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The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup is almost here.
The spectacle of global soccer will bring 48 national soccer teams to 16 cities across Canada, Mexico and the United States, for 104 games.
And Philly will be joining the party, hosting six games at Lincoln Financial Field, including one on the Fourth of July.
There’s a lot to take ahead of the tournament, and we’re here to help. Here are the games, the teams and lots of other important info you need to be ready for the first game in June.
What to know
- What games are in Philly?
- How can you watch the games?
- How does the tournament work?
- More about the teams coming to Philly
- What about the U.S. team?
What games are in Philly?
The Linc — which will go by “Philadelphia Stadium” for the tournament, due to FIFA’s sponsorship rules — will have six games of the tournament, five group stage games and a round of 16 knockout match on July 4.
Here’s how those break down, after the draw in Washington D.C. last December.
Group stage (all times are ET)
June 14 at 7 p.m: Group E – Ivory Coast vs Ecuador
June 19 at 9 p.m: Group C – Brazil vs Haiti
June 22 at 5 p.m: Group I – France vs Iraq/Bolivia/Suriname
June 25 at 4 p.m: Group E – Curaçao vs Ivory Coast
June 27 at 5 p.m. Group L – Croatia vs. Ghana
Round of 16
July 4, 5 p.m.: Winner of Match 74 in Boston vs. Winner of Match 77 in New York/New Jersey
There’s a lot of possible matchups for the Round of 16 game, including the U.S. Men’s national team playing. But if everyone wins and loses as they are expected to, based on rankings, this game would be between France and Germany — two previous World Cup winners. Philly got to experience July Fourth soccer last year during the FIFA Club World Cup, with over 64,000 fans turning up to see Chelsea face Brazilian side Palmeiras.
Here is how the full draw looks for all 104 games. It’s worth looking at the games at Boston’s Gillette Stadium and East Rutherford’s Metlife, given the close proximity to Philly:
How can you watch the games?
If you want to catch any of the games live, the chances to get tickets are getting scarcer and more expensive. FIFA’s official ticket site, along with its ticket resale and exchange marketplace, is currently closed and will reopen for the Last‑Minute Sales Phase on April 2 at 11 a.m. If you haven’t already, register an account and ID on FIFA’s website and to get notifications about the ticketing process.
FIFA is still selling Hospitality packages — with VIP spaces, food and beverage service added in — for single games, all the matches at one venue, or to follow a particular national team through its three group stage games and its first knockout stage game. Single game hospitality tickets currently range from $1,450 a person for the the Curaçao-Ivory Coast game to $3,725 for the July Fourth knockout round game.
Tickets are also currently available through third-party sellers like StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek and TickPick — with third-party seller prices currently ranging from hundreds of dollars to thousands.
If you still want to catch it in a public setting, Philly will have a official fan-festival location at East Fairmount Park’s Lemon Hill, running from June 11 until July 19. The site will have a live broadcast of the action on a big screen, along with music, food and other entertainment. The park will have a 25,000 person capacity, mostly standing based on the renderings.
Want something lower key? The games will be broadcasting and streaming live in English on FOX’s channels and app and that schedule can be found here. FOX’s streaming service TUBI is also streaming select games.
It won’t be too hard to find the games at any of the city’s sports bars, particularly the ones that already regularly put on soccer. We’ll have a watch guide available to help you find the best one for your taste.
How does the tournament work?
If you’re familiar with NCAA March Madness or the playoff formats of most major league sports in the U.S., sorry, the World Cup is nothing like them. Take some solace that the format will be slightly different from what soccer fans were accustomed to, mainly because the number of teams competing is going up to 48 from 32.
Those 48 teams have been separated into 12 groups of four, labeled Group A through Group L. The teams in each group will play each other once in 90-minute games, earning three points for a win, one point for a draw (these games can end in a draw) and nothing for a loss.
After each team has played its three Group Stage games, the field will be cut to 32 teams for the knockout bracket. Every team that finished first and second in its group gets to advance, along with the eight third-place teams with the best records. Where teams are tied on points, the “goal difference” — goals scored minus goals conceded — will be used to break the tie, followed by who scored the most goals, a “fair play” score, and the team’s FIFA world ranking.
After some convoluted seeding placement — there’s 495 possible combinations — that we’ll spare you from, the knockout round is a standard winner-takes-all bracket, halving the field each round from 32 to a Round of 16, and eight-team quarterfinal round, four teams in the semifinal and a final between two teams to determine the champion.
