The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be the biggest World Cup in history, featuring 48 national teams, 104 matches, and three host nations: the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Tournament Overview
Total Teams: 48
Total Groups: 12 (Groups A to L)
Teams per Group: 4
Total Matches: 104
Host Countries: USA, Canada, Mexico
Tournament Duration: June 11, 2026 – July 19, 2026
Stage 1: Group Stage (72 Matches)
The tournament begins with the group stage.
Each group contains 4 teams. Every team plays 3 matches against the other teams in its group.
Match format in every group:
Team A vs Team B
Team C vs Team D
Team A vs Team C
Team B vs Team D
Team A vs Team D
Team B vs Team C
Total matches per group: 6
12 Groups × 6 Matches = 72 Matches
At the end of the group stage:
Top 2 teams from each group qualify automatically.
Best 8 third-placed teams also qualify.
Qualified teams for next round: 32
Stage 2: Round of 32 (16 Matches)
The knockout stage begins.
32 teams compete in 16 matches.
Winners advance.
Losers are eliminated.
32 Teams → 16 Winners
Stage 3: Round of 16 (8 Matches)
The 16 remaining teams play knockout matches.
16 Teams → 8 Winners
Stage 4: Quarter-Finals (4 Matches)
The best eight teams compete.
8 Teams → 4 Winners
Stage 5: Semi-Finals (2 Matches)
The final four teams battle for a place in the World Cup Final.
4 Teams → 2 Finalists
Stage 6: Third-Place Match (1 Match)
The two losing semi-finalists compete for third place.
2 Teams → Third Place Winner
Stage 7: FIFA World Cup Final (1 Match)
The two semi-final winners face each other for football's greatest prize.
Winner = FIFA World Cup 2026 Champion
Match Breakdown
| Stage | Matches |
| Group Stage | 72 |
| Round of 32 | 16 |
| Round of 16 | 8 |
| Quarter-Finals | 4 |
| Semi-Finals | 2 |
| Third Place Match | 1 |
| Final | 1 |
| Total | 104 |
Road to Glory
48 Teams
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Group Stage (72 Matches)
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32 Teams
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Round of 32
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16 Teams
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Round of 16
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8 Teams
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Quarter-Finals
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4 Teams
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Semi-Finals
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Third Place Match
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Final
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FIFA World Cup 2026 Champion
The FIFA World Cup 2026 promises to be the largest and most exciting tournament ever held, bringing together the world's best football nations in a 104-match battle for global glory.
Date-wise Group Stage Schedule (72 Matches). Since the image does not contain official dates, I distributed the 72 matches across the Group Stage period (11–27 June 2026) for an Excel-style fixture list.
| Date | Match No | Fixture |
| 11 Jun | 1 | Mexico vs South Africa |
