FIFA World Cup 2026 final date announced: Check host nation, total matches, qualifiers details

FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Date Announced: The date for the FIFA World Cup 2026 has been announced. The game is scheduled from Sunday 19 July, 2026. The announcement was made by FIFA Council. 

The 2026 World Cup will be the biggest tournament ever as a total of 48 teams will participate. This would also be the first World Cup to be hosted by three countries.

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FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Date Announced: Total teams 

A total of 48 teams been involved in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Date Announced: Host Nation

The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be hosted by Canada, Mexico and US. It should be noted that this is the first time where the game will be hosted by three nations.

FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Date Announced: Total Matches

The FIFA Council has proposed amendment to the FIFA World Cup 2026 group stage format from 16 groups of three, to 12 groups of four. The top two teams from each group and the eight best third-place teams from the groups will now progress to the round of 32.

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FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Date Announced: Qualified nations

USA

As co-hosts, the United States has automatically qualified for a second World Cup and will be looking to improve on their Round of 16 performance in Qatar 2022.

It will be the United States' 12th World Cup, and their second on home soil since USA '94, with the 1930 run to the semi-finals being the country's best performance at the tournament to date.

Mexico

Mexico will host the 2026 World Cup for the third time, following 1970 and 1986, making El Tri the country that has hosted the tournament the most times.

This will be the country's 18th World Cup appearance, with their previous best results coming on home soil, where they reached the quarter-finals in 1970 and 1986.

Canada

Canada completes the trio of hosts, and the Maple Leafs will be competing in back-to-back tournaments for the first time. Their only previous appearances in the competition were in 1986 and 2022, both of which resulted in winless group stage exits.

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