Only three days remain before (literally) the kickoff of the world’s biggest sporting event.
The very first World Cup happened in July 1930 in Uruguay. The host country won that inaugural event, beating Argentina, 4-2, in the final. This coming WC will be the 23rd edition and when the event returns for the 2030 World Cup in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, it will mark the 100 anniversary of Fifa World Cup.
What makes this June 11 to July 19, 2026 event different? It will be the biggest.
MORE TEAMS. First, from the usual 32 teams, it’s the first time that the pool is expanded to 48 squads. (In 1930, there were only 13 teams.)
The more, the merrier? Yes. The increase of 16 teams gives more nations a chance to compete. This is the case of four WC first-timers: Jordan, Uzbekistan, Curacao and Cape Verde. Also back for the first time since 1998 are Norway and Scotland. And Haiti is returning after making its first appearance since 1974.
The last time the U.S. hosted the World Cup was in 1994. Then, only 24 teams made it into the final. Now, it’s double this number.
MORE CITIES. Second, this is the first time that three countries are hosting. While many assume the US is the sole host, Canada and Mexico are actually co-hosting the tournament. With the exception of the Japan and South Korea co-hosting in 2002, a single country has hosted each of the previous 22 editions.
More countries means more venues. The matches will be spread out across 16 cities: 11 in the US, 3 in Mexico, and 2 in Canada.
MORE KNOCKOUT GAMES. There will be a total of 104 games in this tournament (compared to the 64 WC games four years ago in Qatar).
The teams will be split into 12 groups of four teams. The top two squads in each group will advance and the eight best third-placed teams move on to the new round of 32. This means that favorites like Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Argentina — the top 5, according to my book — are less likely to be bounced out early and miss the knockout stages.
MORE BREAKS. Although five stadiums have retractable roofs (that can be closed in case of extremely hot weather), the rest are open. And it’s summer time. To help improve the player’s welfare and physical wellbeing, Fifa announced the inclusion of a three-minute break in each half. This will come 22 minutes into the half. This is new.
MORE MONEY. This WC is expected to generate record-breaking sales (estimated at $10.9 billion — a 56 percent increase compared to four years ago). Plus, who hasn’t read about the ticket prices? Upon checking yesterday, one resale ticket in the final is now available for $30,000!
