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The 2026 FIFA Schedule is played in North America. That is good news for fans in the USA, Canada and Mexico. No more middle-of-the-night alarms like during the Qatar 2022 edition. Every match this summer falls in a normal viewing window. Here is a full timezone guide so you always know when your game is on.
THE FOUR US TIME ZONES
Eastern Time (ET): New York, Miami, Atlanta, Boston, Philadelphia, Toronto
Central Time (CT): Dallas, Houston, Kansas City. ET minus 1 hour.
Mountain Time (MT): Denver area. ET minus 2 hours.
Pacific Time (PT): Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle. ET minus 3 hours.
The World Cup schedule lists local time at each venue. A game in Dallas shows Dallas time (CT). A game in Los Angeles shows LA time (PT). Use the conversions above to find your local kickoff.
STANDARD DAILY KICKOFF WINDOWS
The group stage has three to four matches per day. FIFA spreads them across these windows:
Window 1: Noon ET / 11 AM CT / 10 AM MT / 9 AM PT
Window 2: 3 PM ET / 2 PM CT / 1 PM MT / Noon PT
Window 3: 6 PM ET / 5 PM CT / 4 PM MT / 3 PM PT
Window 4: 9 PM ET / 8 PM CT / 7 PM MT / 6 PM PT
UK AND EUROPEAN TIMES
Add 5 hours to ET for GMT (London time).
Add 6 hours to ET for CET (Paris, Berlin, Rome, Madrid time).
Examples:
A 3 PM ET game = 8 PM in London = 9 PM in Madrid
A 6 PM ET game = 11 PM in London = Midnight in Madrid
A 9 PM ET game = 2 AM next day in London (not ideal for European viewers)
FIFA deliberately schedules the biggest games at 3 PM ET or earlier so European fans can watch in the evening.
KEY EARLY GAMES AND THEIR MULTI-TIMEZONE TIMES
Mexico vs. South Africa (June 11, Tournament Opener)
ET: 3:00 PM / CT: 2:00 PM / MT: 1:00 PM / PT: Noon / GMT: 8:00 PM
USA vs. Paraguay (June 12)
ET: 9:00 PM / CT: 8:00 PM / MT: 7:00 PM / PT: 6:00 PM / GMT: 2:00 AM next day
Brazil vs. Morocco (June 13)
ET: 6:00 PM / CT: 5:00 PM / MT: 4:00 PM / PT: 3:00 PM / GMT: 11:00 PM
France vs. Senegal (June 16)
ET: 3:00 PM / CT: 2:00 PM / MT: 1:00 PM / PT: Noon / GMT: 8:00 PM
England vs. Croatia (June 17)
ET: 4:00 PM / CT: 3:00 PM / MT: 2:00 PM / PT: 1:00 PM / GMT: 9:00 PM
Argentina vs. Algeria (June 16)
ET: 9:00 PM / CT: 8:00 PM / MT: 7:00 PM / PT: 6:00 PM / GMT: 2:00 AM next day
THE WORLD CUP FINAL TIMES
The Final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium kicks off at 3:00 PM ET.
ET: 3:00 PM / CT: 2:00 PM / MT: 1:00 PM / PT: Noon / GMT: 8:00 PM / CET: 9:00 PM
FIFA chose 3:00 PM ET specifically to hit European prime time. The last nine World Cup finals from 1978 through 2014 all kicked off between 2:00 PM and 3:30 PM ET.
EARLY GAMES FOR WEST COAST FANS
Some Round of 32 matches in Eastern time zone cities kick off at noon ET. That is 9:00 AM Pacific. West Coast fans who want to catch every knockout game should plan for some early mornings during late June and early July.
The trade-off is that major evening games like USA matches and the Final land in afternoon slots for California and Pacific Northwest viewers, which is ideal.