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Six changes to the 2026 World Cup

2026-01-02 12:25:28Sport SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Six changes to the 2026 World Cup

The United States will host the 2026 World Cup, along with Canada and Mexico. But here's why this tournament will be different.

1. Three countries as joint organizers

The World Cup in soccer is usually a single-nation event, but that hasn't always been the case. The 2002 World Cup broke new ground when Japan and South Korea, two nations that haven't always had an easy relationship, teamed up to host the tournament. The 2026 World Cup goes even further, with three countries, the United States, Canada and Mexico. While these countries have traditionally enjoyed good relations, U.S. ties with Canada and Mexico have been strained since the start of President Donald Trump's second term.

2. More teams, more matches

Love it or hate it, the move to expand the World Cup from the previous 32 teams to 48 was a bold move by FIFA President Gianni Infantino. More teams means a lot more matches, a total of 104 compared to 64 at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. It also means there will be 12 groups of four teams, compared to eight four years ago.

An additional knockout round – the Round of 32 – has also been introduced to help reduce the number of teams on the way to the final in New Jersey on July 19. This will be played on the 39th day of the tournament – ​​10 more than it took to complete the 2022 World Cup.

3.New participants

While critics will argue that the increase in the number of teams could lower the overall quality of the game, it has helped several countries qualify for a World Cup for the first time in history. Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan will all make their debuts on football's biggest stage. Of these, Curacao is the weakest, coming from a country with a population of under 160,000 and ranked 82nd in the world.

Several other first-time participants have the opportunity to join through qualifying qualifiers in March – including North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo and even New Caledonia.

4. More trips

This is not the first time a World Cup will be held over a large geographical area, but the distances that teams and fans must travel in 2026 will be a shock to the system after Qatar, which is smaller than Connecticut – the third-smallest state in the United States.

The furthest apart between the two locations are Vancouver and Miami – 4,507 kilometres (2,800 miles). Germany are expected to travel 2,619 kilometres just to travel from Houston to Toronto and New Jersey for their group stage matches – not counting the journey to and from their base camp, the location of which has yet to be announced.

5. Mandatory holidays

While refreshment breaks are nothing new in football, FIFA has announced that all matches at the 2026 World Cup will have two scheduled breaks - regardless of weather conditions.

Referees will be instructed to stop matches 22 minutes into each half so that players can get refreshments, FIFA said in a statement. Previously, referees were required to take refreshment breaks 30 minutes after the start of each half when the temperature at the start of the match exceeded 31 degrees Celsius. The change comes amid concerns about the high temperatures expected in some of the host cities – as was the case at last summer’s Club World Cup. FIFA said it took this into account when setting the kick-off time.

6.Not all fans are welcome

Two countries that have qualified for the World Cup, Iran and Haiti, are under a travel ban announced by US President Trump last June. This means that, as things stand, their fans will not be able to travel to the US to support their teams. However, the teams themselves should have no problem entering the US, as Trump’s executive order makes exceptions for “any athlete or member of a team, including coaches, persons performing essential support roles, and immediate family members, who are traveling for the World Cup, the Olympic Games, or any other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State.”

Where the matches will actually be played remains unclear, as Trump has repeatedly threatened to move World Cup matches away from Democratic-run cities for “security” reasons. During a meeting at the White House in November, Infantino offered no answer. “Security and safety are the number one priority for a successful World Cup,” he said./DW


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