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After the dramatic and exciting FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, attention has already shifted to the following season of the world’s most renowned football competition. The good news for supporters is that they won’t have to wait quite as long for the following World Cup.
A new World Cup, with more participants and the potential to be the largest edition ever, will take place in the northern hemisphere summer of 2026. The information that is already available about the upcoming competition has been compiled by FIFA.
FIFA World Cup dates in 2026
The next World Cup will be held between the months of June and July, as has become customary. The FIFA Council meeting in March 2023 resulted in Sunday, July 19, being chosen as the World Cup’s final date.
FIFA World Cup format 2026
The proposed change to the World Cup 2026 group stage structure, from 16 groups of three to 12 groups of four, was also unanimously approved by the FIFA Council. The top eight third-place teams from each group as well as the top two teams from each group will now advance to the round of 32. From the group stage through the final, hopefuls will now have to play eight games as opposed to seven.
Hosts of the 2026 FIFA World Cup
For the first time ever, three nations will share responsibility for organising the world’s largest football competition. There will be 16 cities that will hold games. The majority of them (11), Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Miami, Boston, and New York, are all in the United States. México City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara will serve as the country’s administrative centres. The Canadian venues are Toronto and Vancouver, respectively.
FIFA World Cup 2026 Stadiums
| Sr No. | Countery | Stadium | Location | Capacity | Opened |
| 1 | Canada | Toronto Stadium | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | 27980 Expan. Up to 45,000+ | 2007 |
| 2 | Canada | Vancouver Stadium | Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada | 54405 | 1983 |
| 3 | Mexico | Estadio Azteca | Tlalpan, Mexico City, Mexico | 87523 | 1966 |
| 4 | Mexico | Guadalajara Stadium | Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico | 48071 | 2010 |
| 5 | Mexico | Monterrey Stadium | Guadalupe, Nuevo Leon, Mexico | 68500 Expen. Upto 75,000 | 2014 |
| 6 | USA | Arrowhead Stadium | Kansas City, Missouri, USA | 76416 | 1972 |
| 7 | USA | Atlanta Stadium | Atlanta, Georgia, USA | 71,000 Upto73,019 | 2017 |
| 8 | USA | Boston Stadium | Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA | 20000 | 2002 |
| 9 | USA | Dallas Stadium | Arlington, Texas, USA | 80,000 Expan. Upto 105,000 | 2009 |
| 10 | USA | Houston Stadium | Houston, Texas, USA | 72,220 Expan. Upto 80,000 | 2002 |
| 11 | USA | Los Angeles Stadium | Inglewood, California, USA | 70,240 Expan. Upto 100,240 | 2020 |
| 12 | USA | Miami Stadium | Miami Gardens, Florida, USA | 65326 | 1987 |
| 13 | USA | New Jersey Stadium | East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA | 82500 | 2010 |
| 14 | USA | Philadelphia Stadium | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA | 71896 | 2003 |
| 15 | USA | San Franscico Stadium | Santa Clara, California, USA | 68,500 Expan. Upto 75,000 | 2014 |
| 16 | USA | Seattle Stadium | Seattle, New York City, USA | 37,722 Expan. Upto 68,740 | 2002 |
FIFA World Cup 2026: Qualified countries
USA
The USA have automatically qualified for the World Cup for the second time in a row as co-hosts, and they will be hoping to improve on their Round of 16 showing in Qatar 2022. The 1930 run to the semi-finals was the United States’ finest performance at the competition to date. This will be the United States’ 12th World Cup and their second on home soil following USA ’94.
Mexico
Mexico will host the 2026 World Cup for the third time, having previously hosted the event in 1970 and 1986. El Tri has thus hosted the tournament more frequently than any other nation. The country will compete in its 18th World Cup; its previous best results occurred at home, where they advanced to the quarterfinals in 1970 and 1986.
Canada
The Maple Leafs will be participating in back-to-back tournaments for the first time ever as Canada completes the trio of hosts. Their only prior appearances in the competition were in 1986 and 2022, both of which resulted in losses in the group round.
FIFA World Cup qualification
46 of the 48 participating teams are covered by the aforementioned allocation. The last two spots in the FIFA World CupTM will be decided by a play-off competition amongst six teams. With the exception of UEFA, each confederation will send one team, and the host country’s confederation will send another team, plus two more teams that will be seeded according to the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.
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