FIFA has announced all 16 host cities across the United States, Mexico and Canada for the 2026 World Cup.
Eleven of those cities are located in the US that will host 60 matches, with Mexico having three and Canada having two. Mexico and Canada will host ten games each.
A home World Cup will give all three host teams a great chance to progress deep into the competition, and bookmakers like Sports Interactions will be giving generous betting odds for at least one of the host teams reaching the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Interestingly, 13 of the 16 host stadiums are home venues of Major League Soccer clubs, where many players from the host teams play, giving them an added advantage.
With the tournament expanding to 48 nations from six confederations, the 2026 World Cup will have as many as 80 fixtures, from the group stage to the final.
That is a noticeable increase of 16 participants from this year’s edition in Qatar.
North America will host the quadrennial tournament for the first time since 1994.
Three countries will share the hosting rights for the first time.
And while the United States and Mexico have already hosted the most prestigious international competition, Canada has received the honour for the first time.
The US staged the tournament in 1994, while Mexico will be hosting the World Cup for the third-record time, having previously done so in 1970 and 1986.
As for Canada, this will be the country’s maiden opportunity to host the men’s main event after staging the women’s World Cup in 2015.
Though 23 venues across the United States, Mexico and Canada had initially requested to play host to the highly-anticipated tournament, only 16 have met FIFA’s criteria.
As the biggest country in North America, the United States will provide 11 host cities.
Here’s the list of all 11 American cities, as revealed on Thursday.
- Atlanta – Mercedes-Benz Stadium
- Boston – Gillette Stadium
- Dallas – AT&T Stadium
- Houston – NRG Stadium
- Kansas City – Arrowhead Stadium
- Los Angeles – SoFi Stadium
- Miami – Hard Rock Stadium
- New York/New Jersey – MetLife Stadium
- Philadelphia – Lincoln Financial Field
- San Francisco/Bay Area – Levi’s Stadium
- Seattle – Lumen Field
Mexican fixtures will be staged in Guadalajara, Mexico City and Monterrey at the following venues.
- Guadalajara – Estadio Akron
- Mexico City – Estadio Azteca
- Monterrey – Estadio BBVA
The Estadio Azteca
Meanwhile, in Canada, Toronto and Vancouver have earned the right to host the ten remaining World Cup matches.
- Toronto – BMO Field
- Vancouver – BC Place
Overseen by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, the sport’s global governing body announced selections during a ceremony at Rockefeller Center in New York City.
Infantino took to the press to congratulate the selected cities.
“We congratulate the 16 FIFA World Cup host cities on their outstanding commitment and passion,” he said, as relayed by Extra.ie.
“Today is a historic day for everyone in those cities and states, for FIFA, for Canada, the USA and Mexico who will put on the greatest show on Earth.
“We look forward to working together with them to deliver what will be an unprecedented FIFA World Cup and a game-changer as we strive to make football truly global.”
FIFA has yet to name the host venue for the grand final.
With a capacity of 83,000 seats, MetLife Stadium in the Meadowlands is considered among the favourites to host the championship decider.
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