Completed · First 48-team edition · 16 host cities · 104 matches · 11 June – 19 July 2026.
Spain are World Cup 2026 champions.
The first 48-team World Cup ran from 11 June to 19 July 2026 across the USA, Canada and Mexico. Look back at every result, the full knockout bracket, final group tables and the tournament's leading scorers.
World CupAETSpain
ArgentinaWorld CupFT
France
EnglandWorld CupFTEnglandArgentinaWorld CupFTFranceSpainWorld CupAETArgentina
SwitzerlandWorld CupAET
NorwayEnglandUEFA has said its participating members could still boycott FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, despite Gianni Infantino's apology statement.
Emma Hayes urged US Soccer to prioritize the U.S. Under-20 Women's national team at this year's World Cup to help American youth players match the development of top European teams.
Spain "deserves" to host the 2030 World Cup final, according to the country's sports minister Milagros Tolón.
Fifa's backing of president Gianni Infantino at a meeting on Wednesday "changes nothing", says European governing body Uefa.
Why did Real Madrid spent big to add the World Cup star to an attack that already features Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham and Vinícius Júnior?
The 2026 summer transfer window is open. Here is how we rated the biggest deals.
The FIFA World Cup was first contested in Uruguay in 1930, when hosts Uruguay beat Argentina in the Final in Montevideo. It has been held every four years since, apart from 1942 and 1946 during the Second World War. Brazil are the record holders with five titles (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002); Germany and Italy have each won it four times; Argentina three; Uruguay and France twice; and England and Spain one apiece. The 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico is the 23rd edition and marks the first ever staged jointly by three federations, and the first with 48 teams.
48 nations are drawn into 12 groups of four. Each team plays three group-stage matches. The top two from each group plus the eight best third-placed teams progress to a 32-team knockout round, followed by a Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, third-place play-off and Final — 104 matches in total. Knockout ties are decided by 90 minutes, 30 minutes of extra time, and penalty shoot-outs if scores remain level.
Confederation allocations for 2026 are: AFC 8, CAF 9, CONCACAF 6 (plus three automatic host spots for the US, Canada and Mexico), CONMEBOL 6, OFC 1, UEFA 16. Two additional places are decided through an intercontinental play-off tournament played in the host countries in the days before the group stage begins. Each confederation runs its own qualifying pathway, but the play-off format is common: six nations from five confederations compete in a mini-tournament for the last two spots.