FIFA World Cup 2026 in the USA: Complete Visitor Guide to All 11 Host Cities

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the largest in history — 48 teams, 104 matches, and 39 days of football from 11 June to 19 July 2026. The United States hosts 80 of those matches across 11 cities, including every match from the quarter-finals onward. This guide covers all 11 US host cities: which matches they have, how to reach each stadium, and where the fan festivals are — with links to our detailed city-by-city World Cup guides.

If you are travelling from abroad, start with our USA visa and entry requirements guide — ESTA processing is straightforward for Visa Waiver Program countries, but visa-required nationals face long waits. Our first-time USA guide covers the basics every visitor should know.

Tournament structure and key dates

• Group stage: 11–27 June — 48 teams in 12 groups of four
• Round of 32: 28 June – 3 July
• Round of 16: 4–7 July
• Quarter-finals: 9–11 July (Boston, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami)
• Semi-finals: 14 July (Dallas) and 15 July (Atlanta)
• Third-place match: 18 July (Miami)
• Final: 19 July, MetLife Stadium, New York/New Jersey

Note that FIFA renames every venue for the tournament — AT&T Stadium becomes “Dallas Stadium”, SoFi Stadium becomes “Los Angeles Stadium”, and so on. Locals still use the original names, which is what you should use in rideshare apps and transit planners.

The 11 US host cities at a glance

City	Stadium (FIFA name)	Matches	Biggest fixture
Atlanta	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta Stadium)	8	Semi-final, 15 July
Boston	Gillette Stadium, Foxborough (Boston Stadium)	7	Quarter-final, 9 July
Dallas	AT&T Stadium, Arlington (Dallas Stadium)	9	Semi-final, 14 July
Houston	NRG Stadium (Houston Stadium)	7	Round of 16, 4 July
Kansas City	Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City Stadium)	6	Quarter-final, 11 July
Los Angeles	SoFi Stadium, Inglewood (Los Angeles Stadium)	8	USA opener 12 June; quarter-final 10 July
Miami	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Stadium)	7	Third-place match, 18 July
New York/New Jersey	MetLife Stadium (New York New Jersey Stadium)	8	The Final, 19 July
Philadelphia	Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia Stadium)	6	Round of 16 on 4 July
San Francisco Bay Area	Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara (SF Bay Area Stadium)	6	Round of 32, 1 July
Seattle	Lumen Field (Seattle Stadium)	6	USA vs Australia, 19 June

Each linked guide covers the full match list, stadium transport, fan festival details, and where to stay for that city.

Tickets

All tickets sell exclusively through FIFA.com/tickets. Pricing is dynamic — group-stage tickets launched from approximately $60 but popular fixtures now run several hundred dollars, and knockout matches more. FIFA operates an official resale platform where fans sell at face-value-linked prices; this is the only safe secondary market, as tickets are digital and tied to your FIFA account. Hospitality packages (with guaranteed seats) sell through FIFA’s official partner On Location.

Getting between host cities

The host cities span four time zones, so treat the tournament as several regional clusters rather than one circuit:

• Northeast: New York, Philadelphia, and Boston connect by Amtrak — Philadelphia is roughly 1 hour 20 minutes from New York, Boston about 4 hours. No flights needed.
• Texas: Dallas and Houston are a 4-hour drive or 1-hour flight apart.
• Southeast: Atlanta and Miami are a 2-hour flight apart.
• West Coast: Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and Seattle connect by frequent 1.5–2.5 hour flights. The Coast Starlight train links all three scenically but slowly.
• Kansas City sits alone in the middle — it is a 1.5-hour flight from Dallas or Chicago.

Domestic airfares during the tournament are running roughly 15% above 2025 levels. Book flights and rental cars as far ahead as possible; our flights to the USA guide covers fare-tracking tactics.

Fan festivals — watch matches free

Every host city runs official free viewing sites, though formats vary:

• Atlanta: Centennial Olympic Park — 30 years after the 1996 Olympics
• Boston: City Hall Plaza (12–27 June)
• Dallas: Fair Park — a vast site running all 39 days, 11 June–19 July
• Houston: East Downtown (EaDo) at 2301 Dallas Street, near Shell Energy Stadium
• Kansas City: south lawn of the National WWI Museum and Memorial
• Los Angeles: LA Memorial Coliseum
• Miami: Bayfront Park, downtown
• New York/New Jersey: no single site — official fan events at Rockefeller Center and the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (the planned Liberty State Park festival was cancelled)
• Philadelphia: Lemon Hill in East Fairmount Park, free for all 39 days
• San Francisco Bay Area: 30+ distributed “BAHC Live!” fan zones across SF, Silicon Valley, and the East Bay rather than one central festival
• Seattle: nine community fan zones across Washington State rather than a single central site

Schedules and entry rules change — check each host city committee’s official website in the week you travel.

Practical essentials

Heat: Texas, Missouri, Georgia, and Florida matches in late June and July coincide with approximately 33–38°C afternoons. Dallas and Atlanta have retractable roofs and Houston’s NRG Stadium is climate-controlled; Kansas City, Miami, Philadelphia, and the New York area matches are open-air.

Connectivity: buy an eSIM before arrival — see our USA SIM card guide.

Money: budget more than usual. Host-city hotel rates around match days are heavily elevated, and stadium-area parking runs $40–80 where offered. Our USA travel insurance guide is worth reading before a trip with this much pre-paid cost.

Security: stadiums enforce clear-bag policies (typically one small clear bag per person). Arrive 2–3 hours before kickoff — security screening for 70,000+ crowds is slow.

All match dates and venues above are correct as of June 2026 but always reconfirm on FIFA.com before travelling, as kickoff times can shift for broadcast reasons.