The 2026 World Cup final will be played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, defeating Texas and California in a soccer showcase game.
FIFA awarded the championship to the $1.6 billion venue, which opened in 2010, on July 19. This is the culmination of an expanded tournament of 104 matches across 48 countries. spanning three countries first time.
MetLife, located about 16 miles from Manhattan, was promoted by the governments of New York and New Jersey, whose stadiums were built in the wetlands of the Meadowlands. The land of Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, and Frank Sinatra will be the focus of the world that Sunday. Lionel Messi’s Argentina national team aims for second consecutive title Or will a successor emerge?
“It’s going to be a celebration of our diversity and our values,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said in a phone interview. “The big picture is how we got there and what we leave behind for decades to come.”
FIFA announced on Sunday Held at a television studio in Miami, the 39-day tournament opened with the opening game on June 11 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, and the final game at the home of the NFL’s New York Jets and Giants.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones had lobbied for the finals to be held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
“This contest was about the perception of the coast, New York or Los Angeles,” he said. “If this was completely directed at America and America alone, it wouldn’t have been so difficult to overcome. But internationally, it’s very difficult to overcome.”
All matches after the quarterfinals will be played in the United States. The semifinals will be played July 14 at AT&T and the next day at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The quarterfinals will be held on July 9th at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, the next day, and on July 11 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, and Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. The third place match will be held at Hard Rock on July 18th.
The American team is train outside atlanta The Americans will play at Lumen Field in Seattle seven days later and finish the group stage at SoFi on June 25th.
Since reaching the semifinals of the first World Cup in 1930, the United States has advanced to the quarterfinals only once, in 2002.
“It’s about making our country proud,” American coach Gregg Berhalter said. “One way to truly grow the game and change American soccer forever is to perform well and do things no American team has ever done before.”
78 of the 104 games will be played in the United States, with 13 games each in Mexico and Canada, for a maximum of six games per day.
AT&T will host a tournament-high nine games. MetLife, SoFi and Mercedes Benz will each have eight units. Seven games each at the Hard Rock, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., and NRG Stadium in Houston. Lumen, six games each at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, and Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
FIFA officials have not publicly explained the process used to decide on the venue.
Philadelphia’s final game will be played in the Round of 16 on July 4, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Baseball’s All-Star Game will be held at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.probably July 14th.
Santa Clara is the only U.S. venue not to host matches beyond the new round of 32. AT&T will host him twice in the round of 32 games.
FIFA expands World Cup participating countries from 32 to 48 countriesincreased Match from 64 and Announcement of 16 locations in 2022.
Murphy learned of the decision during a viewing party in a suite at MetLife Stadium. He was not discouraged by a British tabloid report on January 17 that the final would be played at AT&T.
“We kept our heads down, focused on the task at hand, and did everything we could to tune out the noise, and that turned out to be a winning formula,” Murphy said. .
Mexico will play the second leg at the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara on June 18th before returning to the Aztecs on June 24th. Mexico City will host five games, with four each at Monterrey’s Estadio BBVA and Guadalajara.
Canada will play the first round in Toronto on June 12th, followed by the first round at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia on June 18th and 24th. Thirteen games will be held at venues across Canada.
A country needs to play eight games to win the title, up from seven since 1982.
All 11 stadiums in the United States are home to NFL teams.This year it will be hosted by Hard Rock. Copa America final on July 14thwhile MetLife 2016 Copa America Final.
The 1970 and 1986 World Cup finals were both played at the Aztecs.
In 1994, the United States hosted a 52-game tournament with 24 countries participating, with the finals at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, the opening game at Soldier Field in Chicago, and the semifinals at Giants Stadium and the Rose Bowl in East Rutherford.
With the addition of teams, the duration of the competition will be lengthened from the shortened 29 days of the 2022 Qatar Games and 32 days of the 2018 Russia Games.
Teams that have not had at least three days off will only participate in one game. FIFA divided the group stage into East, Central and Western regions, with the intention of shortening the travel for group winners.
Stadiums in Arlington, Atlanta and Houston have retractable roofs but are expected to be closed due to the summer heat, while stadiums in Inglewood and Vancouver have fixed roofs.
Artificial turf will be replaced with grass in Arlington, Atlanta, East Rutherford, Foxboro, Houston, Inglewood, Seattle and Vancouver.
Some venues, including AT&T, MetLife, and SoFi, plan to expand their square footage to accommodate a 75-by-115-yard (68-by-105-meter) field.
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AP Sports Writer Skyler Dixon in Arlington, Texas, contributed to this report.
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer