World Cup groups 2026: Updated draw results, teams, pairings, times, match schedule and fixtures

As shades of Argentina's triumph in Qatar remain firmly entrenched in the memory, the 2026 World Cup is right around the corner.

Hosted across North America, 48 teams will descend upon the United States, Canada, and Mexico as the tournament expands the field for the first time in decades.

While Argentina look to defend their title, some of the world's best teams will hope to dethrone the South American giants and keep them from being the first country to repeat as World Cup champions since Brazil over 60 years ago.

The likes of England, France, and Spain will have their eyes on the famous FIFA trophy, while hosts USA will bid to deliver their best ever performance in the tournament's modern format.

The Sporting News brings you a look at how the group stage will shape up, and the wider bracket heading into the expanded knockout phase.

2026 WORLD CUP HQ: Latest World Cup news | Full World Cup schedule | Buy World Cup tickets

World Cup 2026 groups

We knew before the draw that Mexico will be in Group A, Canada in Group B, and USA in Group D.

The remaining layout of the group stage was determined at the final draw on December 5.

Group	Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
A	Mexico	South Korea	South Africa	UEFA Playoff D
B	Canada	Switzerland	Qatar	UEFA Playoff A
C	Brazil	Morocco	Scotland	Haiti
D	USA	Australia	Paraguay	UEFA Playoff D
E	Germany	Ecuador	Ivory Coast	Curacao
F	Netherlands	Japan	Tunisia	UEFA Playoff B
G	Belgium	Iran	Egypt	New Zealand
H	Spain	Uruguay	Saudi Arabia	Cape Verde
I	France	Senegal	Norway	FIFA Playoff 2
J	Argentina	Austria	Algeria	Jordan
K	Portugal	Colombia	Uzbekistan	FIFA Playoff 1
L	England	Croatia	Panama	Ghana

WORLD CUP DRAW BREAKDOWNS:

Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D | Group E | Group F
Group G | Group H | Group I | Group J | Group K | Group L

World Cup 2026 kickoff times

2026 FIFA World Cup matches feature regular kickoff times. On the FIFA schedule, as well as below, you will see all times listed in Eastern Time.

Here is a helpful table to help translate some of the most common kickoff times for World Cup matches into many of the major territories around the world.

USA & Canada (ET)	USA & Canada (PT: -3 hrs)	UK (GMT: +5 hrs)	Australia (AEDT: +14 hrs)	India (IST: +9.5 hrs)
12 p.m.	9 a.m.	5 p.m.	4 a.m.*	9:30 p.m.*
1 p.m.	10 a.m.	6 p.m.	5 a.m.*	10:30 p.m.
3 p.m.	12 p.m.	8 p.m.	7 a.m.*	12:30 a.m.*
4 p.m.	1 p.m.	9 p.m.	8 a.m.*	1:30 a.m.*
5 p.m.	2 p.m.	10 p.m.	9 a.m.*	2:30 a.m.*
7 p.m.	4 p.m.	12 a.m.*	11 a.m.*	4:30 a.m.*
9 p.m.	6 p.m.	2 a.m.*	1 p.m.*	6:30 a.m.*
10 p.m.	7 p.m.	3 a.m.*	2 p.m.*	7:30 a.m.*
11 p.m.	8 p.m.	4 a.m.*	3 p.m.*	8:30 a.m.*
12 a.m.	9 p.m.**	5 a.m.	4 p.m.	9:30 a.m.

* On the following day
** On the previous day

Complete World Cup 2026 match schedule

The World Cup draw was held on December 5 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

MORE WORLD CUP NEWS:

• SN's expert 2026 World Cup predictions
• Ranking World Cup groups from hardest to easiest
• 10 World Cup teams with best chance to win
• Ranking 7 best matches of the World Cup

World Cup 2026 group stage

All venues and kickoff times for each group stage match were officially announced by FIFA one day after the draw, on December 6, 2025.

