Mexico will host the 2026 World Cup opener, while New Jersey has been awarded the final.
The 2026 World Cup final will be held in New Jersey, at the stadiums of the National Football League's New York Giants and New York Jets, FIFA announced on Sunday, along with the entire schedule for the global soccer showdown.
The 48-team World Cup, which ends on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, is co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Canada will host a total of 13 games, with 10 in the group stage split evenly between Toronto and Vancouver. Mexico will also host 13 games, including ten in the group stage in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. The remainder of the tournament will be held in 11 cities across the United States.
Toronto, Mexico City, and Los Angeles will host their respective national teams' opening matches.
The open-air stadium, which opened in 2010 and has a capacity of 82,500, hosted the Copa America Centenario final in 2016, when Chile defeated Lionel Messi's Argentina for the second time in a penalty shootout.
FIFA did not specify kickoff times for the games.
Mexico City's Estadio Azteca will host the tournament's opening match on June 11, making Mexico the first nation to host the World Cup for the third time. The opening day will also include a match in Guadalajara.
Mexico's head coach, Jaime Lozano, stated in translated comments that his squad will be under pressure to perform in front of home fans, but that they are also excited to play in the first game and that it is a special day in his and the national team's lives.
Mexico hosted the World Cup in 1970 and 1986, with the finals held at Estadio Azteca, where Pele's Brazil defeated Italy 4-1 and Diego Maradona's Argentina beat West Germany 3-2.
Maradona also scored the famous "Hand of God" goal and the "Goal of the Century" at the same stadium in a 2-1 quarter-final victory over England in 1986.
The first match in Canada, which has never hosted a World Cup game, will take place on June 12 in Toronto at the home of the city's Major League Soccer team, while the opening game in the United States will be held in Los Angeles at the home of the NFL's Rams.
Each of the tournament hosts will spend the group stage in their own countries, with the United States sticking to the West Coast and playing twice in Los Angeles and once in Seattle.
"We're really counting on the public getting behind us," said U.S. men’s national team head coach Gregg Berhalter.
"I'm excited for the public to get to know some of our players and really get a personal connection with them because it's a great group of guys."
Canada will play one group stage game in Toronto and two in Vancouver, while Mexico will play twice at the Estadio Azteca and once in Guadalajara.
Canada are winless in six matches across two World Cup appearances and scored their first goal in 2022, but interim head coach Mauro Biello admits expectations will be much higher at home.
"I think about that game in Qatar when we scored our first goal, and I am sure when we get that first win it will be a great moment for this country," said Biello.
"And that's the objective, win the first one and then move on to the next round."
The tournament will move entirely to the United States beginning with the quarter-final round, which will be held in Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami, and Boston.
Dallas and Atlanta will host the two semi-finals, Miami will host the third-place playoff, and Philadelphia will host a Round of 16 match on July 4 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
The 2026 World Cup will have 104 matches instead of the traditional 64, with an additional knockout round due to the previously announced decision to expand to 48 teams from 32.
Given the distance and climate differences between the 16 host cities, FIFA decided to divide the venues into three regions: east, central, and west, with teams based in the same region as their games.
SportsLigue