, 2017. 
27. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/football/live/2018/jun/13/world-cup-2026-vote-fifa-nations-choose-between-north-america-and-morocco-live
28. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "United 2026 bid book" (PDF). united2026.com. Retrieved April 30, 2018. 
29. ^ "Donald Trump travel ban could prevent USA from hosting 2026 World Cup". The Independent. March 9, 2017. 
30. ^ Davis, Scott. "Anti-Trump sentiments around the world could reportedly cost the US a chance to host the 2026 World Cup". Business Insider. 
31. ^ "U.S. offers assurances over 2026 World Cup". ESPN. Associated Press. Retrieved May 9, 2018. 
32. ^ "Donald Trump issues warning to other countries over voting against US 2026 World Cup bid". The Independent. April 27, 2018. 
33. ^ Sandomir, Richard (February 12, 2015). "Fox and Telemundo to Show World Cup Through 2026 as FIFA Extends Contracts"". The New York Times. 
34. ^ Parker, Ryan. "2026 World Cup TV rights awarded without bids; ESPN 'surprised'" Archived March 3, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.. Los Angeles Times. February 13, 2015.
35. ^ "FIFA grants Fox, Telemundo U.S. TV rights for World Cup through 2026". SI.com. February 12, 2015. 
36. ^ "Why FIFA Made Deal With Fox for 2026 Cup". The New York Times. February 26, 2015. 
37. ^ "FIFA extending TV deals through 2026 World Cup with CTV, TSN and RDS". The Globe and Mail. 12 February 2015. Archived from the original on 10 April 2016. 

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Notes: There was no qualification for the 1930 World Cup as places were given by invitation only. In 1950, there was no final; the article is about the decisive match of the final group stage.