Group A table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Mexico	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	South Africa	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	South Korea	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Czechia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Thu, Jun. 11	3 p.m.	Mexico vs. South Africa	Mexico City Stadium (Mexico City, MEX)
Thu, Jun. 11	10 p.m.	South Korea vs. Czechia	Estadio Guadalajara (Guadalajara, MEX)
Thu, Jun. 18	12 p.m.	Czechia vs. South Africa	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)
Thu, Jun. 18	9 p.m.	Mexico vs. South Korea	Estadio Guadalajara (Guadalajara, MEX)
Wed, Jun. 24	9 p.m.	Czechia vs. Mexico	Mexico City Stadium (Mexico City, MEX)
Wed, Jun. 24	9 p.m.	South Africa vs. South Korea	Estadio Monterrey (Monterrey, MEX)

STADIUM GUIDES: Estadio Azteca | Estadio Akron | Mercedes-Benz Stadium | Estadio BBVA

Group B table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Canada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Bosnia and Herzegovina	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Qatar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Switzerland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group B fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Fri, Jun. 12	3 p.m.	Canada vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)
Sat, Jun. 13	3 p.m.	Qatar vs. Switzerland	Levi's Stadium (San Francisco, CA)
Thu, Jun. 18	3 p.m.	Bosnia and Herzegovina vs. Switzerland	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Thu, Jun. 18	6 p.m.	Canada vs. Qatar	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)
Wed, Jun. 24	3 p.m.	Switzerland vs. Canada	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)
Wed, Jun. 24	3 p.m.	Bosnia and Herzegovina vs. Qatar	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)

STADIUM GUIDES: BMO Field | Levi's Stadium | SoFi Stadium | BC Place | Lumen Field

Group C table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Brazil	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Morocco	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Haiti	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Scotland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group C fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Fri, Jun. 13	6 p.m.	Brazil vs. Morocco	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Sat, Jun. 13	9 p.m.	Haiti vs. Scotland	Gillette Stadium (Boston, MA)
Thu, Jun. 19	6 p.m.	Scotland vs. Morocco	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)
Thu, Jun. 19	9 p.m.	Brazil vs. Haiti	Gillette Stadium (Boston, MA)
Wed, Jun. 24	6 p.m.	Scotland vs. Brazil	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, FL)
Wed, Jun. 24	6 p.m.	Morocco vs. Haiti	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)

Group D table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	United States	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Paraguay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Australia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Turkey	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group D fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Fri, Jun. 12	9 p.m.	United States vs. Paraguay	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Sat, Jun. 13	12 a.m.	Australia vs. Turkey	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)
Sat, Jun. 20	12 a.m.	Turkey vs. Paraguay	Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, CA)
Fri, Jun. 19	3 p.m.	United States vs. Australia	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Thu, Jun. 25	10 p.m.	Turkey vs. United States	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Thu, Jun. 25	10 p.m.	Paraguay vs. Australia	Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, CA)

STADIUM GUIDES: SoFi Stadium | BC Place | Levi's Stadium | Lumen Field

Group E table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Germany	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Curacao	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Ivory Coast	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Ecuador	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group E fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sun, Jun. 14	1 p.m.	Germany vs. Curacao	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Sun, Jun. 14	7 p.m.	Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)
Sat, Jun. 20	4 p.m.	Germany vs. Ivory Coast	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)
Sat, Jun. 20	8 p.m.	Ecuador vs. Curacao	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)
Thu, Jun. 25	4 p.m.	Ecuador vs. Germany	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Thu, Jun. 25	4 p.m.	Curacao vs. Ivory Coast	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)

Group F table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Netherlands	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Japan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Sweden	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Tunisia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group F fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sun, Jun. 14	4 p.m.	Netherlands vs. Japan	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Sun, Jun. 14	10 p.m.	Sweden vs. Tunisia	Estadio BBVA (Monterrey, MEX)
Sat, Jun. 20	1 p.m.	Tunisia vs. Japan	Estadio BBVA (Monterrey, MEX)
Sat, Jun. 20	12 a.m.	Netherlands vs. Sweden	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Thu, Jun. 25	7 p.m.	Tunisia vs. Netherlands	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Thu, Jun. 25	7 p.m.	Japan vs. Sweden	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)

