Trending US-Iran war SCO summit Nepal flash floods Grand Canyon tragedy Maduro in prison Advertisement Football News EPL ISL FIFA 2026 First AI Home Live TV First AI Sections World Entertainment Explainers Cricket Sports Opinion India Tech Auto Lifestyle Health Business Videos Impact Shorts Shows Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports Spotlight The Spend Planet Pulse Live TV Events FIFA World Cup Union Budget Independence Day Delhi Elections 2025 Gameweek , FIFA World Cup, 2026 result ESP 1 ARG 0 Spain beat Argentina 1 - 0 England beat France 6 - 4 Argentina beat England 2 - 1 Spain beat France(2-0) Argentina beat Switzerland(3-1) FIFA World Cup 2026 Paredes receives 10-game suspension, three Argentina players punished by FIFA following World Cup final fallout Trump backs embattled FIFA chief Infantino amid growing calls for his removal 'Homemade bombs and AR-15': Leaked report reveals Messi faced alleged terror threat during 2026 World Cup Jordan football chief claims FIFA President Infantino resorted to 'blackmail' over endorsement Who is Joshua Kushner, the investor at the heart of FIFA’s controversial plan? UEFA's 55 members back FIFA World Cup boycott over private investment plan: Report US arrests 905 suspected human traffickers during FIFA World Cup, rescues 180 victims FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Argentina over Falklands banner, World Cup final incidents Jurgen Klopp takes charge as Germany's new head coach to heal 2026 World Cup wounds The Luis de la Fuente effect: Spain’s secret weapon in their 2026 World Cup victory Share this video Paredes receives 10-game suspension, three Argentina players punished by FIFA following World Cup final fallout Copy Link Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Email Points Table View All Group A Group B Group C Group D Group E Group F Group G Group H Group I Group J Group K Group L Group Stage Group Stage FIFA Teams Mexico Brazil Croatia Australia Netherlands Spain Colombia Japan Ivory Coast Uruguay England Ecuador France Switzerland Argentina IR Iran Bosnia-Herzegovina USA Germany Portugal Ghana Algeria Korea Republic Belgium Egypt South Africa Tunisia Senegal Iraq Saudi Arabia Uzbekistan Canada Haiti Panama Paraguay New Zealand Austria Scotland Sweden Turkiye Norway Czechia Morocco DR Congo Jordan Qatar Cape Verde Curacao Firstpost Specials Who is Joshua Kushner, the investor at the heart of FIFA’s controversial plan? The Luis de la Fuente effect: Spain’s secret weapon in their 2026 World Cup victory Spain wins 2026 FIFA World Cup after Ferran Torres' extra-time heroics sinks Argentina 1-0 Can MLS leverage the 2026 World Cup success to become a major powerhouse in U.S. sports leagues? The FIFA World Cup is the biggest national cup tournament in football. The 2026 World Cup is the 23rd edition of football’s biggest international tournament, organised by FIFA. It will feature 48 teams for the first time from across the globe competing for the world title. The FIFA World Cup 2026 is scheduled to begin on 11 June and the final will be played on 19 July. The matches will be played across the USA, Canada and Mexico. The FIFA World Cup will be held across 16 venues with 11 stadiums in the USA, three in Mexico and two in Canada. The USA will host 78 matches, while 13 matches will be played in both Mexico and Canada. USA: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, and Seattle. Canada: Toronto, Vancouver. Mexico: Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey. FIFA awarded the hosting rights jointly to expand football’s reach in North America, share infrastructure responsibilities and accommodate the expanded 48-team format. The World Cup 2026 starts with Mexico playing against South Africa on 11 June (12 June in India) at the Estadio Banorte in Mexico City, Mexico. The final will be played on 19 July (20 July in India) at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA. The 2026 World Cup will begin with separate opening celebrations in all three host nations rather than a single ceremony. Mexico will stage the first event on June 11, around 90 minutes before the opening match, with performers including Alejandro Fernández, Belinda, Danny Ocean, J Balvin, Lila Downs, Los Ángeles Azules, Maná and Tyla. A day later, Toronto will host Canada's opening ceremony featuring Alanis Morissette, Alessia Cara, Elyanna, Jessie Reyez, Michael Bublé, Nora Fatehi, Sanjoy, Vegedream and William Prince. Los Angeles will simultaneously stage the United States ceremony, where Katy Perry, Future, Anitta, LISA, Rema and Tyla are scheduled to take the stage. The World Cup final will feature the tournament's first-ever half-time show. The entertainment programme, overseen by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, is expected to include performances from Shakira, Madonna and BTS. A total of 48 teams will take part in the FIFA mega event, making it the biggest World Cup ever. The previous 2022 World Cup in Qatar had 32 teams. FIFA believes expansion will help increase global participation, gives more nations a chance to compete and boosts commercial growth. The tournament will feature 48 teams divided into 12 groups of four. Top two teams from each group will qualify for the Round of 32 along with the eight best third-placed teams. From Round of 32, the tournament will be played in knockout format. Here are all the groups and teams for FIFA World Cup 2026. Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Czechia Group B: Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Qatar, Switzerland Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Turkey Group E: Germany, Curaçao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Tunisia Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay Group I: France, Senegal, Iraq, Norway Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan Group K: Portugal, DR Congo, Uzbekistan, Colombia Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama India failed to qualify for the World Cup after failing to progress to the third round of the qualifiers in Asia. No, India have never played in a football World Cup. India withdrew from the 1950 World Cup and has historically struggled due to infrastructure, development and competitiveness issues. Argentina, France, Brazil, England and Spain are among the favourites. Argentina are the defending champions after winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar under Lionel Messi's leadership. Brazil hold the record with five World Cup titles. Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan are making debut at FIFA World Cup 2026, highlighting the impact of a 48-team tournament. Yes both Messi and Ronaldo have been picked in the Argentina and Portugal squads respectively. This expected to the final World Cup for both the stars. Kylian Mbappe, Nyemar, Jude Bellingham, Lamine Yamal, Erling Haaland and Vinicius Junior are among the biggest names to watch out for at the 2026 edition. The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be broadcast live on Unite8 Sports channels in India, while live streaming will be available on Zee5. FIFA fever: These 3 Indian states declared school holiday so students could stay up for World Cup final Rodri beats Messi to win Golden Boot award; Check out full list of 2026 World Cup award winners Messi breaks down after World Cup defeat, shares touching hug with Lamine Yamal FIFA World Cup jackpot: What does Spain take home after beating Argentina? Lionel Scaloni moved to tears as Argentina leave it all on the pitch; coach weighs next steps: 'Have to pick ourselves up again' Leandro Paredes and Spanish players involved in ugly post-match incident following Spain's title triumph | WATCH Globe at a glance: From Spain winning FIFA World Cup to Andy Burnham taking charge as UK PM Share this video FIFA fever: These 3 Indian states declared school holiday so students could stay up for World Cup final Copy Link Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Email Advertisement Advertisement Golden Boot RANK PLAYER MATCHES GOALS 1 Kylian Mbappe 8 10 2 Lionel Messi 8 8 3 Jude Bellingham 8 7 4 Erling Haaland 5 7 5 Ousmane Dembele 8 6 Advertisement Advertisement Check 2026 FIFA World Cup latest news, breaking stories, interviews, fixtures and results on Firstpost.com. The FIFA World Cup, the most prestigious tournament in football and among the biggest and most popular sporting events in the world, returns to action this year with the United States co-hosting the quadrennial event with neighbours Mexico and Canada. The tournament gets underway on 11 June and concludes on 19 July, with the final set to take place at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford near New York City. The 23rd edition of the World Cup thus marks the first time since the 2002 edition in Japan and South Korea that more than one nation is hosting the event. The tournament also witnesses an expansion this year with the number of teams rising to 48 from 32 – which had been the case from 1998 to 2024. Argentina enter as the defending champions, having defeated France in the final in Qatar four years ago to win their third title. Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan, on the other hand, will be making their debuts at the tournament – with Curacao becoming the smallest country to ever qualify, both in terms of population as well as land area. Stay updated with the latest news, analysis, videos and live scores regarding the football carnival on our 2026 FIFA World Cup news page. About Firstpost Latest News Categories Copyright @ 2026. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved.
Curated by Taleb Kabbara · Source: www.firstpost.com