The 2026 World Cup is set to kick off on Thursday, as cohosts Mexico take on 2010 hosts South Africa.
A record 1,248 players from 48 teams will take part in this year’s expanded version of the tournament, with 104 matches to be played across Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Euronews has broken down everything you need to know about the World Cup 2026.
Key facts
Host cities in 2026 include Toronto and Vancouver in Canada, Guadalajara, Mexico City and Monterrey in Mexico, and Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle in the US.
Some of the region’s most iconic stadiums will take centre stage for the tournament, including Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca, New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium – which is set to host the final – and LA’s SoFi Stadium.
A number of teams are also set to make their first appearances at the 2026 edition of the competition. Cabo Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan will face off against football’s elite as they take advantage of the expanded format.
Uzbekistan, coached by legendary Italian defender Fabio Cannavaro, will come into the tournament hoping to notch up a few upsets, with rising Manchester City star Abdukodir Khusanov key to their chances.
Squad lists show World Cup players will be representing 449 different clubs from 71 countries, per football’s world governing body FIFA.
The youngest players set to feature include Mexico’s 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora, the Czech Republic’s Hugo Sochurek, 18, and Senegal’s Ibrahim Mbaye, also 18.
It’s easy to forget that Spanish wonderkid Lamine Yamal is also only 18 years old, despite already having won multiple trophies with his club Barcelona and the UEFA European Championship with Spain in 2024.
At the other end of the age bracket, goalkeeper Craig Gordon is travelling out with the Scotland squad at the age of 43, while Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the game’s all-time greats, will once again don the Portugal shirt at 41 years old.
Favourites
While reigning European champions Spain are the bookmakers’ pick to lift the trophy on 19 July, injury worries could prove decisive.
Luis de la Fuente’s young side beat a strong England team to win Euro 2024 and boasts huge squad depth coming into the World Cup, but key players Yamal and Nico Williams are recovering from hamstring problems.
The Spanish will nevertheless be confident of reaching the latter stages of the tournament. They play Cabo Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay in group H.
Two-time champions France head to the Americas as one of the favourites once again, as a star-studded team looks to bounce back after their defeat to a Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina in Qatar in 2022.
With the nation riding high on the back of domestic side Paris Saint-Germain’s back-to-back Champions League titles, Les Bleus will have a somewhat tricky group to navigate to reach the knockout stages, with Erling Haaland’s Norway, Sadio Mané’s Senegal and Iraq to overcome.
But seasoned head coach Didier Deschamps has a wealth of options to pick from if he needs to dig deep, with Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé, who scored a hat-trick in the Qatar final, 2025 Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé and Bayern Munich star Michael Olise to name but a few.
Other contenders include Argentina, who will once again be spearheaded by its talisman Messi, a Thomas Tuchel-coached England, five-time winners Brazil and four-time champions Germany.
Controversies
The buildup to the 2026 World Cup has been somewhat blighted by issues surrounding border control and ticket pricing.
The Iranian national team were forced to move their training base to Mexico after some staff were denied US visas. All of Iran’s group fixtures will be played in the US.
The team has since been awarded visas and cleared to play in the tournament.
Switzerland striker Breel Embolo also had his start to the World Cup disrupted after US authorities initially blocked his travel authorisation. He is now free to join up with the squad.
Border problems have also impacted referees.
Somali referee Omar Artan, one of the world’s top-ranked officials, has returned home after the US refused him entry to the country, sparking criticism from across the football world.
Artan was refused entry to the US at Miami International Airport last week after border authorities deemed him “inadmissible due to vetting concerns”.
Elsewhere, the Uzbekistan national team was subjected to additional security frisks ahead of a warm-up game against the Netherlands.
Speaking after the incident, head coach Cannavaro appeared surprised by the move, telling reporters: “They said to me it’s the rules. But in the end, the check was only for us”.
Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, has said such moves are taken at the discretion of the host nations and that maintaining security is crucial.
“Unfortunately, our world is a very aggressive world, and security goes above everything,” he told reporters ahead of the tournament. “You need to respect the decisions which are taken.”
Infantino has also defended ticket prices for the tournament.
The governing body released group stage tickets starting at $140, with seats for the final on sale for up to $8,680. Following pushback from fans and pundits, FIFA later released a small number of $60 “supporter entry tier” tickets for each of the tournament’s 104 games.
Football Supporters Europe (FSE) said in December that based on information it had available at the time, it would cost a fan at least $6,900 to follow their team from their first fixture through to the final, which it said was nearly five times as much as in the 2022 World Cup.
FSE said the pricing system used by FIFA appeared to be based on “variable pricing policy dependent on vague criteria such as the perceived attractiveness of the fixture”.
Responding to criticism earlier this week, Infantino would not apologise to fans for ticket prices and stressed the money was reinvested into the sport.
“Every dollar that comes in, goes back into the development of football,” he said.
Former England and Arsenal forward Ian Wright has branded the 2026 tournament a “World Cup of chaos”.
“Something has to be said,” Wright said in a video posted to social media responding to the news Artan had been denied entry to the US.
“Most expensive tickets ever. Expensive accommodation. Transport through the roof,” he continued. “I feel for the American fans who are desperate for this”.