The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the 23rd edition of FIFA’s men’s World Cup. The tournament follows the competition’s long-running four-year cycle, with the previous edition held in Qatar in 2022.
The first World Cup was played in Uruguay in 1930, when 13 teams took part and Uruguay became the inaugural champion. The competition was not held in 1942 or 1946 because of World War II. Those cancellations explain why the edition number is lower than a simple count of every four-year interval since 1930 might suggest.
The 2026 tournament also marks a major format change. It is the first World Cup with 48 teams, expanding from the 32-team format used from 1998 through 2022. The expanded event features 104 matches across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
The number 23 refers to the edition of the World Cup tournament, not the number of countries hosting it, the number of teams in the final phase, or the number of finals played. The final is scheduled for MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.