Football Dec 07, 2025

World Cup 2026 fixtures, match schedule, UK kick-off times and venues confirmed as England and Scotland discover schedule

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
World Cup 2026 fixtures, match schedule, UK kick-off times and venues confirmed as England and Scotland discover schedule

England will open their World Cup bid in Dallas against Croatia in a 9pm kick-off UK time, while Scotland will face Haiti in a 2am kick-off UK time.

Thomas Tuchel's side would have been hoping for Toronto as the selected venue for their opener, given its proximity to their second and third group games, but will begin their campaign on June 17 in Texas, following Saturday's schedule announcement by FIFA.

England will then play Ghana in Boston in a 9pm kick-off UK time on June 23 and conclude their Group L games against Panama in a 10pm kick-off in New York-New Jersey on June 27.

Scotland's fixtures will have their fans who haven't made the trip to the US staying up through the night, with the first game against Haiti in the early hours of June 14, and their subsequent group games with Morocco and Brazil at 11pm UK time.

Scotland will be in Boston for the games with Haiti and Morocco (June 19), before moving on to Miami to face Brazil (June 24).

Northern Ireland or Wales will play Canada in Toronto, Switzerland in Los Angeles and Qatar in Seattle should they qualify through the play-offs, with each of their group games kicking off at 8pm UK time.

The Republic of Ireland can also qualify for the 2026 World Cup through the play-offs and could face co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea in Group A. Should they make it, their fans back home will also be watching games in the middle of the night - with their potential opener at 3am, the second at 5pm and the third at 2am.

The 2026 World Cup final will be on July 19 at the New York-New Jersey (MetLife) Stadium. It will kick off at 3pm local time - that's 8pm UK time.

FIFA stated they had factored in issues such as recovery, climate and travel distances when mapping out the specific locations and kick-off times of matches.

, after extreme heat affected some Club World Cup games.

Group A: Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, Republic of Ireland/Denmark/North Macedonia/Czech Republic

Group B: Canada, Switzerland, Qatar, Wales/Northern Ireland/Italy/Bosnia-Herzegovina

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti

Group D: USA, Australia, Paraguay, Turkey/Romania/Slovakia/Kosovo

Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curacao

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, Poland/Ukraine/Sweden/Albania

Group G: Belgium, Iran, Egypt, New Zealand

Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cape Verde

Group I: France, Senegal, Norway, Iraq or Bolivia/Suriname

Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan

Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, DR Congo or Jamaica/New Caledonia

Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana

Group stage: June 11-27

Round of 32: June 28 to July 3

Round of 16: July 4-7

Quarter-finals: July 9-11

Semi-finals: July 14-15

Third-place play-off ('Bronze final'): July 18

Final: July 19

Tags:

football news id:13479286

Share this article

Related Posts

Antoine Semenyo: Ghana's World Cup success depends on Man City star, says former Black Star Asamoah Gyan

Antoine Semenyo: Ghana's World Cup success depends on Man City star, says former Black Star Asamoah Gyan

It has been a successful and at times dramatic season for Antoine Semenyo. That will not let up this summer either with the Manchester City forward ex...

Tottenham transfer news: Roberto De Zerbi's transfer plans to rebuild Spurs this summer as Sandro Tonali deal targeted

Tottenham transfer news: Roberto De Zerbi's transfer plans to rebuild Spurs this summer as Sandro Tonali deal targeted

Never again. That was the promise made by Tottenham chief executive Vinai Venkatesham and non-executive chairman Peter Charrington after narrowly avoi...

England World Cup latest: Jamie Carragher says Thomas Tuchel can't afford to drop Declan Rice against Ghana despite fitness concerns

England World Cup latest: Jamie Carragher says Thomas Tuchel can't afford to drop Declan Rice against Ghana despite fitness concerns

Jamie Carragher says England can't afford to drop Declan Rice against Ghana despite concerns over his fitness, but believes Bukayo Saka should not be...

Man Utd secure land to build new 100,000 seater stadium as plans to leave Old Trafford gather pace

Man Utd secure land to build new 100,000 seater stadium as plans to leave Old Trafford gather pace

Manchester United have secured the majority of the land required to build their new 100,000-seater stadium as the club ramps up plans to create the la...

Wouter Vrancken: Hearts set to appoint Belgian coach as Derek McInnes' successor at Tynecastle Park

Wouter Vrancken: Hearts set to appoint Belgian coach as Derek McInnes' successor at Tynecastle Park

Hearts are set to appoint Wouter Vrancken as their new head coach.The 47-year-old, who was most recently in charge at Sint-Truiden, is expected to be...

Rangers: Derek McInnes faces touchline ban after criticising match officials while at Hearts

Rangers: Derek McInnes faces touchline ban after criticising match officials while at Hearts

Derek McInnes faces being banned from the touchline in his opening domestic games as Rangers manager after being hit with a disciplinary charge over c...