MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, has been selected as the venue for the 2026 World Cup final, which is scheduled to take place on July 19. FIFA made the announcement during a press conference at a television studio in Miami on Sunday. The opening match of the tournament will be held at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on June 11. The US team will kick off their campaign at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, on June 12, and will also play matches at Lumen Field in Seattle and SoFi Stadium. The third-place game is set to be held at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
The decision by FIFA to award the final to MetLife Stadium comes as part of the expansion of the World Cup, which will see the number of participating nations increase from 32 to 48. The tournament will be jointly hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada, with all the quarterfinal matches onwards taking place in the US. The selection of the 16 venues for the tournament will be announced in 2022.
AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, had hoped to host the final but will instead host the most matches of any venue, with a total of nine. Other US venues include Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts; NRG Stadium in Houston; Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri; Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia; and Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Matches in Mexico will be held at the Estadio BBVA in Monterrey and the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara.
All the stadiums selected are home to NFL teams, highlighting the grand scale of the World Cup. The decision to award the final to MetLife Stadium is significant, as it hosted the final of the Copa América in 2016. The Estadio Azteca in Mexico City has also been the venue for two previous World Cup finals in 1970 and 1986.
The 2026 World Cup will be the first to feature 48 teams and will last for 39 days, making it the longest in the tournament’s history. Teams will now need to play eight matches to win the title, an increase from the previous requirement of seven matches since 1982. FIFA has divided the group stage into three regions to reduce travel distances for group winners.
Many of the venues chosen will make adjustments to accommodate the tournament, including widening their playing surfaces. Some stadiums with retractable or fixed roofs will also replace their artificial turf with grass. The kickoff times for the matches have yet to be announced by FIFA. The 1994 World Cup in the US began at 12:30 p.m. PDT, but recent tournaments have seen earlier start times to cater to the Asian television market.
With the 2026 World Cup final set to take place at the MetLife Stadium, soccer fans across the globe are eagerly anticipating the tournament’s arrival. The combination of iconic venues, increased participating teams, and a longer duration promises to make this World Cup a truly memorable event.
