At the end of the upcoming 2024 outdoor soccer season there will be just one more season to go before the 2026 World Cup games arrive in 16 North American cities, 11 of which are in the United States, three venues are in Mexico and two at Toronto and Vancouver in Canada.
A total 48 teams representing six confederations will play 104 games from a kickoff date June 11, 2026 with the opener at the well-known Azteka Stadium in Mexico City. The tournament will end on July 19 when the two finalists meet at the not so well-known MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The quarter finals will be played at Boston, Kansas City, Los Angeles and Miami, the semi-finals in Atlanta and Dallas. The bronze medal match will be held in Miami.
The national teams of the United States, Mexico and Canada qualify automatically for the World Cup finals by virtue of being the host countries. It will be Canada’s third attempt in World Cup finals, the first in Mexico in 1986 and the second at Qatar in 2022. Canada has yet to win a game in the World Cup.
The preliminary draw to decide the 32 Concacaf teams to advance to the World Cup finals was made on January 25 for games to be played in 2024 and 2025. The final round matches for the Concacaf teams will be played during the FIFA international match window of September through November 2025. Following the completion of this qualifying final round, three Concacaf group winners will go directly to the FIFA World Cup 26, joining Concacaf teams USA, Mexico and Canada. Also, the best two runners-up will represent Concacaf in the FIFA Play-off Tournament which means that in total, it is possible the Concacaf confederation could have up to record eight teams at the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals.
Toronto is the the largest city in Canada and the fourth largest city in North America with a population of almost three million and the immediate region of the Greater Toronto Area the population exceeds six million. Toronto is also one of the most diverse cities of the world and thousands of fans from throughout the world will descend on the city to create a competitive soccer fever the extent of which has not been previously experienced in Canada.
The BMO Field at Toronto and BC Place in Vancouver will be the two Canadian venues for World Cup games in Canada
The first match in the World Cup finals in Canada will be at an expanded BMO Field in Toronto on June 12 with a capacity increase to 45,000. BC Place in Vancouver will host the next two games in Canada, on June 18 and June 24. The BMO Field will host a total six games, while Vancouver will host seven games at BC Place, an extra game due to its greater capacity 54,000. The United States will host 78 games, Mexico will host 13.
Canada’s major soccer leagues, including the Canadian Soccer League, may avoid scheduling during the World Cup, or will be making changes to enable as many of the soccer community, including fans, players and staff, every opportunity to take in the games.
Hosting the games in Toronto is expected to cost $300 million. The Ontario government has pledged close to $100 million and the federal government is expected to step in as well. Toronto police have said they will require an extra $600,000 to purchase 15 new motorcycles as part of a comprehensive traffic plan to streamline the movement of the teams, FIFA officials, referees and visiting dignitaries, particularly those dignitaries classified as internationally protected people. Toronto police consider motorcycles the most effective way of facilitating movement in a busy city with its attendant traffic congestion.
NEXT – The World Cup games in Vancouver, followed by periodic updates and announcements as the information becomes available.
