This page will cover all World Cup 2026 fixtures from the group stage, all the way to the Final, broken down stage by stage. We mapped every kick-off time to BST, focused on England’s and Scotland’s group games and explained how to watch them in the UK. So, if you’re interested in the World Cup 2026 schedule, you came to the right place – 7bet has you covered.

World Cup 2026 Key Dates

Tournament Timeline

Please look at the table below to find the key information about the stage-by-stage timeline for the World Cup 2026 schedule:

Stage	Dates	Detail
🟢  Opening Match	11 June 2026	Mexico vs South Africa – Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
⚽  Group Stage	11–27 June 2026	48 matches across 12 groups (A–L). 3 matches per team.
🔵  Round of 32	28 June – 3 July 2026	NEW stage. The best 32 teams from the groups – 16 matches.
🟡  Round of 16	4–7 July 2026	8 matches. Last 16 knockout stage.
🟠  Quarter-finals	9–11 July 2026	4 matches. The last 8 remaining nations.
🔴  Semi-finals	14–15 July 2026	2 matches. AT&T Stadium (Dallas) & Mercedes-Benz (Atlanta).
🥉  Third-Place Play-off	18 July 2026	Hard Rock Stadium, Miami.
🏆  Final	19 July 2026	MetLife Stadium, New York/New Jersey. 8:00 pm BST

It’s worth noting that all knockout stage matches from the Quarter-finals onwards are played exclusively at venues in the United States. The Semi-finals and Final remain in the eastern US, keeping the latest-stage matches in the most accessible time zone for UK viewers.

 

World Cup 2026 – Key Group Stage Fixtures

The table below will introduce key fixtures for the group stage. You’ll know when the FIFA World Cup 2026 schedule will show your favourite teams and when England and Scotland have their clashes. 

Date (in the UK)	Match	Group	UK Time (BST)	UK Channel
11 Jun	Mexico vs South Africa	A	8 PM	BBC/ITV
12 Jun	Canada vs Bosnia & Herzegovina.	B	8 PM	BBC/ITV
13 Jun	USA vs Paraguay	D	2 AM	BBC/ITV
13 Jun	Brazil vs Morocco	C	11 PM	BBC/ITV
14 Jun	Haiti vs Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿	C	2 AM	BBC One
15 Jun	Spain vs Cape Verde	H	5 PM	BBC/ITV
16 Jun	France vs Senegal	I	8 PM	BBC/ITV
17 Jun	Argentina vs Algeria	J	2 AM	BBC/ITV
17 Jun	England vs Croatia 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿	L	9 PM	ITV1
19 Jun	Scotland vs Morocco 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿	C	11 PM	ITV1/STV
20 Jun	Netherlands vs Sweden	A	6 PM	BBC/ITV
22 Jun	Argentina vs Austria	J	6 PM	BBC/ITV
23 Jun	England vs Ghana 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿	L	9 PM	BBC One
23 Jun	Portugal vs Uzbekistan	K	6 PM	BBC/ITV
24 Jun	Scotland vs Brazil 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿	C	11 PM	BBC One
26 Jun	USA vs Turkey	D	3 AM	BBC/ITV
27 Jun	Uruguay vs Spain	H	1 AM	BBC/ITV
27 Jun	England vs Panama 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿	L	10 PM	ITV1
28 Jun	Colombia vs Portugal	K	12:30 AM	BBC/ITV

 

World Cup 2026 Schedule for UK Viewers

Since the tournament is taking place in North America, there’s a time difference for UK audiences that we have to account for. Let’s look at the World Cup 2026 schedule, including dates and kick-off times.

Local Kick-Off	Time Zone	UK Time (BST)	Typical UK Viewing
1:00 pm	Eastern (ET)	6:00 pm	Early evening
4:00 pm	Eastern (ET)	9:00 pm	Prime time evening
5:00 pm	Eastern (ET)	10:00 pm	Late evening
4:00 pm	Central (CT)	10:00 pm	Late evening
8:00 pm	Eastern (ET)	1:00 am	Late night — set an alarm
5:00 pm	Pacific (PT)	1:00 am	Late night — set an alarm
8:00 pm	Pacific (PT)	4:00 am	Pre-dawn — early morning or very late nights

Late-night matches for UK fans will be most common during the group stage. This is because some group matches are played in Vancouver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Mexico City, all of which are on the West Coast or in close proximity to it.

Once the tournament advances to the knockout stage, World Cup 2026 fixtures will kick off earlier, as the geography moves eastward. All Quarterfinals, Semifinals and the Final games are in the Eastern or Central time zones, making them more UK-friendly.

 

Planning Matchdays in the UK

Given the massive time difference, the World Cup 2026 schedule requires some specific considerations for UK fans. Here is a practical guide that can help you out:

• Ideal viewing – weeknight evenings: matches that start between 7:00 and 10:00 PM BST represent the sweet spot for most UK audiences. Most intriguing teams, such as the USA, Brazil, England, and Argentina, are scheduled to play several games in this window.
• Late–night action (midnight – 2:00 AM BST): matches from CT (Dallas, Houston, etc.) and PT venues (LA, Seattle, etc.) regularly kick off between midnight and 2 AM UK time. For example, Scotland’s opening match against Haiti is scheduled for 2:00 AM BST on 14 June. If you can’t watch them live, you’ll be able to find highlights and on-demand replays in the morning.
• Weekend fixtures: knockout games (from 9 July) are best served for UK weekends. The Quarter-finals fall across 9–11 July (Thursday to Saturday), the semi-finals on Tuesday and Wednesday 14–15 July, and the Final on Sunday 19 July. As these games are scheduled in the Eastern Time zones, it’s important to know that the back end of the 2026 World Cup is almost entirely weekend or early-week prime time. 

