When does the 2026 FIFA World Cup start?

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off on June 11, 2026, with the opening match at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

Where is the 2026 World Cup Final?

The Final will be held at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (New York metro area) on July 19, 2026.

How many teams are in the 2026 World Cup?

48 teams will compete in the 2026 World Cup — the first time the tournament has been expanded from 32 to 48 teams.

How many host cities are there?

16 host cities across 3 countries: 11 in the USA, 3 in Mexico, and 2 in Canada.

How many matches will be played?

104 matches will be played over 39 days, from June 11 to July 19, 2026.

Match Official

G Salisbury

Active 2002 → 202120 seasons17 seasons officiated

Home bias: +11.9pp home-win tilt vs away

403

Matches officiated

0.06

Yellow / game

0.002

Red / game

42.7%

Home-win %

30.8%

Away-win %

26.6%

Draw %

Public match-data aggregates over this official's recorded fixtures — outcome splits and cards per game, not SPX Quant Engine output.

Cards profile

Lenientbaseline ~3.5 yellows/game

Books 0.06 yellows per game — below the ~3.5/game public benchmark, a lenient card profile.

Yellows / game0.06

Reds / game0.002

A plain-English strictness read from public cards-per-game totals vs a fixed reference benchmark — not SPX Quant Engine output.

Competitions officiated

League Two

England

150

League One

England

133

Championship

England

120

Matches officiated per competition across this official's recorded fixtures.

Recent matches

Wigan Athletic vs Swindon Town

Match · 2021-05-09

Wigan Athletic vs Rochdale

Match · 2020-12-15

Exeter City vs Yeovil Town

Match · 2018-12-26

Swindon Town vs Carlisle

Match · 2018-11-17

Grimsby vs Colchester

Match · 2018-10-23

Crewe vs Bury

Match · 2018-10-13

Exeter City vs Carlisle

Match · 2018-08-04

Forest Green vs Stevenage

Match · 2018-02-13

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