The knockout games can’t end in draws, so if the score ends in a tie, the teams play two 15-minute periods of extra time. If no one takes the lead then, there’s a penalty shootout where each team gets five shots at the keeper in the goal, which can continue past that until one side fails to score a goal — like sudden death in hockey.
If all that sounds like Greek, trust us, it gets easier — and more fun — as you watch more. There’s some soccer happening almost all of the year, so if you want to start getting your eye in you can find a bar to watch it with fan groups, or catch it live at a Philadelphia Union game.
More about the teams coming to Philly
FRANCE
- Nickname: “Les Bleus,” based on their blue home jersey.
- Current FIFA rank: 3
- World Cup Group I
- with Senegal, Norway and Iraq/Bolivia/Suriname
Head coach
Frenchman Didier Deschamps, who is one of just three men who have won the World Cup as a player and a coach — the other two are Brazil’s Mário Zagallo and Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer. Deschamps and Beckenbauer won as the captains of their respective teams.
The head coach’s nationality is also weirdly relevant to the history of the World Cup because every team that has lifted the trophy has been led by a coach of the same nationality as the team, so far. Trust us, it gets interesting.
World Cup history
The World Cup began in 1930 and has been held every four years — excluding 1942 and 1946 because of the Second World War — gradually growing in scale and popularity along the way. This summer will be the 23rd edition of the tournament and the biggest, with an unprecedented three host countries and 48 competing nations. The U.S. has hosted the tournament once before in 1994, while Mexico has held the tournament twice already, in 1970 and 1986, and Canada will be a first-time host.
France has only missed six of the 22 World Cups and has lifted the trophy twice, in 1998 and 2018. They’ve finished runners-up twice, in 2006 and at the last World Cup in Qatar.
Players to know
Past
Picking just one can also turn into a full-day debate, but we’ll say Zinedine Zidane. The elegant and mercurial playmaker was Le Bleus’ star player in two World Cups, scoring twice in the 1998 final in Paris, and leading the side to the 2006 final in Berlin, where he scored a goal and was later sent off for headbutting Italy’s Marco Materazzi. His enigmatic legacy as a player and a coach also made him the main focus of a 2014 earworm by Australian funk band Vaudeville Smash and broadcaster Les Murray. Zizzou, as he’s known, reportedly has made a “verbal agreement” to coach the national team after Deschamps steps down this year.
Present
Captain Kylian Mbappé has been one of the world’s best players and was on France’s 2018 World Cup-winning squad when he was 19 years old. He became the second teenager to score in the final game, after Pelé, and remains the youngest French goalscorer at the tournament. His hat-trick in the 2022 final against Argentina sent the game to a penalty shootout, which Lionel Messi’s side won to deny Les Bleus a third trophy.
Future
It’s too hard to choose between Warren Zaïre-Emery and Désiré Doué, who will turn 20 and 21, respectively, just before the World Cup starts. The pair featured heavily in Paris Saint-Germain’s 2024-25 season, where the club won the French league, cup and UEFA Champions League. It’s not guaranteed they’ll make the star-packed squad, but if they do, they’ll both be watched as two of the brightest prospects in France’s next generation.
BRAZIL
- Nickname: “Seleção,” Portuguese for the Selection, or “Canarinho,” meaning little canary, in reference to the team’s yellow jerseys.
- Current FIFA rank: 5
- World Cup Group C
- with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland
Head coach
Carlo Ancelotti, an Italian coach and former player. See, told you that factoid would get interesting! Brazil could be well-placed to break that streak since Ancelotti is one of the most successful football managers ever, being the only manager to have won league titles in all of Europe’s big five leagues. He has not lifted the World Cup trophy though, coming as close as third as a player in 1990 and a runner-up as part of Italy’s coaching staff in 1994.
World Cup history
Brazil is the most successful World Cup team ever, having won it five times — in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2022 —and finished second and third twice each. The nation has also competed in every single edition of the tournament.
Philly already got a taste of what Brazilian supporters are like during last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, which had four Brazilian clubs playing in South Philly. Much of the fan bases of those teams travelled in from various parts of the Northeast U.S.
Players to know
Past
Pelé is the obvious name to pick out from decades of Brazilian superstars. He was the only player ever to win the tournament three times, winning his first at age 17, and was one of the most influential athletes of the 20th century. His time playing for the New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer League also helped to raise the profile of soccer in the U.S.
