Soccer fans in North Jersey have to be thrilled with the World Cup schedule released
Saturday afternoon as traditional powers France, Brazil, Germany and England all will
play one of their opening-round matches of the FIFA 2026 World Cup at MetLife
Stadium.
The four nations, which all bring passionate fan bases, also have a history of success
as they have combined for 12 World Cup titles, led by five from Brazil and four from
Germany.
Those four nations are all ranked in the Top 10 of the latest FIFA rankings, led by
France (No. 3) and followed by England (No. 4), Brazil (No. 5) and Germany (No. 9).
In addition to matches involving one of those four nations, a fifth opening-round match
will involve Norway, which features one of the top players in the world, Erling Haaland.
The complete schedule can be found here.
A look at the five matches at MetLife:
- June 13: Brazil vs. Morocco, 6 p.m. (Group C)
- June 16: France vs. Senegal, 3 p.m. (Group I)
- June 22: Norway vs Senegal, 8 p.m. (Group I)
- June 25: Ecuador vs Germany, 4 p.m. (Group E)
- June 27: Panama vs England, 5 p.m. (Group L)
MetLife will host three matches in the knockout stage:
- Round of 32: June 30 (5 p.m.)
- Round of 16: July 5 (4 p.m.)
- Final: July 19 (3 p.m.)
The World Cup, which was last held in the U.S. in 1994, figures to be unlike anything the country has ever seen.
More tickets will go on sale on Dec. 11.
