Every verified number that defines football's most unprecedented tournament — format, venues, money, goals, history, and reach. All in one place. Whether you want a single stat to settle a pub argument or a complete data reference for the 2026 World Cup, this is it.
The 2026 World Cup is the first to use the 48-team format. Every number below follows directly from that expansion — more groups, more matches, more rounds, more days.
Sixteen stadiums across three countries. The total combined capacity of all 16 venues approaches 1.1 million seats. All stadium capacities below reflect FIFA tournament configurations.
| Stadium | City | Capacity | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T Stadium (Dallas Stadium) | Dallas, Texas | 94,000 | 9 |
| Estadio Azteca (Mexico City Stadium) | Mexico City | 87,500 | 5 |
| MetLife Stadium (NY NJ Stadium — Final) | East Rutherford, NJ | 82,500 | 8 |
| Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta Stadium) | Atlanta, Georgia | 75,000 | 8 |
| Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City Stadium) | Kansas City, Missouri | 76,416 | 6 |
| NRG Stadium (Houston Stadium) | Houston, Texas | 72,220 | 7 |
| SoFi Stadium (LA Stadium) | Inglewood, California | 70,000 | 8 |
| Levi's Stadium (San Francisco Bay Stadium) | Santa Clara, California | 68,500 | 6 |
| Lumen Field (Seattle Stadium) | Seattle, Washington | 69,000 | 6 |
| Gillette Stadium (Boston Stadium) | Foxborough, Massachusetts | 65,878 | 7 |
| Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Stadium — Bronze Final) | Miami Gardens, Florida | 65,000 | 7 |
| Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia Stadium) | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 69,176 | 6 |
| Estadio BBVA (Monterrey Stadium) | Monterrey, Mexico | 51,348 | 4 |
| Estadio Akron (Guadalajara Stadium) | Guadalajara, Mexico | 44,330 | 4 |
| BC Place | Vancouver, Canada | 54,500 | 7 |
| BMO Field | Toronto, Canada | 45,736 | 6 |
The USA hosts 78 of 104 matches — 75% of the tournament — and exclusively hosts every match from the quarter-finals through to the final. Mexico and Canada each host 13 matches, primarily in the group stage and Round of 32.
48 nations across six confederations, qualified from 211 FIFA member associations. The confederation breakdown below reflects confirmed qualifications.
| Confederation | Region | Spots | Change from 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA | Europe | 16 | +3 (from 13) |
| CAF | Africa | 9 | +4 (from 5) |
| AFC | Asia | 8 | +3.5 (from 4.5) |
| CONMEBOL | South America | 6 | No change |
| CONCACAF | North/Central America & Caribbean | 6 | +2.5 (from 3.5) |
| OFC | Oceania | 1 | First guaranteed automatic berth in OFC history |
| Inter-confederation playoffs | Mixed | 2 | — |
The 2026 World Cup is the most lucrative in history by every measure. Total prize money was confirmed at $871 million by the FIFA Council at their meeting in Vancouver in April 2026 — a 98% increase from the $440 million distributed at Qatar 2022.
The 2026 tournament will almost certainly produce more total goals than any World Cup in history, purely by virtue of having 40 more matches than Qatar 2022. The only question is by how much.
| Scenario | Goals/Game Rate | Projected Total |
|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 2.50 GPG (below recent avg) | 260 goals |
| 2018 Russia rate | 2.64 GPG | 275 goals |
| 2022 Qatar rate | 2.69 GPG | 280 goals |
| Optimistic | 2.80 GPG | 291 goals |
| All-time low (1990) | 2.21 GPG | 230 goals — still a record |
Qatar 2022 record: 172 goals in 64 matches (2.69 per game). In 2026, even a below-average tournament produces a new record by 50+ goals.
The World Cup is the single most-watched sporting event in human history. 2026 is projected to extend that lead significantly.
Context is everything. These numbers place 2026 in the arc of 96 years of World Cup history.
| Record | Who / When | Number |
|---|---|---|
| Most World Cup goals (all time) | Miroslav Klose, Germany | 16 goals (2002–2014) |
| Most World Cup appearances (player) | Lionel Messi, Argentina | 26 matches entering 2026 |
| Fastest World Cup goal | Hakan Şükür, Turkey vs South Korea | 10.8 seconds (2002) |
| Highest-scoring match ever | Austria 7–5 Switzerland | 12 goals (1954) |
| Most goals in a tournament | Qatar 2022 | 172 goals |
| Highest goals-per-game average | Switzerland 1954 | 5.38 GPG |
| Lowest goals-per-game average | Italy 1990 | 2.21 GPG |
| Smallest nation to qualify (all time) | Curaçao, 2026 | 156,115 population |
| Most World Cup appearances (nation) | Brazil | 23 (every edition) |
| Most World Cup wins (nation) | Brazil | 5 titles |
| Most expensive stadium ever built | SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles | $5.5 billion |
| Guinness record: loudest outdoor stadium | Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City | 142.2 decibels |
| First time three nations co-hosted | USA, Mexico, Canada | 2026 |
| Stadium hosting most World Cups | Estadio Azteca, Mexico City | 3 (1970, 1986, 2026) |
| Record attendance (single tournament) | USA 1994 | 3.6 million |
