2026 World Cup kicks off with record 48 teams

The FIFA World Cup, which kicks off today, will be remembered for a number of innovations, Report informs.

The tournament will be jointly hosted by three countries - the United States, Canada and Mexico - for the first time in its history.

It will also go down in history as the World Cup with the largest number of participating teams. Under FIFA's decision, 48 national teams will compete at the 2026 World Cup, instead of 32 as in previous editions. Thus, the number of participants has been increased by 16 teams.

A record 104 matches will be played during the tournament. Cabo Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan will make their World Cup debuts.

Matches will be held in 16 cities. The United States will carry the main burden of the tournament, with games to be played in 11 cities across the country. Canada and Mexico will host matches in two and three cities, respectively.

The US host cities include Houston, Boston, Kansas City, New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Seattle and San Francisco. In Canada, matches will be held in Toronto and Vancouver, while Mexico will host games in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.

The opening match between Mexico and South Africa will take place at the famous Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The final will be held at MetLife Stadium in the New York/New Jersey area of the United States.

The 2026 World Cup is considered the biggest tournament in world football history in terms of the number of participants, the scale of matches and its organization across three countries.

2026 World Cup

Group A: Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, Czech Republic

Group B: Canada, Switzerland, Qatar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti

Group D: United States, Australia, Paraguay, Türkiye

Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curaçao

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, Sweden

Group G: Belgium, Iran, Egypt, New Zealand

Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cabo Verde

Group I: France, Senegal, Norway, Iraq

Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan

Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana

The 2026 World Cup, which starts today, will end on July 19. Argentina are the reigning champions, having won the previous tournament in Qatar in 2022.