2026 FIFA World Cup Complete Schedule Guide: Groups, Matches, Host Cities & Canada Viewing Highlights

Last updated: June 19, 2026 | For real-time information, please refer to official announcements

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is currently underway — the first tournament in history jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and the first World Cup ever expanded to 48 teams. The tournament runs from June 11 to July 19, spanning 39 days and 104 matches — the largest and longest World Cup ever held. For those of us living in Canada, the significance is simple: we don’t have to leave the country to catch World Cup matches right at home.

The matches are spread across 16 host cities in the three countries — 11 in the United States, 3 in Mexico, and two in Canada: Toronto and Vancouver. Toronto’s venue is BMO Field (renamed “Toronto Stadium” during the tournament due to sponsorship rules), while Vancouver’s is the familiar BC Place. Canada is hosting 13 matches in total — 7 in Vancouver and 6 in Toronto. The final is scheduled for the MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey (referred to as “New York New Jersey Stadium” during the tournament).

As for the format, the 48 teams are split into 12 groups of 4. After the group stage, the top two teams from each group advance, along with the 8 best third-place finishers, bringing the knockout field to 32 teams. In other words, the knockout stage now starts with a “Round of 32,” followed by the Round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, the third-place match, and the final — adding a full extra round compared to the previous 32-team format.

What really resonates for Canadian fans is that all three of Canada’s group matches were played on home soil this tournament. The first match on June 12 at BMO Field in Toronto against Bosnia and Herzegovina ended in a 1–1 draw — Cyle Larin came off the bench to equalize in the 78th minute, giving Canada’s men’s team its first-ever point in World Cup history. The second match on June 18 moved to BC Place in Vancouver against Qatar, where Canada won 6–0 for its first-ever World Cup victory, with Jonathan David scoring a hat-trick and Cyle Larin and Nathan Saliba each adding a goal. The third match on June 24, also at BC Place, saw Switzerland come from behind to win 2–1, with Canada advancing historically to the Round of 16 as the Group B runner-up.

Here’s a table of Canada’s group-stage schedule this tournament, to help you plan your viewing:

On the broadcast side, Canadian rights belong to Bell Media, with English-language matches airing on TSN and CTV and French-language coverage on RDS, plus streaming through the TSN App, CTV App, and TSN+. Every Canada match, along with select knockout matches (including the final), will be available for free on CTV/Crave, while most other matches still require a paid subscription — check the official channel schedule for exact listings.

A quick note on time zones: this tournament spans multiple time zones, with matches kicking off simultaneously in different cities, so be sure to check which time zone you’re looking at. Our site always lists schedules in Vancouver PT and Toronto ET to make things easy for Canadian fans to cross-reference. If you’re planning to attend in person, don’t wait — tickets in the host cities and accommodation during the tournament are both in high demand, so it’s worth booking early once the schedule is confirmed. For more complete local viewing information, check out our roundup of World Cup viewing locations in Canada and our Vancouver viewing guide.