Present
Vinícius Jr. is Brazil’s current star player, taking over from the 34-year-old Neymar. The winger will be looking to improve on the team’s quarter-final exit in his debut World Cup and pick up his first winner’s trophy in Brazil’s colors. The Linc was treated to Vini Jr.’s talents last summer when Real Madrid played in the FIFA Club World Cup.
Future
Philly was also treated to one of the “Seleção’s” rising stars last summer in Estêvão when the teenager was playing for Brazilian club Palmeiras against his future club, Chelsea — and even scored against them. He’ll still be just 19 when the World Cup starts.
CROATIA
- Nickname: Two options here: “Vatreni,” which translates to “the Blazers”, or “Kockasti,” which describes the team’s distinctive red and white checkered shirts.
- Current FIFA rank: 11
- World Cup Group L
- with England, Ghana and Panama
Head coach
Croatian Zlatko Dalić, who is managing the team for his third straight World Cup.
World Cup history
Croatia will be playing in its seventh tournament, having made every World Cup since 1998, apart from 2010. They have finished in third place twice and runners-up once, falling short to France in the 2018 final in Moscow.
Players to know
Past
At the 1998 World Cup in France, Croatia’s all-time top scorer Davor Šuker was awarded the Golden Shoe, given to the tournament’s top goalscorer, and the Silver Ball, awarded to the second best player in the tournament.
Present
Captain Luka Modrić has also been outstanding in his previous World Cups, having won the Golden Ball in 2018 and the Bronze Ball in 2022. He’s also one of only four players since 2008 to have been awarded the Ballon d’Or, an annual award for the best soccer player in the world, that wasn’t Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. Modrić is 40 years old, so it’s almost certain this will be his last tournament as a player.
Future
Luka Vušković is a Tottenham Hotspur player on loan with German side Hamburger SV, where the 6-foot-4 defender is drawing attention for both his defensive stats and his headed goal threat on attacking set pieces. He has only played two games for Croatia so far, the most recent being his first game as a starter in the team’s World Cup-qualifying victory over the Faroe Islands.
ECUADOR
- Nickname: “La Tri”
- Current FIFA rank: 23
- World Cup Group E
- with Germany, Curaçao and Ivory Coast.
World Cup history
Ecuador is heading for their fifth World Cup, having previously appeared in 2002, 2006, 2014 and 2022. The team’s best showing was in Germany 2006, where it reached the round of 16.
Players to know
Past
Antonio Valencia was a key part of the 2006 squad, and later played 10 seasons with Manchester United as a winger and then a right back.
Present
Chelsea defensive-midfielder Moisés Caicedo, 24, leads the team’s midfield. His 2023 move to the London club from Brighton & Hove Albion cost a reported $146 million, breaking the British transfer record at the time.
Future
Attacking midfielder Kendry Páez, 18, is also on Chelsea’s book, but he was loaned out to River Plate in Argentina to try and get more playing time.
IVORY COAST
- Nickname: “Les Éléphants”
- Current FIFA rank: 37
- World Cup Group E
- with Germany, Curaçao, and Ecuador
Head coach
Ivorian Emerse Faé led the team to its most recent silverware: the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
World Cup history
Ivory Coast first qualified for the World Cup in 2006. This summer’s tournament will be the nation’s fourth appearance, and the first time back after failing to qualify for the last two iterations in 2018 and 2022. The team’s best finish was 17th place in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. “Les Éléphants” have yet to progress past the group stage of the tournament.
The Ivory Coast will have its base camp in Chester and Wilmington, training at Philadelphia Union’s Subaru Park and the adjacent WSFS Bank Sportsplex, while staying in Delaware.
It’s unclear how many fans will come from Ivory Coast to see their team play here as the country was added to the “partially restricted” ban list by the Trump administration in December.
Players to know
Past
Striker Didier Drogba is Ivory Coast’s all-time leading scorer with 65 goals in 105 appearances. Best known for his time at Chelsea, he also had a prolific spell in Major League Soccer, playing for the CF Montréal, then called the Montreal Impact.
Present
2023 Africa Cup of Nations winner Franck Kessié has been the captain since 2024 and leads the team from the midfield. He currently plays for Saudi club Al-Ahli, but previously was with Barcelona in Spain, as well as AC MIlan and Atalanta in Italy.