Group G table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Belgium	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Egypt	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Iran	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	New Zealand	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group G fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Mon, June 15	3 p.m.	Belgium vs. Egypt	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Mon, June 15	9 p.m.	Iran vs. New Zealand	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Sun, June 21	3 p.m.	Belgium vs. Iran	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Sun, June 21	9 p.m.	New Zealand vs. Egypt	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)
Fri, June 26	8 p.m.	New Zealand vs. Belgium	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Fri, June 26	8 p.m.	Egypt vs. Iran	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)

Group H table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Spain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Cape Verde	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Saudi Arabia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Uruguay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group H fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Mon, Jun. 15	12 p.m.	Spain vs. Cape Verde	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)
Mon, Jun. 15	6 p.m.	Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)
Sun, Jun. 21	12 p.m.	Spain vs. Saudi Arabia	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)
Sun, Jun. 21	6 p.m.	Uruguay vs. Cape Verde	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)
Fri, Jun. 26	8 p.m.	Uruguay vs. Spain	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Fri, Jun. 26	8 p.m.	Cape Verde vs. Saudi Arabia	Estadio Akron (Guadalajara, MEX)

Group I table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	France	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Senegal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	FIFA Playoff 2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Norway	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

The FIFA Intercontinental Playoff 2 qualifier will be either Iraq or Bolivia

Group I fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Tue, Jun. 16	3 p.m.	France vs. Senegal	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Tue, Jun. 16	6 p.m.	FIFA Playoff 2 Winner vs. Norway	Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
Mon, Jun. 22	5 p.m.	France vs. Playoff 2 Winner	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)
Mon, Jun. 22	8 p.m.	Norway vs. Senegal	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Fri, Jun. 26	3 p.m.	Norway vs. France	Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
Fri, Jun. 26	3 p.m.	Senegal vs. FIFA Playoff 2 Winner	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)

Group J table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Argentina	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Algeria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Austria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Jordan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group J fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Tue, Jun. 16	9 p.m.	Argentina vs. Algeria	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)
Tue, Jun. 17	12 a.m.	Austria vs. Jordan	Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, CA)
Mon, Jun. 22	1 p.m.	Argentina vs. Austria	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Mon, Jun. 22	11 p.m.	Jordan vs. Algeria	Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, CA)
Sat, Jun. 27	10 p.m.	Jordan vs. Argentina	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)
Sat, Jun. 27	10 p.m.	Algeria vs. Austria	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)

Group K table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	Portugal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	FIFA Playoff 1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Uzbekistan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Colombia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

The FIFA Intercontinental Playoff 1 qualifier will be either DR Congo or Jamaica

Group K fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Fri, Jun. 17	1 p.m.	Portugal vs. TBD	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Fri, Jun. 17	10 p.m.	Uzbekistan vs. Colombia	Estadio Azteca (Mexico City, MEX)
Tue, Jun. 23	1 p.m.	Portugal vs. Uzbekistan	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Tue, Jun. 23	10 p.m.	Colombia vs. TBD	Estadio Akron (Guadalajara, MEX)
Sat, Jun. 27	7:30 p.m.	Colombia vs. Portugal	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)
Sat, Jun. 27	7:30 p.m.	TBD vs. Uzbekistan	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)

Group L table

PosTeamPTSGPWLDGFGAGD

1.	England	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	Croatia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	Ghana	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	Panama	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Group L fixtures

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Fri, Jun. 17	4 p.m.	England vs. Croatia	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Fri, Jun. 17	7 p.m.	Ghana vs. Panama	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)
Tue, Jun. 23	4 p.m.	England vs. Ghana	Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
Tue, Jun. 23	7 p.m.	Panama vs. Croatia	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)
Sat, Jun. 27	5 p.m.	Panama vs. England	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Sat, Jun. 27	5 p.m.	Croatia vs. Ghana	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)

Ranking of third-place finishers

The top eight third-place finishers will qualify for the knockout stage, while the bottom four will be eliminated.

