WASHINGTON (AP) — Teams that will participate in next year’s World Cup were able to learn who their opponents would be on Friday. Saturday was set aside to determine other logistical aspects: the venues and kick-off times.
The full schedule for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada was unveiled a day after the draw split the 48 teams into 12 groups of four for the opening round. Now, each nation knows how far it will travel as it plays its first — and possibly only — three matches. It can also gauge how much heat might influence the early games.
Even Canada head coach Jesse Marsch, whose side will base in Toronto and Vancouver while competing in Group B, is taking the climate into account. The Canadian opener in Toronto is against the winner of a European playoff, and that match is at 3 p.m., so the conditions could be quite warm.
“We’ll make sure our players are in shape,” Marsch said. “We’ll make sure they adapt to what the weather could be.”
Heat has long been a problem at the World Cup. The 2022 tournament in Qatar was moved to late in the year because of this.
In 1994, the last time the United States hosted a World Cup, games were played mostly during the day. It was convenient for European viewers, but it produced suffocating conditions at venues like the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
More than three decades later, that stadium won’t be used for the 2026 World Cup. Instead, Dallas-area matches will be held in Arlington, Texas, at AT&T Stadium.
And the NFL’s Cowboys home features a retractable roof. The same goes for the Houston and Atlanta venues that will host matches.
SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Rams in Inglewood, California, has a roof, but outside air can still enter. With five afternoon matches on the schedule, SoFi is a site where temperatures could climb.
The Mexican venues — Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Estadio Akron in Guadalajara and Estadio BBVA in Monterrey — could also raise heat concerns. American soccer fans are well aware of how oppressive conditions at Azteca can be for visiting teams, both in temperature and altitude. But in this tournament, nearly all matches at the three Mexican stadiums are scheduled for the evening.
The Data
Here are the group-stage matches where heat is most likely to be an issue early on. This is based on AccuWeather’s 30-year RealFeel averages. Because of the roofs at some stadiums, Arlington, Houston and Atlanta are not included. All times are local:
31 Celsius (88 Fahrenheit) — Switzerland vs. European playoff winner A (June 18 at 12:00 p.m. in Inglewood).
30 Celsius (87 Fahrenheit) — Belgium vs. Iran (June 21 at 12:00 p.m. in Inglewood).
30 Celsius (87 Fahrenheit) — Curaçao vs. Ivory Coast (June 25 at 4:00 p.m. in Philadelphia).
30 Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) — Tunisia vs. Netherlands (June 25 at 6:00 p.m. in Kansas City, Missouri).
29 Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) — Scotland vs. Brazil (June 24 at 6:00 p.m. in Miami Gardens, Florida).
29 Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) — Ecuador vs. Germany (June 25 at 4:00 p.m. in East Rutherford, New Jersey).
29 Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) — Norway vs. France (June 26 at 3:00 p.m. in Foxborough, Massachusetts).
28 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) — Qatar vs. Switzerland (June 13 at 12:00 p.m. in Santa Clara, California).
28 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) — Uruguay vs. Cape Verde (June 21 at 6:00 p.m. in Miami Gardens).
28 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) — South Africa vs. Korea Republic (June 24 at 7:00 p.m. in Monterrey).
28 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) — Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay (June 15 at 6:00 p.m. in Miami Gardens).
28 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit) — European playoff winner B vs. Tunisia (June 14 at 8:00 p.m. in Monterrey).
Convenient Timings
The following teams have consecutive group-stage matches in the same city, removing the need to travel between them:
- — South Korea plays its first two matches in Guadalajara.
- — Canada plays its second and third matches in Vancouver.
- — Scotland faces its first two matches in Foxborough.
— Paraguay plays its second and third matches in Santa Clara.
— Tunisia plays its first two matches in Monterrey.
— Iran has its first two matches in Inglewood.
— New Zealand plays its second and third matches in Vancouver.
— Spain has its first two matches in Atlanta.
— Uruguay opens with its first two matches in Miami Gardens.
— Senegal plays its first two matches in East Rutherford.
— Argentina faces its second and third matches in Arlington.
— Jordan plays its first two matches in Santa Clara.
— Portugal has its first two matches in Houston.
— Panama plays its first two matches in Toronto.
