Mexico Set to Host Opener and Final of Major Event

The 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup will be its biggest-ever edition, featuring 48 teams – 16 more than the previous edition in Qatar – and 104 matches. The final match of the 2026 World Cup is set to take place in New Jersey at MetLife Stadium, home to the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets, as announced by FIFA. The tournament, featuring 48 teams, will wrap up on July 19. The United States, Canada, and Mexico are jointly hosting the event, with Canada hosting 13 games, Mexico hosting 13 games, and the remaining matches spread across 11 U.S. cities. Toronto, Mexico City, and Los Angeles will kick off the tournament with opening matches for their respective national teams. The final showdown, set in MetLife Stadium, can accommodate 82,500 spectators and previously hosted the Copa America Centenario final in 2016. Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca will host the opening match on June 11, making Mexico the first nation to host the World Cup for a third time. Mexico’s head coach, Jaime Lozano, expressed the team’s excitement and acknowledged the pressure of playing in front of home fans. Canada, hosting its first World Cup games, will debut on June 12 in Toronto. The U.S. will stick to the West Coast during the group stage, playing twice in Los Angeles and once in Seattle. The tournament will later shift entirely to the U.S. for the quarter-final round, spread across Los Angeles, Kansas City, m…