Future
RB Leipzig youngster Yan Diomande, who spent nearly three years playing youth soccer in Florida, hasn’t even seen a full season out in Europe’s top leagues and there are already rumors that clubs like Liverpool and Bayern Munich are trying to sign him. A breakout run in the World Cup will only brighten the spotlight, and add to the value of the 19-year-old winger.
GHANA
- Nickname: “The Black Stars,” based on the star on the nation’s flag.
- Current FIFA rank: 72
- World Cup Group L
- with England, Ghana and Panama
Head coach
Ghanaian Otto Addo, who is serving his second stint in charge of Ghana.
World Cup history
Ghana will be playing in its fifth World Cup, having competed previously in 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2022. The 2010 World Cup in South Africa was the team’s best performance with a 7th-place finish in the quarterfinals, in one of the most controversial games in recent World Cup history. With the game tied 1-1, Black Stars striker Dominic Adiyiah’s late header was cleared off the goal line by a deliberate handball from Uruguay’s Luis Suarez. Suarez was given a red card and Ghana were given a penalty, which Asamoah Gyan missed — leading to camera shots of an ecstatic Suarez on the sidelines. The game went on to be decided by a penalty shootout, which Uruguay won.
Players to know
Past
Abedi “Pele” Ayew has a strong claim as the greatest Ghanaian football ever and is the father to the team’s current captain, Jordan Ayew, and the team’s all-time appearance maker, André. But Pele never played in the World Cup, so we’ll go with Michael Essien, who played in the 2006 and 2014 tournaments. An imposing box-to-box midfielder who was nicknamed “the bison,” Essien’s energy and physicality in both defense and attack made him a key part of Chelsea’s success in the mid-to-late 2000s.
Present
Winger Antoine Semenyo recently made a move to Premier League giants Manchester City from Bournemouth, for a reported fee of up to $86 million. He scored 10 goals in 20 games before the move and has shown no signs of slowing down with five goals in eight appearances at his new club.
Future
Despite being on a Leicester City team that was relegated from the Premier League last season, Abdul Fatawu’s value has only risen, playing alongside Jordan Ayew. The winger, who turns 22 in March, has eight goals and seven assists so far this season.
CURAÇAO
- Nickname: “The Blue Wave.”
- Current FIFA rank: 81
- World Cup Group E
- with Germany, Ivory Coast and Ecuador
Head coach
Dutchman Fred Rutten was appointed the team’s coach last week, after his compatriot Dick Advocaat stepped down to “devote his full attention to his daughter, who is facing health issues.” The southern Caribbean island is a constituent country of the Netherlands, and Curaçaoans also hold Dutch citizenship.
World Cup history
This is Curaçao’s first-ever appearance at the World Cup and is the smallest nation to ever qualify for the tournament, by both population (155,000) and land mass (444 square kilometers). It has only competed in FIFA tournaments solely as an island nation since 2010. Before that, it was included with the five other islands that make up the then-Netherlands Antilles. Most of the players on the roster were born in the Netherlands, and encouraging dual-national players to choose playing for the island nation over the Dutch team has helped them to build a squad strong enough to qualify for the World Cup.
Players to know
Present
With just a brief 16-year history playing independently, Curaçao’s past is somewhat still the present. Rangelo Janga and Leandro Bacuna have both played for the team since 2016 and are the national team’s top scorers, with 21 and 16 goals, respectively.
Future
Attacking midfielder Tahith Chong was a promising young prospect at Dutch club Feyenoord and then Manchester United. Things at United didn’t quite pan out, but he eventually found more consistent minutes with Luton and then Sheffield United. Now 26, Chong switched his national team eligibility from the Netherlands to the Blue Wave last August.
HAITI
- Nickname: “Les Grenadiers,” after the military specialists.
- Current FIFA rank: 83
- World Cup Group C
- with Brazil, Morocco and Scotland
Head coach
Frenchman Sébastien Migné, who has never set foot in Haiti do to safety concerns since the 2010 earthquake.
World Cup history
Haiti has only qualified for the World Cup once before, back in 1974 where it didn’t get out of the group stage. The team had to play all of its home games in Curaçao, due to the aforementioned safety concerns.
Haiti is under a full travel ban to the U.S., and exceptions for visas will be hard to get outside of the team and its delegation.
Players to know
Past
Haiti lost all three games at the 1974 World Cup, but they did score a goal against Italy and Argentina through striker Emmanuel “Manno” Sanon. His opening goal against the Italians snapped goalkeeping great Dino Zoff’s 19-game streak with conceding a goal.
