The Football Fan's Guide to Travelling to the 2026 FIFA World Cup

On 11 June 2026, the biggest football tournament in history kicks off at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. By the time the final whistle blows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on 19 July, 104 matches will have been played across 16 cities in three countries. The FIFA World Cup has never been anything like this before, and for travelling football fans, it represents a genuinely once in a generation opportunity.

If you are thinking about going, now is the time to start planning.

The Scale of It

This is the first World Cup ever hosted by three nations simultaneously, and the numbers reflect it. Forty-eight teams. 104 matches. Sixteen host cities spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico, from Vancouver on the Pacific coast to Boston on the Atlantic seaboard, from Toronto in the north to Miami and Guadalajara in the south.

The tournament runs from 11 June to 19 July 2026, with the opening match in Mexico City and the final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. England will face Ghana in their opening group game in Miami on 23 June, giving British fans a straightforward decision about where to base themselves for the group stage.

The Host Cities at a Glance

The sixteen host cities are grouped into three broad regions, which is a useful way to think about planning your trip.

The Eastern Region covers New York/New Jersey, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Miami and Toronto. This is where most of the knockout stage action takes place and where England's group games are scheduled. It is also the most straightforward region for British fans to navigate, with strong flight connections and no need to cross time zones mid-trip.

The Central Region spans Houston, Dallas, Kansas City, Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey. Mexico City alone is worth the trip: the Estadio Azteca, hosting its third World Cup after 1970 and 1986, is one of the most iconic football grounds on the planet.

The Western Region covers Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver, hosting some of the group stage games and early knockout rounds. Los Angeles in particular will draw enormous crowds given the city's size and the tournament's profile ahead of the 2028 Olympics.

Practical Things to Sort Early

Tickets are the obvious starting point. The official source is FIFA's ticketing platform, where hospitality packages and general admission tickets are available. Demand will be extraordinary and tickets for knockout rounds go quickly, so registering early and staying alert to sales windows is essential.

Flights and accommodation need to be booked well in advance. Hotel prices in host cities will rise sharply as the tournament approaches, and for popular cities like New York, Miami and Los Angeles, availability will become an issue months out. If you are planning a multi-city trip, factor in internal travel carefully: distances in the US are substantial and what looks like a short hop on a map can be a three or four hour journey.

Visa and entry requirements vary by country. UK passport holders can enter the US under the ESTA programme, Canada under the eTA scheme and Mexico without a visa for stays under 180 days. If you are planning to visit all three host countries in one trip, check the entry requirements for each individually and make sure your passport is valid well beyond the date of your last match.

Making the Most of the Trip

The best World Cup trips are the ones that go beyond the games. Mexico City offers some of the finest food and culture in the Americas. Miami combines beach, nightlife and world-class restaurants. Toronto is a genuinely great city that most British visitors have never explored. Vancouver is one of the most beautiful urban settings anywhere.

For help planning a football travel itinerary across multiple cities, specialist sports travel operators are worth considering. Sportsbreaks.com is one of the UK's most established sports travel agencies, with experience organising fan trips to major international tournaments and a clear understanding of what travelling supporters actually need.

The Bigger Picture

According to VisitBritain, major international sporting events consistently drive significant outbound travel from the UK, and the World Cup ranks among the most powerful of all. The 2026 tournament is expected to be the most attended in history, with fans travelling from every corner of the globe to be part of it.

If you have ever thought about making a World Cup trip, this is the one to do it. The scale, the cities, the football and the experience of travelling across three countries following your team is something that will not come around again in quite this form for a very long time.