The World Cup will be hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada. It will involve 48 teams and 104 games in 16 cities across North America – with 78 of the 104 games occurring in the United States.
The 12 groups were drawn by former England captain Rio Ferdinand, with sporting icons Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Aaron Judge and Shaquille O’Neal serving as assistants. Kevin Hart, Heidi Klum and Danny Ramirez hosted a star-studded draw show that opened with a spine-tingling performance by Andrea Bocelli and also saw Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger, Lauryn Hill and the Village People entertain the watching world.
The United States first match will be against Paraguay in Los Angeles on June 12th – Mike Leventhal caught up with former U.S. defender Alexi Lalas to offer a preview of what is to come and what this means for growing soccer in the U.S.
An exciting moment during her draw was when FIFA president FIFA President Gianni Infantino presented President Donald Trump with the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize recognizing Trump for promoting peace and unity.
So now the U.S. Men’s National Team will be in deep preparation mode for World Cup 2026, focusing on integrating young talent, building chemistry under head coach Mauricio Pochettino Pochettino, and leveraging home advantage as a co-host, with plans for a new Atlanta training center and a lighter group stage travel schedule.
Their roadmap includes friendlies, Copa América, and tactical preparation, aiming to capitalize on the tournament’s North American setting to make a deep run, building on recent good form against qualified teams.
The final schedule will be set next March after regional playoffs take place.