The FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to be the biggest edition of the tournament and the numbers show why. With the excitement building across the globe, fans will be eager to see what this year’s World Cup will bring to them.
The 2026 edition, hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, marks the first World Cup to feature an expanded 48-team format. The increase from 32 teams has introduced 12 groups in the opening phase and added a Round of 32 to the knockout stages.
FIFA WORLD CUP 2026: FULL SCHEDULE
The last time the World Cup expanded was in 1998 and the previous seven editions had 32 teams and 64 games. This will also be the second time the tournament will be hosted in multiple countries, after the 2002 edition in Japan and South Korea. There will be 11 stadiums where the matches will be held in the USA, with three in Mexico and two in Canada.
Mexico will be hosting a total of 13 matches, including the tournament opener between the co-hosts and South Africa on June 11 and three matches in the knockout rounds.
Canada will also have 13 games, with the co-hosts kicking off the festivities against Bosnia-Herzegovina on June 12 and then three more matches during the knockout rounds.
The rest of the 78 matches will take place in the US, with the quarterfinals, semi-finals and the final taking place at the MetLife stadium. With all this in mind, let’s take a look at the upcoming tournament and some numbers associated with it.
FIFA WORLD CUP 2026: BY NUMBERS
1,248
A record-breaking 1,248 players have been selected for the tournament, representing 449 clubs across 71 nations. Among them, 357 have previously featured at a World Cup, while 891 are set to make their debut on football’s biggest stage.
England contributes the highest number of players, with 200 squad members currently playing for clubs in the country. Germany follows with 109, while France and Spain each have 86 representatives. Italy accounts for 71 players, and Saudi Arabia rounds out the top group with 49.
Major League Soccer will have a record 44 active players at the tournament, while 103 members of the player pool have spent part of their careers in the league.
At club level, Manchester City leads all teams with 19 players selected, setting a new record. Bayern Munich is next with 18, followed by Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal with 16 each. Barcelona completes the top five with 15 representatives.
226
Cristiano Ronaldo leads the way as the player with the most caps to play in this year’s World Cup with 226 to his name. He will also join rival Lionel Messi as the only players to play in six World Cups.
Ronaldo is also the only player to have scored in five World Cups and has 8 goals from 22 matches in the tournament. Messi has the most career World Cup matches with 26 appearances at the tournament.
16
Miroslav Klose’s record of 16 for most goals by a player at World Cups is under serious threat this year. Messi enters the 2026 World Cup with 13 goals in tournament history, placing him among the competition’s most prolific scorers. Only Miroslav Klose (16), Ronaldo Nazario (15) and Gerd Mller (14) have found the net more often on football’s biggest stage.
Meanwhile, Kylian Mbappe is also closing in on the record books. The French forward has already amassed 12 World Cup goals across the previous two editions and could further climb the all-time scoring charts during the tournament.
8
Only eight teams have won the World Cup in history. Brazil leads the way with five World Cup wins, followed by Germany and Italy with four. Argentina have won it three times, followed by Uruguay and France with two. England and Spain have won it once each.
2
Only two teams have been able to defend their titles and win the World Cup back-to-back. Italy did it first in 1934 and 1938 and Pele helped Brazil win the title in 1958 and 1962. Only three defending champions have managed to return to the World Cup final after lifting the trophy, with the most recent example being France national football team in 2022. France came close to retaining the title but were ultimately beaten by the Argentina national football team in a dramatic final.
6
Defending champions have often struggled to build on their success at the next World Cup. On six occasions, the titleholders have been knocked out in the group stage, including three times in the last four tournaments. While France national football team reached the final in 2022, Italy national football team in 2010, Spain national football team in 2014 and Germany national football team in 2018 all suffered early exits before the knockout stages.
3
France will be aiming to become the third team to make it to three consecutive finals after West Germany in 1982, 1986 and 1990. Brazil won twice in 1994 and 2002, and lost the 1998 final to France.
23
Brazil is the only country to play all 23 editions of the World Cup so far. Selecao also leads the way when it comes to most wins in the tournament (76), most goals (237) and a plus-129 goal difference.
4
There will be four debutants this year in the World Cup with Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan also set to grace the big stage.
158,000
Tournament newcomers Curacao will make history as the smallest nation ever to qualify for a FIFA World Cup. The Caribbean side is also the smallest country represented at the 2026 tournament, marking a remarkable milestone in its football journey.
25
More than 25 years separate the oldest and youngest players at the 2026 World Cup. Craig Gordon, the veteran Scotland goalkeeper, will be 43 years and 162 days old when the tournament begins, while Gilberto Mora will be just 17 years and 240 days old, making him the youngest player in the competition.
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