Tuesday, February 6, 2024
Year : 2, Issue : 6
The 2026 World Cup Final is coming to East Rutherford, N.J. FIFA on Sunday announced that MetLife Stadium will be the venue for the 2026 World Cup Final, a tournament that will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The 2026 World Cup Final will transpire on Sunday, July 19, FIFA confirmed. The third-place game will be held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Fla.
FIFA also announced that the World Cup will open on June 11, 2026 in Mexico City at the Estadio Azteca. Canada’s opening match will be played in Toronto (BMO Field) on June 12, 2026, followed by the opening match for the U.S. in Los Angeles (SoFi Stadium) on the same day. The USMNT’s three group stage games will take place in two West Coast cities: Los Angeles and Seattle (Lumen Field).
There are 16 cities across the three countries hosting World Cup games. The United States has 11, which includes Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle.
The U.S. has previously hosted three World Cups in total: the 1994 men’s World Cup and the women’s World Cup in 1999 and 2003. The 1994 and 1999 finals took place at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., while the 2003 final was held in Washington, D.C.
MetLife Stadium, home to the New York Jets and Giants, hosted the Super Bowl in 2014 and the Copa América Centenario final in 2016.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy celebrated the announcement on social media.
“As a lifelong soccer fan, I am thrilled to announce that the FIFA World Cup 2026 Final will be hosted by New Jersey and New York City!” Gov. Murphy said in a tweet.
When local officials first made their pitch to play host for the World Cup final, they emphasized the stadium’s proximity to New York City as a media hub with central access to hotels, restaurants, entertainment and international flights.
Source: NBC New York