Present
Union fans will be very familiar with Danley Jean Jacques, who joined the team in August 2024 and helped Philly win the MLS Supporters’ Shield last season.
Future
Haiti’s squad could be bolstered ahead of the World Cup if Migné decides to bring in Wilson Isidor, 25, and Odsonne Édouard, 28, two strikers playing for Sunderland in England and Lens in France, respectively. Both players have represented France at youth level, but have been granted permission to switch to Haiti. Midfielder Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde, who plays for Wolverhampton Wanderers, made a similar switch last year to help the team qualify for the World Cup.
IRAQ/ BOLIVIA/ SURINAME
- Nicknames:
Iraq: “Lions of Mesopotamia”
Bolivia: “La Verde.” for the green kits.
Suriname: “Natio,” short for national selection. - Current FIFA ranks: Iraq: 58, Bolivia: 76, Suriname: 123
- World Cup Group I
- with France, Senegal and Norway
There are still 22 teams vying for the last six available spots in this summer’s tournament, 16 from Europe and six from elsewhere. On March 26, South American countries Bolivia and Suriname will face off in Guadalupe, Mexico. The winner will go on to face Iraq on March 31. The winner heads to the World Cup. Iraq have only made one World Cup appearance, back in 1986, while Bolivia have been in three, in 1930, 1950 and 1994. Suriname has never made the World Cup.
Bolivia’s Miguel Terceros, left, celebrates after scoring his side’s first goal against Peru during a FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying soccer match in Lima, Peru, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia) 
Suriname forward Gleofilo Vlijter (20) drives to the goal during the first half of a CONCACAF Gold Cup Group C soccer match against Guadeloupe, Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in Houston. (AP Photo/Justin Rex)
Iraq is under the Trump administration’s travel restrictions.
What about the U.S. team?
U.S.A
- Nickname: “USMNT,” “the Stars and Stripes” or “the Yanks.”
- Current FIFA rank: 15
- World Cup Group D
- with Paraguay, Australia and Kosovo/Romania/Slovakia/Turkey
Head coach
Argentine Mauricio Pochettino, who had previously managed Espanyol in Spain, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspurs and Chelsea in England and Paris Saint-Germain in France.
As a player, he was a central defender and was part of the Argentina team at the 2002 World Cup. In the team’s group stage game against England, he made the foul that led to David Beckham’s game-winning penalty, which contributed to Argentina’s failure to advance to the knockout rounds and the team’s worst World Cup finish ever.
Where will the team play?
The USMNT plays all of its games on the west coast. The team will first face Paraguay, who they beat, 2-1, in a “friendly” at Chester’s Subaru Park in November. The rematch will happen on Friday, June 12, in Los Angeles. They next face Australia, who they defeated in October, in Seattle on June 19. Lastly, it’s a June 25 match back in LA against the winner of UEFA Playoff C — either Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia or Türkiye. Turkey is the highest ranked of all potential opponents and beat the U.S. in June.
A couple of scenarios where the U.S. finishes third in Group D and wins the subsequent Round of 32 game would put them in Philly for the July 4 game.
But even Philly’s World Cup organizers don’t want to see that.
“We would like that to not happen, we’d like the U.S men’s national team to finish first in their group,” Meg Kane, Philadelphia Soccer 2026’s host city executive, said back in December.
As far as who from the Philly area might make the team, USMNT captain and Hershey’s own Christian Pulisic is probably as close as you can call a lock, barring any injuries during the remainder of his season with AC Milan.
Four players with Philly ties were in the squad that played in Chester last year:
- Leeds midfielder Brenden Aaronsen, from Medford, N.J.
- New York City FC goalkeeper Matt Freese, from Wayne, Pa.
- Mark McKenzie defender Mark McKenzie, who was then with the Union and grew up in Bear, Del.
- Celtic defender Auston Trusty., from Media, Pa.
Here are some other names who were a part of the team last year:
- Paxten Aaronson at the Colorado Rapids, who is the younger brother of Brenden, was in the squad for the CONCACAF Gold Cup last year.
- Rapids goalkeeper Zach Steffen, who’s from Coatesville in Chester County, was on the preliminary squad for the game against Turkey.
- Jack McGlynn, who is with the Houston Dynamo but previously played for the Union, played in a September friendly against Japan.
- Union defender Nathan Harriel also played against Japan.
- Union midfielder Indiana Vassilev was part of the preliminary squad for last year’s CONCACAF Nations League Finals.
