World Cup 2026: Hosts, Venues, Schedule, Format & Betting

The revamped 2026 FIFA World Cup tournament is less than a year away.

For the first time ever, 48 teams will participate in the 23rd edition of the tournament from June 11 to July 19, replacing the previous 32-team version.

The World Cup qualifiers are well underway, but a few teams have already booked their spot in North America.

United States, Canada and Mexico qualify as hosts, and they’ve been joined by Iran, Japan, New Zealand and Argentina.

The qualification process will reveal more contenders, but the new format has paved the way for the more obscure teams to prove they have what it takes to rub shoulders with the best in the world.

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World Cup Hosts

The upcoming tournament will take place across 16 cities in the US, Canada and Mexico. It will be the first time three nations have shared hosting rights for the competition.

It will also be the first time the World Cup is hosted on North American soil in over three decades. On that occasion, Brazil won the title, beating Italy via a penalty shoot-out.

World Cup Venues

Dallas Stadium

MetLife Stadium

Atlanta Stadium

Kansas City Stadium

Houston Stadium

San Francisco Bay Area Stadium

Los Angeles Stadium

Philadelphia Stadium

Seattle Stadium

Boston Stadium

Miami Stadium

Toronto Stadium

BC Place Vancouver

Estadio Azteca Mexico City

Estadio Monterrey

Estadio Guadalajara

World Cup Schedule

FIFA has confirmed that the draw for the final tournament will take place towards the end of 2025, so we won’t have a full picture of the fixture list until then.

However, the governing body has already announced key dates and confirmed that the curtain raiser will be held in Mexico City, while the final will take place at the MetLife Stadium.

Group stage: June 11-27

Round of 32: June 28 to July 3

Round of 16: July 4-7

Quarter-finals: July 9-11

Semi-finals: July 14-15

Third-place play-off: July 18

Final: July 19

World Cup Format

The expanded format of the World Cup means that there will be a staggering 104 fixtures for football fans to feast on in North America – 40 more than the 2022 edition in Qatar.

As a consequence, the knockout stage will start with a round of 32. The previous format of 32 teams in eight groups has been replaced by one featuring 12 groups of four.

The top two teams in each group, plus the eight best third-placed teams, will advance to the round of 32.

World Cup Betting Guide

Bookmakers have opened an early market on which team will lift football’s holy grail, and the usual suspects such as Brazil and England are considered front-runners.

Heading into the tournament with new managers could impact their prices. Brazil have dismissed Dorival Junior and replaced him with Carlo Ancelotti, while England have turned to Thomas Tuchel.

This will be the first time either of them will take charge of a national team, so it remains to be seen how they fare on the biggest stage in football.

Brazil and England may have new managers, but that doesn’t automatically give them an edge over teams such as France, Spain, Argentina and Germany, who are also expected to be in the mix.

Argentina are looking to become the first nation to successfully defend the World Cup title since their continental rivals, but that was over six decades ago.

Italy and Brazil are the only two nations to ever claim back-to-back titles. France came close but were beaten to the punch by Argentina, who broke their 36-year drought in 2022.

Attention will be on the usual suspects, but there are a few underdogs that might be worth watching.

New Zealand will compete at the World Cup for only the third time in the nation’s history after steamrolling through the Oceania qualifiers.

Led by prolific striker Chris Wood, the All Whites won all five of their qualifying fixtures to clinch an automatic qualification spot and will bet on themselves to give the top guns a run for their money.

Reputable online betting NZ platforms will be inundated with Kiwi punters eager to wager on a team who could surprise some of the top teams.

Much will depend on the outcome of the final draw, but if Wood maintains his prolific goalscoring form, New Zealand could be a decent bet to make history by reaching the knockout stage for the first time.

All eyes will also be on the US, who will be keen to give a good account of themselves on home turf.

Appointing Mauricio Pochettino was a huge statement of intent heading into this tournament, but it hasn’t been the fairytale story they thought it would be.

Pochettino has struggled to get the best out of the team. There’s still time for him to come up with a winning formula, but his World Cup performance could decide his fate.

I (AKA CatBurg) have a lifelong passion for sports, especially football and basketball. I enjoy the thrill and excitement of sports betting and everything in between. My teams are (Packers #GoPackGo) and who I am betting on!