IT IS a World Cup throughout a complete continent, that includes 48 nations and 104 matches.
And meaning needing a number of locations to play matches to cram all of them into 5 weeks of sheer footballing drama.
Click on a World Cup stadium to search out out extra
Thankfully, USA, Mexico and Canada have supplied no fewer than 16 stadiums for the 2026 World Cup.
And each single one has a narrative to inform with its personal quirks, infamous curses, secret cow sheds, impolite nicknames, world information and even vegetable patches on roofs.
SolarSport runs you thru the sensible, bonkers and breathtaking listing of arenas internet hosting this summer time’s tremendous soccer celebration…
1. MetLife Stadium (New York New Jersey Stadium) – Capacity: 78,576
The MetLife will stage the largest sporting occasion on the planet on July 19: the World Cup remaining.
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But most of the world’s greatest footballers will likely be fearing the worst – because of the stadium’s curse because the ‘ACL Cemetery’.
That is as a result of numerous NFL stars have suffered horrific ACL knee accidents – together with New York Giants ace Malik Nabers this season plus San Francisco 49ers pair Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas in the exact same sport in 2020.
It is not only ACLs, although, with Odell Beckham Jr breaking his ankle earlier than each Jaelan Phillips and Aaron Rodgers snapped their Achilles.
2. Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Stadium) – 64,091
While the MetLife has grow to be often known as the ‘ACL Cemetery’, the Hard Rock Stadium is constructed on high of a real-life cemetery.
That’s proper – the house of the Miami Dolphins is known to be on an space utilized by the Tequestas as a burial floor till round 800 AD.
Native American stays have been found and there are even strategies of spooky unhealthy luck for house groups.
Uruguay will likely be hoping they don’t endure a horrible destiny this summer time with two of their Group H matches on the Florida venue.
3. NRG Stadium (Houston Stadium) – 68,311
As effectively as being the house of the Houston Texans and staging two Super Bowls, the NRG Stadium additionally hosts the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
The occasion takes place for 3 weeks each March and is the largest of its type on the earth, with 2.7million attending final yr.
The subject is reworked as a way to placed on numerous cowboy actions together with bull driving, bareback bronc driving, chuckwagon racing, cow wrestling and crew roping plus livestock competitions, pig racing and auctions.
Animals are housed in what are successfully hidden stables and sheds beneath the primary bowl of the stadium earlier than being introduced out for the general public.
4. AT&T Stadium (Dallas Stadium) – 70,122
Staying in Texas and the AT&T Stadium in Dallas is the largest venue getting used this summer time, with a capability of 94,000 – however like with many NFL grounds, the adjustments to the pitch and configuration means the official Fifa capability is considerably diminished.
Fans sat within the subsequent again seats – aka the so-called low cost tickets – received’t have to fret about being unable to see the motion, although.
Because there are whopping 175ft-wide large HD screens that dangle down from the retractable roof – they have been a world file when used for the primary time in 2009 and are even larger than a basketball courtroom.
However, they dangle so low that it isn’t unusual for the screens to be hit by flying footballs – whoops.
5. SoFi Stadium (Los Angeles Stadium) – 69,650
If the AT&T is the largest, then the SoFi is unquestionably probably the most spectacular – and the ‘spaceship’ is the most expensive sports venue of all time.
Positioned proper underneath the flight path for his or her neighbours at LAX Airport, the SoFi was opened in 2020 at a price of a reported $7.3billion (£5.3bn) and will likely be used for the 2027 Super Bowl and 2028 LA Olympics.
The pitch is submerged greater than 30m underground as a result of architects weren’t allowed a tall construction so near the runway, that means it’s barely noticeable within the streets surrounding it.
Its beautiful options embody a translucent cover roof which has LED panels to show photos and movies for aircraft passengers flying overhead plus the first-of-its-kind, double-sided, 4K HDR, 80m-pixel, 1,000-tonne, suspending ovular Samsung Infinity Screen working across the inside.
6. Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta Stadium) – 67,382
When you’ve bought a nickname of Megatron’s Butthole, you realize you could have made a daring design selection.
Another comparatively new venue, opened in 2017, the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is full of impressive tech.
One of its standout options is its distinctive retractable roof, which is made up of eight ‘petals’ which might be designed to open and shut like a digicam aperture and appear like a falcon’s wings – a nod to the NFL crew who name this place house.
However, some reckon it seems like one thing else, prompting the unlucky moniker referencing the bottom again of a Transformer’s anatomy.
7. Lumen Field (Seattle Stadium) – 65,123
Make no mistake about it, Lumen Field will likely be completely rocking when hosts USA tackle Australia there on June 19.
And it’s got historical past. Lots of it.
Various earthquakes have been recorded by excited followers celebrating at Lumen Field.
It all began with the ‘Beast Quake’ when Seattle Seahawks star Marshawn Lynch scored an epic landing in January 2011 and the 66,000 contained in the stadium went so wild the bottom shook and hit 2.0 on the Richter Scale on a close-by seismometer.
Similar earth-shaking feats have been achieved since, together with throughout the Seattle Sounders’ MLS Cup remaining in 2019 and a 2.3 effort throughout Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour live performance.
8. Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City Stadium) – 67,513
Lumen Field is the bounciest stadium and the Arrowhead Stadium is the loudest.
The house of the Kansas City Chiefs is thought for its unimaginable environment.
In 1990, the Chiefs have been threatened with a penalty if the gang didn’t quieten down in opposition to the Denver Broncos.
