This World Cup is bigger in many ways, especially with 48 participating countries. This time, a record 104 matches will be played in 16 stadiums across three hosts. And the tournament itself will last 39 days.

The number of participating teams has increased from 32 to 48, making it the first World Cup to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico. This time, four groups have been added to the league stage, and the knockout stage will reach 32 teams. The last time the number of participants in the World Cup was increased was in 1998. In that sense, the last seven editions of the World Cup have featured 32 teams. There were 64 matches. Since South Korea and Japan jointly hosted the World Cup in 2002, more countries have hosted the World Cup at the same time.

There will be 11 venues in the United States alone. Three in Mexico and two in Canada. Mexico has 13 matches, including the opening match in Mexico City. Hosts Mexico and South Africa will face each other on June 11. Mexico will also host three knockout matches. Canada will host 13 matches. The host will face Bosnia and Herzegovina on June 12 in Toronto. Canada will also host three knockout matches.

The remaining 78 matches will be played in the United States. The United States will face Paraguay in Los Angeles on June 12. The United States will also host the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals. The title match will be held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. We will now take a look at the 2026 World Cup and the history of the tournament based on points.

1248

A record 1,248 players will participate in the next World Cup. These players come from 449 clubs in 71 countries. Of these, 357 players have played in the World Cup before, and 891 are playing for the first time. 200 players from English leagues will be in the next World Cup. The German league is in second place, with 109 players.

Then there are 86 players from France and Spain, 71 from Italy and 49 from Saudi Arabia. 44 players from America's own Major League Soccer (MLS) will play in the World Cup. 103 players have played in MLS at some point. A record 19 players from Manchester City of the English Premier League will play in the next World Cup. Then there will be 16 players from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Arsenal, who played in the Champions League final. 15 players from Barcelona will also play in the World Cup.

226

Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo is the most experienced player in the competition, with 226 caps. This is the most appearances by any player in the history of men's football. Along with him, Argentina's Lionel Messi is playing in his sixth World Cup. Ronaldo is the only player to have scored in the previous five World Cups. He has scored eight goals in 22 games.

Messi is the player with the most appearances in the World Cup, with 26. He needs just two games to win 200 caps for his country. Kuwait's Bader Al Mutawa is also the only player to have won more than 200 caps in international football. Croatia's Luka Modric is also just three games away from reaching the two-time magic mark. Mexico's Guillermo Ochoa is playing in his fourth World Cup, after 2006 and 2010.

16

Miroslav Klose holds the record for most goals. The German has scored 16 goals. This time, the record is more likely to be broken, because Messi has already scored 13 goals in the World Cup. Brazil's Ronaldo has 15, Gerd Muller has 14 and France's Kylian Mbappe has 12 goals.

8

Only eight teams have won the World Cup so far. Six of them have won the World Cup more than once. Brazil is at the top of the list, having won the World Cup five times. In the last 11 World Cups, only two teams have won the title for the first time, when France won the World Cup in 1998 and Spain in 2010.

2

Only two countries have won the World Cup twice in a row. Pelé's Brazil won the World Cup in 1958 and 1962. Italy previously won the World Cup in 1934 and 1938. Three teams have played in the World Cup finals twice in a row as defending champions, but failed to defend their title. Of these, France reached the finals twice in the last World Cup, but lost to Argentina.

6

There have been six unlucky teams as defending champions, who failed to even make it past the group stage. Of these, this has happened three times in the last four editions. Italy in 2010, Spain in 2014 and Germany in 2018 were eliminated in the first round and were forced to return home before reaching the knockout stage. In 2022, France reached the final.

3

France will be trying to become the third team to reach the World Cup final for the third time in a row. 2018 winners France had also made the journey to the title clash in 2022. West Germany, after losing in the 1982 and 1986 World Cup finals, defeated Argentina in 1990 to become champions.

23

Brazil is the only team to have participated in all 23 World Cups since 1930. Brazil has won the most matches so far, with 76 wins and 237 goals. Germany is next with 21 World Cups and 232 goals. Out of these, West Germany has played 10 World Cups.

4

This time, four countries are making their debuts in the World Cup. They are Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan. With these four teams, the number of teams (countries) that have participated in the World Cup so far will reach 84.

7

Egypt has an unfortunate history of failing to win a single match in seven World Cups. In these seven matches, there have been 5 draws and 2 losses. Their first match this time is against Belgium. Honduras has not been able to win a single match in nine World Cup matches. Honduras did not qualify for the World Cup this time.