One more note concerns the final matchday in the group stage. All matches on 25-28 June will kick off at the same time, meaning broadcasts across different channels. Make sure to know which channel covers the match you’re interested in, or switch between them to know what’s happening in every stadium.

 

World Cup 2026 Format & Schedule Overview

New 48-Team Format Explained

For the first time ever, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will have 48 teams instead of 32. This has a direct and very noticeable impact on the World Cup matches 2026 schedule. Previous tournaments had 64 games, while this one increases the total to 104 kick-offs. It’s a 63% increase in game count, requiring great logistics and collaboration between FIFA and the host cities for proper execution. 

Here’s some crucial info about the new 48-team format:

• 12 Groups instead of 8: Groups A through L all contain 4 nations, each playing three legs in a round-robin format. The Group Stage alone produces 72 matches, a huge increase from 2022.
• All-new Round of 32: This stage did not exist in previous editions. For this year, the World Cup 2026 knockout fixtures begin with a 32-team sudden-death round before the Round of 16, adding 16 extra matches and extending the schedule by 5-6 days.
• More matches in total: there will be 104 total games played in this tournament (up from 64 in 2022). Luckily, all World Cup 2026 fixtures will be broadcast live and free in the UK (BBC and ITV). 
• More overlap: On matchdays during the Group Stage, up to 6 matches may be happening across different time zones. For UK fans, this means a broader spread of kick-off times, some of which fall in unsociable overnight hours.

 

How is the Schedule Structured? 

The FIFA World Cup 2026 schedule is organised by dividing fixtures into three different phases. Each one has its own rhythm and progress. Use the table below to better understand the schedule’s structure.

Stage	Matches Per Day
Group Stage (Days 1–6)	2–3
Group Stage (Final Matchday)	Up to 6 (all groups, simultaneous)
Round of 32	3–4 per day (over 5–6 days)
Round of 16	2 per day (over 4 days)
Quarter-finals	1–2 per day (over 3 days)
Semi-finals	1 per day (2 days)
3rd Place + Final	1 per day (2 days)

• Phase 1 – Group Stage (11-28 June): as usual, the busiest phase with the most games. Matches begin at 7:00 PM BST, with the latest kick-offs around 1:00-2:00 AM BST. Each group will have three legs, with the final round featuring simultaneous kick-offs for all teams in the same group.
• Phase 2 – Rounds of 32 & 16 (1-7 July): the first two knockout rounds. Expect two matches per time slot on most days. Kick-off times are more concentrated, and the time slots narrow. Most R16 matches will be played in the late evening hours UK time.
• Phase 3 – Quarterfinals through the Final (9-19 July): only one or two matches per day, with everything on the line. All kick-off times are moved to accommodate the maximum global audience. The semi-finals and final all kick off at approximately 7:00-8:00 PM BST — ideal for UK viewers.

 

How to Use the World Cup Schedule?

Here’s a simplified guide on how to organise and use the schedule of World Cup 2026 fixtures both chronologically (by date) and by stage, so you can plan your viewing without having to worry about cross-referencing from multiple sources.

 

Find Matches by Date

• Group stage fixtures – listed in the Key Fixtures paragraph below, with dates, teams and UK kick-off times. Our team at 7bet highlighted England’s and Scotland’s matches separately.
• Knockout stage schedule – listed in the Knockout Stage Schedule paragraph. Teams are TBD, with dates and venues already set.
• Final matchday – The Final is on Sunday 19 July at 8:00 pm BST — a prime-time evening slot that will be shown simultaneously on BBC and ITV. Clear your diary for this one.

All pre-match odds and times for all upcoming games are also available on our World Cup betting catalogue. 

Standings with real-time updates will be available on the STANDINGS page. 

 

Track Matches Live

You can always see the results of LIVE matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on the IN-PLAY betting page. As the tournament progresses and knockout spots are confirmed, bracket slots will be updated accordingly. During the group stage, the schedule feeds directly into the standings — when a result comes in, group tables update and potential knockout scenarios shift.

Use our page to navigate and find relevant info on demand. Find live and upcoming matches on our FIFA WORLD CUP LIVE page. 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

How Many Matches are Played Per Day?

During the group stage, the typical schedule starts with 2-3 matches per day, but ramps up to 5-7 games per day (if you factor in the time difference with games that start after midnight, UK time). During the knockout rounds, the number drops to 3 matches per day (Round of 32), and then to 1-2 for the Quarterfinals onwards. 

How Many Matches Will Be Played in the World Cup 2026?

A total of 104 matches are on the World Cup 2026 schedule. There are 72 group matches and 32 single-leg elimination games, including a 3rd-place play-off. 

What Time Are World Cup Matches in the UK?

The schedule and geography of the World Cup span three North American time zones, which means that UK fans can expect the earliest kick-offs around 5-6 PM at the earliest. However, that’s only when the action across the Atlantic starts. Expect kick-offs as late as 3-4 AM BST for Pacific time zone games. Luckily, the venues move eastward for the Quarter and Semifinals (as well as the Grand Final), meaning an 8 PM start for UK audiences.

Where Can I Find the Full World Cup 2026 Schedule?

The complete World Cup 2026 fixtures are available on this page, updated in real time throughout the tournament. UK fans can also use the official FIFA website and check their BBC and ITV programs days before the tournament. 

How Long Will the World Cup 2026 Last?

In total, the tournament lasts 39 days. The opening match is set for 11 June 2026, with the Grand Final scheduled for 19 July. Keep in mind that the FIFA World Cup only happens every 4 years. 

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