Here are the top 20 games to watch at FIFA World Cup 2026

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This will be the biggest World Cup in history, loaded with 104 matches in total. We’ve sifted through the schedule and picked out which ones should be the best ones to watch and shouldn’t be missed.

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Mexico-South Africa

Group A: June 11, 3 p.m., Mexico City

Incredibly, the 2026 tournament kicks off with rematch of the opener from the 2010 tournament. This time, the roles will be reversed with Mexico playing the host to South Africa.

El Tri will be hoping for more than just settling for a draw, as they did in Johannesburg 16 years ago, and should be eager to put on a good show.

We just hope there won’t be any vuvuzelas this time around.

Canada-Bosnia

Group B: June 12, 3 p.m., Toronto

While many soccer fans might’ve been hoping to see Italy in this matchup instead of the Bosnian squad, we should still be in for a great matchup.

There will be plenty of questions on and off the pitch too, like will Alphonso Davies be fit for action and how will renovated BMO Field – and the infrastructure around it — handle the massive crowd.

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USA-Paraguay

Group D: June 12, 9 p.m., Los Angeles

The last of the opening game for the three co-hosts has one very big question surrounding it: Will the game actually sell out?

With the so-called cheap seats being sold for $2,715, it’s pretty easy to see why fans aren’t lining up to buy tickets and seeing empty seats for this hugely important match would be seen as an embarrassment for FIFA and the U.S. organizing committee.

Brazil-Morocco

Group C: June 13, 6 p.m., New Jersey

Of all the group-stage games, this is the only one that features two teams in the top 10 of FIFA’s rankings.

Brazil has its usual array of stunning attacking talent while Morocco is coming off a fourth-place finish in the 2022 World Cup and a controversial championship at this year’s African Cup of Nations.

Australia-Turkiye

Group D, June 14, 12 a.m., Vancouver

Yes, you read that time right, Australia and Turkiye will be kicking off at midnight in the eastern time zone. Even considering that it will start at 9 p.m. local time in Vancouver, that’s a pretty late one for most casual fans to watch, even if it is technically a Saturday night.

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Belgium-Egypt

Group G: June 15, 3 p.m., Seattle

Kevin de Bruyne and Mohamed Salah may be a bit past their primes, but seeing these two football greats clash remains appointment viewing.
As long as Belgium’s backline holds together, it should be a contender while Egypt has been one of Africa’s best teams for the past few years.

Iran vs. New Zealand

Group G: June 15, 9 p.m., Los Angeles

As war rages on between Iran and the United States, there will be a lot of focus on the Cheetahs as they play their first game of the tournament on U.S. soil.

For months, there have been conflicting reports over whether Iran will be able to compete in the World Cup while questions arose over players getting the necessary visas.

And once the team hits the pitch in Los Angeles, it also will be interesting to see what kind of reaction it receives from the home crowd.

France-Senegal

Group I: June 16, 3 p.m., New Jersey

Les Bleus inarguably have one of the most talented squads in the world – the players France left at home could give any full-strength squad a run for its money – and will see its first action against a tricky Senegal side.

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There’s lots of history here, too, with Senegal being a former French colony and having scored a massive upset the only previous time these teams met, back in 2002 in the African nation’s first ever World Cup match.

England-Croatia

Group L: June 17, 4 p.m., Dallas

The Three Lions always have a ton of pressure on them and this will be no different. England’s matchup against Croatia will be an excellent one, with the Balkan nation hoping to make another extended run after finishing third and second in the past two tournaments.

Netherlands-Sweden

Group F: June 20, 1 p.m., Houston

After failing to win a single match in their group during qualifying, Sweden still got through in the playoffs after making it due to their Nations League result. With plenty of attacking talent on both sides in this match, we’re expecting to see a big scoreline.

Argentina-Austria

Group J: June 22, 1 p.m., Dallas

While all eyes will be on Lionel Messi and the defending World Cup champions, Austria should not be underestimated. The European side might lack in star power, but is a solid team that topped a tricky group in qualifying.

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Iran vs. Egypt

Group G: June 26, 11 p.m. in Seattle

The reason this matchup is intriguing isn’t really because of anything that might happen on the pitch, but moreso about what’s going on off of it.

This matchup was designated as pre-planned Pride Match, celebrating the LGBTQ community, but now features two Middle Eastern countries where homosexuality is illegal. Both teams have protested against any involvement of the Pride organization, but plans currently appear to be moving ahead.

Meanwhile, on the pitch this is the final group stage match for both teams, so picking up points should be crucial.

France-Norway

Group I: June 26, 3 p.m., Boston

Norway’s Erling Haaland is perhaps the best goal-scorer in the world and should put tremendous pressure on France’s defence. The Manchester City star led the world with 16 goals in qualifying while Norway scored an astounding 37 times in eight games.

Spain-Uruguay

Group H: June 26, 8 p.m., Guadalajara

This Spain is loaded with young talent – mostly from La Liga champs Barcelona — and this should be its first real test at the World Cup.
This also is the only group stage matchup that features two former World Cup champions, though Uruguay’s titles came far longer ago than Spain’s golden years.

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Portugal-Colombia

Group K: June 27, 7:30 p.m., Miami

While Congo or Uzbekistan could end up proving us wrong in this group, in all likelihood this matchup should settle the winner of Group K and features two heavyweight contenders loaded with talent.

While we won’t get too far ahead of ourselves picking some potentially huge Round of 32 games – and looking beyond that truly is a farcical affair – we’ve picked out five matches that might turn out to be titanic matchups.

1C-2F and 1F-2C

June 29, 1 p.m., in Houston and 9 p.m., in Monterrey, respectively.

Brazil/Morocco vs. Netherlands/Japan/Sweden

Both of these matchups are very likely to feature two star-studded nations, depending how the group stages shake out. But the potential to see a team like the Oranje take on either Brazil or Morocco in the Round of 32 is incredibly enticing.

2E-2I: Germany/Ivory Coast vs. France/Senegal/Norway

June 30, 1 p.m., Dallas

Given their recent history in World Cup groups stages, it wouldn’t be too shocking to see the Germans slip and then be forced into an incredibly hard Round of 32 matchup against the second-best team from Group I – this tournament’s Group of Death.

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1H-2J: Spain/Uruguay vs. Argentina/Austria

July 2, 3 p.m., Los Angeles

Whoever tops Group H doesn’t get any sort of break in their first knockout phase matchup, with either the defending champs or a stout Austrian side waiting for them.

2K-2L: Portugal/Colombia vs. England/Croatia

July 2, 7 p.m., Toronto

Toronto wasn’t given a true marquee matchup, but this one could be a real banger. Any combination of these four teams should provide plenty of action for the faithful at BMO Field.

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