Football fans around the world will turn their attention today, Thursday, to the United States, Canada and Mexico, with the start of the 2026 World Cup, in a historic edition that will see 48 teams participating for the first time.
The tournament is being held under the new system that includes 12 groups, amidst an unprecedented Arab presence with the participation of 8 teams: Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, in addition to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq and Jordan.
The opening round of group stage matches will begin on June 11 and continue until June 18, with all teams playing their first matches in the race for the world title.
Egypt’s national team will begin its journey in the tournament with a highly anticipated match against Belgium in Group G, on Monday evening, June 15.
Below is the schedule of matches for the first round of the group stage and their times in Abu Dhabi time:
Thursday, June 11
Mexico vs South Africa – 11:00 PM
Friday, June 12
South Korea vs Czech Republic – 6:00 AM
Canada vs Bosnia and Herzegovina – 11:00 PM
Saturday, June 13
United States vs Paraguay – 5:00 AM
Qatar vs Switzerland – 11:00 PM
Sunday, June 14
Brazil vs Morocco – 2:00 AM
Haiti vs Scotland – 5:00 AM
Australia vs Türkiye – 8:00 AM
Germany vs Curaçao – 9:00 PM
Netherlands vs Japan – 12:00 PM
Monday, June 15
Ivory Coast vs Ecuador – 3:00 AM
Sweden vs Tunisia – 6:00 AM
Spain vs Cape Verde – 8:00 PM
Belgium vs Egypt – 11:00 PM
Tuesday, June 16
Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay – 2:00 AM
Iran vs New Zealand – 5:00 AM
France vs Senegal – 11:00 PM
Wednesday, June 17
Iraq vs Norway – 2:00 AM
Argentina vs Algeria – 5:00 AM
Austria vs Jordan – 8:00 AM
Portugal vs DR Congo – 9:00 PM
England vs Croatia – 12:00 PM
Thursday, June 18
Ghana vs Panama – 3:00 AM
Uzbekistan vs Colombia – 6:00 AM.