PosTeamPTSGPWDLGFGAGD

1.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
5.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
10.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
11.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
12.	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

World Cup 2026 knockout stage

Round of 32

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sun, Jun. 28	3 p.m.	M1: 2nd, Group A vs. 2nd, Group B	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Mon, Jun. 29	4:30 p.m.	M2: 1st, Group E vs. 3rd place finisher	Gillette Stadium (Foxboro, MA)
Mon, Jun. 29	9 p.m.	M3: 1st, Group F vs. 2nd, Group C	Estadio BBVA (Guadalupe, MEX)
Mon, Jun. 29	1 p.m.	M4: 1st, Group C vs. 2nd, Group F	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Tue, Jun. 30	5 p.m.	M5: 1st, Group I vs. 3rd place finisher	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Tue, Jun. 30	1 p.m.	M6: 2nd, Group E vs. 2nd, Group I	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Tue, Jun. 30	9 p.m.	M7: 1st, Group A vs. 3rd place finisher	Estadio Azteca (Mexico City, MEX)
Wed, Jul. 1	12 p.m.	M8: 1st, Group L vs. 3rd place finisher	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)
Wed, Jul. 1	8 p.m.	M9: 1st, Group D vs. 3rd place finisher	Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, CA)
Wed, Jul. 1	4 p.m.	M10: 1st, Group G vs. 3rd place finisher	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Thu, Jul. 2	7 p.m.	M11: 2nd, Group K vs. 2nd, Group L	BMO Field (Toronto, CAN)
Thu, Jul. 2	3 p.m.	M12: 1st, Group H vs. 2nd, Group J	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Thu, Jul. 2	11 p.m.	M13: 1st, Group B vs. 3rd place finisher	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)
Fri, Jul. 3	6 p.m.	M14: 1st, Group J vs. 2nd, Group H	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)
Fri, Jul. 3	9:30 p.m.	M15: 1st, Group K vs. 3rd place finisher	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)
Fr, Jul. 3	2 p.m.	M16: 2nd, Group D vs. 2nd, Group G	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)

Round of 16

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sat, Jul. 4	1 p.m.	M2: Winner, R32 M1 vs. Winner, R32 M3	NRG Stadium (Houston, TX)
Sat, Jul. 4	5 p.m.	M1: Winner, R32 M2 vs. Winner, R32 M5	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, PA)
Sun, Jul. 5	4 p.m.	M3: Winner, R32 M4 vs. Winner, R32 M6	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)
Sun, Jul. 5	8 p.m.	M4: Winner, R32 M7 vs. Winner, R32 M8	Estadio Azteca (Mexico City, MEX)
Mon, Jul. 6	3 p.m.	M5: Winner, R32 M11 vs. Winner, R32 M12	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Mon, Jul. 6	8 p.m.	M6: Winner, R32 M9 vs. Winner, R32 M10	Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Tue, Jul. 7	12 p.m.	M7: Winner, R32 M14 vs. Winner, R32 M16	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)
Tue, Jul. 7	4 p.m.	M8: Winner, R32 M13 vs. Winner, R32 M15	BC Place (Vancouver, CAN)

Quarterfinals

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Thu, Jul. 9	4 p.m.	QF1: Winner, R16 M1 vs. Winner, R16 M2	Gillette Stadium (Foxboro, MA)
Fri, Jul. 10	3 p.m.	QF2: Winner, R16 M5 vs. Winner, R16 M6	SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA)
Sat, Jul. 11	5 p.m.	QF3: Winner, R16 M3 vs. Winner, R16 M4	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)
Sat, Jul. 11	9 p.m.	QF4: Winner, R16 M7 vs. Winner, R16 M8	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, MO)

Semifinals

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Tue, Jul. 14	3 p.m.	SF1: Winner, QF1 vs. Winner, QF2	AT&T Stadium (Arlington, TX)
Wed, Jul. 15	3 p.m.	SF2: Winner, QF3 vs. Winner, QF4	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA)

Third-place match

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sat, Jul. 18	5 p.m.	Loser, SF1 vs. Loser, SF2	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, FL)

Final

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Location
Sun, Jul. 19	3 p.m.	Winner, SF1 vs. Winner, SF2	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)

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