World Cup 2026 Schedule for Kids — A Colouring Calendar

The tournament begins on Thursday, June 11, 2026, with the opening match in Mexico City's Estadio Azteca. It ends on Sunday, July 19, 2026, with the final at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey.

That's 39 days of football in total — the longest World Cup ever, because it's also the biggest.

The 48 teams are split into 12 groups of 4. Each team plays three matches, and the top two from each group (plus the eight best third-place teams) go through to the knockout round.

For kids, the group stage is the most exciting part: lots of teams, lots of new flags, and every day brings multiple matches. Pick one "country of the day" and learn something new together.

New for 2026: with 48 teams instead of 32, there's an extra knockout round. The round of 32 runs from June 28 to July 3.

From this round on, every match is a knockout. Lose, and you go home. Win, and you keep dreaming.

Only 16 teams remain. This is usually where the tournament starts feeling really intense: underdogs have their biggest moments, and the favorites begin to sweat.

The matches are usually in the evening — a good excuse for a movie-night style family setup with snacks and colouring pages on the table.

Just 8 teams left. Quarter-finals are often the tightest games of the tournament — close scorelines, dramatic endings, and lots of shots at goal.

Kids love quarter-final days because every match matters enormously. Let them predict the scores on paper, then laugh about the results together afterwards.

• Semi-finals: July 14 and July 15, 2026.

• Third-place play-off: July 18, 2026 (in Miami).

• Final: July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium (New York/New Jersey).

The final is the last match of the tournament — the one everyone talks about for years afterwards. Make it feel special: decorate the living room, print flags of the two finalists, and let your kids pick their favorite to colour in.

Prefer the easy route? Bally's free World Cup 2026 app has the full schedule in your timezone, a new colouring page every day, and match predictions — no app store needed. You can also build a DIY calendar: grab a sheet of paper for each matchday and write the date at the top. Leave space for a quick drawing: a flag, a ball, a small mascot sketch. After each match your child colours the winner's flag, and you can even jot down the score.

When the final is over you'll have a 39-page homemade "World Cup 2026 colour book." It makes a beautiful keepsake, and you'll be surprised how much football knowledge your kids pick up along the way.

For a ready-made starting point, the Bally Adventures colouring book already has 48 countries and stadium pages — a brilliant complement to your homemade calendar.