And in 2013, the followers set a world file for the loudest stadium.
Their crown was pinched by Lumen Field however they reclaimed it in 2014 with a staggering 142.2 decibels in opposition to the New England Patriots.
Will the Argentina and Algeria followers get shut on June 16?
9. Gillette Stadium (Boston Stadium) – 63,815
Boston is probably not often known as the City of Bright Lights, however the Gillette Stadium boasts a really vibrant gentle included into the north finish.
Fans can watch motion from the highest of a 22-storey lighthouse which towers over the stand.
The lighthouse was changed in 2023 with a 66m tall model which has a 360-degree viewing platform on the high.
Adjacent to the bizarre function is a bridge – modelled on Boston’s Longfellow Bridge.
Because who doesn’t need a bridge and a lighthouse at a stadium?
10. Levi’s Stadium (San Francisco Bay Area Stadium) – 69,391
The Levi’s Stadium has a soccer pitch on the bottom… and a vegetable patch on the roof.
It was designed to be a number one venue for sustainability and the setting, with recycled water for panorama irrigation and flushing bathrooms, particular photo voltaic reflectant paving and a powerful emphasis on recycling.
But the standout function is on the ’inexperienced roof’, the place followers discover the Faithful Farm.
First planted in 2018 and having fun with the Santa Clara sunshine, 40 completely different crops are grown on rotation together with tomatoes, courgettes, aubergine and peppers in addition to herbs like basil, sage and lavender.
The crop yields roughly 3,400kg of produce annually, a lot of which is then used within the meals on the menu on the stadium’s high-end hospitality and eating places.
11. Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia Stadium) – 65,827
The remaining stadium within the USA is Lincoln Financial Field – and it rivals the Levi’s for being the greenest.
In reality, the Philadelphia venue is likely one of the greatest sports activities stadiums on the earth for creating and utilizing renewable vitality.
There are 11,000 photo voltaic panels on the roof and 14 wind generators exterior, making Lincoln Financial Field carbon impartial.
12. Estadio Akron (Estadio Guadalajara) – 44,330
Heading across the border into Mexico and all three stadiums within the nation are fascinating and completely distinctive.
The Estadio Akron in Guadalajara is dubbed the ‘football volcano’ as a result of it has been constructed right into a man-made hill – and its sides are lined by pure grass.
The volcano theme continues with a white tent-like roof to characterize a cloud of steam, and the pink seats the red-hot crater.
The concept was designers didn’t need a concrete eyesore, so opted to make it appear like a mountain – or higher nonetheless, a volcano rising out of the earth and able to explode with noise, color, drama and vitality… similar to it did when Canelo Alvarez fought and Shakira carried out there.
And little doubt when the World Cup arrives on the town, too.
Fun reality: the grassy exterior catches CO2 and acts like a sponge to gather rainwater which is redirected for irrigating the pitch and flushing the bathrooms.
13. Estadio BBVA (Estadio Monterrey) – 50,113
While the Akron is designed to look like a mountain, the Estadio BBVA is designed to look at a mountain.
The ‘Steel Giant’ in Monterrey opened in 2015 however was particularly designed asymmetrically for a genius cause.
The north aspect stands at 46m in peak – however the south aspect is barely 32m.
And that’s in order that some followers get an excellent, unobstructed view of the 5,970ft Cerro de la Silla mountain which towers over the stadium to the south.
14. Estadio Azteca (Mexico City Stadium) – 72,766
The title Azteca instantly evokes nostalgic recollections for loads of soccer followers with the stadium staging the 1970 and 1986 World Cup finals – received by Pele’s Brazil and Diego Maradona’s Argentina respectively.
But it could evoke some difficult recollections for gamers as a result of Mexico City is located 2,200m above sea stage.
That altitude makes the air skinny, usually leaving gamers gasping for breath within the excessive humidity, whereas the ball flies round that bit sooner.
As effectively as NFL matches and large live shows, the Estadio Azteca has performed host to numerous huge Christian conferences attracting as many as 105,000 members on a single day and even staged a public funeral for Club America fan and comic Roberto Gomez ‘Chespirito’ Bolanos.
15. BC Place (Vancouver) – 48,821
There are two stadiums for the World Cup in Canada, together with BC Place in Vancouver.
The stadium was used as the sector for the opening and shutting ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Three years earlier than the Games, the outdated air-supported roof needed to be deflated and re-pumped up after snow and ice collected and precipitated a tear within the material.
But after the Olympics, the stadium’s inflatable roof was changed with the world’s largest cable-supported retractable roof as a part of an enormous renovation, from which hangs an enormous scoreboard over the pitch.
Like the Azteca, BC Place has non secular hyperlinks – Pope John Paul II visited in 1984, months earlier than world-famous evangelist and Queen Elizabeth II’s buddy Billy Graham held an eight-night campaign.
16. BMO Field (Toronto Stadium) – 44,315
Ironically, it’s final and really a lot least in terms of BMO Field in Toronto.
The stadium normally solely has a capability of round 30,000 for Toronto FC MLS video games – effectively underneath the Fifa minimal requirement of 40,000.
So Toronto are frantically including almost 15,000 seats to take it as much as virtually 45,000, nonetheless the smallest 2026 World Cup venue, by constructing momentary grandstands over the everlasting north and south stands.
And very similar to Stadium 974 made of shipping containers at Qatar 2022, the makeshift construction will likely be dismantled as quickly as BMO Field has staged its sixth and remaining sport, a round-of-32 conflict on July 2.
