For the first time, the competition expands from 32 to 48 national teams, marking a major structural shift aimed at widening participation across continents including Asia, Africa and Oceania.
The tournament runs from 11 June to 19 July, with the opening match at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City and the final at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey.
Expanded format reshapes tournament
The new format introduces 12 groups of four teams. The top two from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, advance to a newly added round of 32.
The change increases the total number of matches from 64 to 104 and extends the tournament to around 40 days.
Matches across 16 cities
Games will be played in 16 cities across North America, with the bulk hosted in the United States.
Host cities include New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas and Toronto, as well as Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.
‘Smart’ ball to assist officials
The official Adidas match ball, ‘Trionda,’ features an embedded motion sensor that records data hundreds of times per second.
Football is entering a new era with the Adidas TRIONDA, the official smart match ball for the 2026 World Cup. Equipped with advanced sensors, it can track movement, detect touches, and provide real-time data to assist referees, VAR decisions, and semi-automated offside… pic.twitter.com/T5x1bUpD6D
— The Daily Jagran (@TheDailyJagran) June 3, 2026
The system is integrated with VAR technology to improve the accuracy of decisions on offsides, contact and key incidents during matches. The ball must also be charged before each game.
Three mascots for three hosts
The tournament will feature three mascots, one for each host country:
Maple (Canada), a moose
Zayu (Mexico), a jaguar
Clutch (United States), a bald eagle
They will form part of official events and FIFA branding throughout the competition.
Matches across time zones
With matches staged across multiple time zones, kick-off times will vary throughout the day. For viewers in Cyprus, many games are expected to air late in the evening or after midnight.
The group stage will feature up to four matches per day.
Broadcast arrangements in Cyprus
Broadcast rights in Cyprus are held by Sigma, which plans to show all matches.
Additional coverage will be provided via HTV, a channel on the Hellas Sat platform, allowing simultaneous broadcasts. The channel is expected to be used for parallel matches later in the group stage.
Commercial expectations high
FIFA expects the 2026 tournament to break previous records in both viewership and revenue, driven in part by the scale of the US market.
The event is also seen as a precursor to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
First halftime show planned for final
In another first, the final will include a Super Bowl-style halftime show.
The performance will take place at MetLife Stadium, with artists including Madonna, Shakira and BTS expected to appear. The show will be overseen by Coldplay’s Chris Martin.
The duration of the halftime show is expected to exceed the traditional 15 minutes of football and there is information that it may even reach 25 minutes, to allow for the full staging of the production.
At the same time, there are scenarios for guest appearances and surprise collaborations, while several reports suggest that Coldplay may also appear on stage during the spectacular evening.
Full programme of group stage matches (first phase)
THURSDAY 11/6
22:00 Mexico – South Africa
FRIDAY 12/6
05:00 South Korea – Czech Republic (REPEAT FRIDAY 12/6 AT 15:20)
22:00 Canada – Bosnia and Herzegovina
SATURDAY 13/6
04:00 USA – Paraguay (REPEAT AT 10:30)
22:00 Qatar – Switzerland
SUNDAY 14/6
01:00 Brazil – Morocco (REPEAT AT 10:30)
04:00 Haiti – Scotland
07:00 Australia – Turkey
20:00 Germany – Curaçao
23:00 Netherlands – Japan
MONDAY 15/6
02:00 Ivory Coast – Ecuador
05:00 Sweden – Tunisia
19:00 Spain – Cape Verde
22:00 Belgium – Egypt
TUESDAY 16/6
01:00 Saudi Arabia – Uruguay
04:00 Iran – New Zealand
22:00 France – Senegal
WEDNESDAY 17/6
01:00 Iraq – Norway
04:00 Argentina – Algeria
07:00 Austria – Jordan
20:00 Portugal – DR Congo
23:00 England – Croatia
THURSDAY 18/6
02:00 Ghana – Panama
05:00 Uzbekistan – Colombia
19:00 Czech Republic – South Africa
22:00 Switzerland – Bosnia and Herzegovina
FRIDAY 19/6
01:00 Canada – Qatar
04:00 Mexico – South Korea (REPEAT AT 15:30)
22:00 USA – Australia
SATURDAY 20/6
01:00 Scotland – Morocco
03:30 Brazil – Haiti (REPEAT AT 10:30)
06:00 Turkey – Paraguay
20:00 Netherlands – Sweden
23:00 Germany – Ivory Coast
SUNDAY 21/6
03:00 Ecuador – Curaçao
07:00 Tunisia – Japan
19:00 Spain – Saudi Arabia
22:00 Belgium – Iran
MONDAY 22/6
01:00 Uruguay – Cape Verde
04:00 New Zealand – Egypt
20:00 Argentina – Austria
TUESDAY 23/6
00:00 France – Iraq
03:00 Norway – Senegal
06:00 Jordan – Algeria
20:00 Portugal – Uzbekistan
23:00 England – Ghana
WEDNESDAY 24/6
02:00 Panama – Croatia
05:00 Colombia – DR Congo
22:00 Switzerland – Canada
THURSDAY 25/6
01:00 Scotland – Brazil
01:00 Morocco – Haiti – HTV SIGMA
04:00 Czech Republic – Mexico
04:00 South Africa – South Korea – HTV SIGMA
23:00 Ecuador – Germany
23:00 Curaçao – Ivory Coast – HTV SIGMA
FRIDAY 26/6
02:00 Tunisia – Netherlands
02:00 Japan – Sweden – HTV SIGMA
05:00 Turkey – USA
05:00 Paraguay – Australia – HTV SIGMA
22:00 Norway – France
22:00 Senegal – Iraq – HTV SIGMA
SATURDAY 27/6
03:00 Uruguay – Spain
03:00 Cape Verde – Saudi Arabia – HTV SIGMA
06:00 New Zealand – Belgium
06:00 Egypt – Iran – HTV SIGMA
SUNDAY 28/6
00:00 Panama – England
00:00 Croatia – Ghana – HTV SIGMA
02:30 Colombia – Portugal
02:30 DR Congo – Uzbekistan – HTV SIGMA
05:00 Jordan – Argentina
05:00 Algeria – Austria – HTV SIGMA
The remaining matches will be determined depending on results and qualification.
Source: must.com.cy