| 11 Jun | 2 | Korea Republic vs CZE/DEN/IRL/MKD |
| 11 Jun | 3 | Canada vs BIH/ITA/NIR/WAL |
| 11 Jun | 4 | Qatar vs Switzerland |
| 12 Jun | 5 | Brazil vs Morocco |
| 12 Jun | 6 | Haiti vs Scotland |
| 12 Jun | 7 | USA vs Paraguay |
| 12 Jun | 8 | Australia vs KOS/ROU/SVK/TUR |
| 13 Jun | 9 | Germany vs Curaçao |
| 13 Jun | 10 | Côte d'Ivoire vs Ecuador |
| 13 Jun | 11 | Netherlands vs Japan |
| 13 Jun | 12 | ALB/POL/SWE/UKR vs Tunisia |
| 14 Jun | 13 | Belgium vs Egypt |
| 14 Jun | 14 | Iran vs New Zealand |
| 14 Jun | 15 | Spain vs Cabo Verde |
| 14 Jun | 16 | Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay |
| 15 Jun | 17 | France vs Senegal |
| 15 Jun | 18 | BOL/IRQ/SUR vs Norway |
| 15 Jun | 19 | Argentina vs Algeria |
| 15 Jun | 20 | Austria vs Jordan |
| 16 Jun | 21 | Portugal vs COD/JAM/NCL |
| 16 Jun | 22 | Uzbekistan vs Colombia |
| 16 Jun | 23 | England vs Croatia |
| 16 Jun | 24 | Ghana vs Panama |
| 17 Jun | 25 | Mexico vs Korea Republic |
| 17 Jun | 26 | South Africa vs CZE/DEN/IRL/MKD |
| 17 Jun | 27 | Canada vs Qatar |
| 17 Jun | 28 | BIH/ITA/NIR/WAL vs Switzerland |
| 18 Jun | 29 | Brazil vs Haiti |
| 18 Jun | 30 | Morocco vs Scotland |
| 18 Jun | 31 | USA vs Australia |
| 18 Jun | 32 | Paraguay vs KOS/ROU/SVK/TUR |
| 19 Jun | 33 | Germany vs Côte d'Ivoire |
| 19 Jun | 34 | Curaçao vs Ecuador |
| 19 Jun | 35 | Netherlands vs ALB/POL/SWE/UKR |
| 19 Jun | 36 | Japan vs Tunisia |
| 20 Jun | 37 | Belgium vs Iran |
| 20 Jun | 38 | Egypt vs New Zealand |
| 20 Jun | 39 | Spain vs Saudi Arabia |
| 20 Jun | 40 | Cabo Verde vs Uruguay |
| 21 Jun | 41 | France vs BOL/IRQ/SUR |
| 21 Jun | 42 | Senegal vs Norway |
| 21 Jun | 43 | Argentina vs Austria |
| 21 Jun | 44 | Algeria vs Jordan |
| 22 Jun | 45 | Portugal vs Uzbekistan |
| 22 Jun | 46 | COD/JAM/NCL vs Colombia |
| 22 Jun | 47 | England vs Ghana |
| 22 Jun | 48 | Croatia vs Panama |
| 23 Jun | 49 | Mexico vs CZE/DEN/IRL/MKD |
| 23 Jun | 50 | South Africa vs Korea Republic |
| 23 Jun | 51 | Canada vs Switzerland |
| 23 Jun | 52 | BIH/ITA/NIR/WAL vs Qatar |
| 24 Jun | 53 | Brazil vs Scotland |
| 24 Jun | 54 | Morocco vs Haiti |
| 24 Jun | 55 | USA vs KOS/ROU/SVK/TUR |
| 24 Jun | 56 | Paraguay vs Australia |
| 25 Jun | 57 | Germany vs Ecuador |
| 25 Jun | 58 | Curaçao vs Côte d'Ivoire |
| 25 Jun | 59 | Netherlands vs Tunisia |
| 25 Jun | 60 | Japan vs ALB/POL/SWE/UKR |
| 26 Jun | 61 | Belgium vs New Zealand |
| 26 Jun | 62 | Egypt vs Iran |
| 26 Jun | 63 | Spain vs Uruguay |
| 26 Jun | 64 | Cabo Verde vs Saudi Arabia |
| 27 Jun | 65 | France vs Norway |
| 27 Jun | 66 | Senegal vs BOL/IRQ/SUR |
| 27 Jun | 67 | Argentina vs Jordan |
| 27 Jun | 68 | Algeria vs Austria |
| 27 Jun | 69 | Portugal vs Colombia |
| 27 Jun | 70 | COD/JAM/NCL vs Uzbekistan |
| 27 Jun | 71 | England vs Panama |
| 27 Jun | 72 | Croatia vs Ghana |
⚠️ Important: These dates are arranged from the teams shown in your image and are not the official FIFA fixture schedule. The image itself is a fan-made draw graphic with several placeholder teams. For an official FIFA date-by-date fixture list, the final qualified teams and FIFA schedule must be confirmed first.