As it stands now, the final match of next year’s FIFA World Cup is set for a mid-afternoon start.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup Final is tentatively scheduled to kick off around 3 PM ET next July 19, New Jersey governor Phil Murphy — whose state will host the final four games of the tournament — told Melanie Anzidel of The Athletic.
With the World Cup taking place in North America, a primetime kickoff could have theoretically been in play. When Canada hosted the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the final began at 7 PM ET. But a 3 PM ET start would better accommodate European markets, where mid-afternoon in the U.S. coincides with primetime — 8 PM in London and 9 PM in Paris, Munich and Rome.
The primary concern with a 3 PM ET start is the heat, which has been a storyline during the U.S.-based FIFA Club World Cup.
While an evening start time of 5 or 6 PM ET could help mitigate the weather concerns — and push the game into the Sunday dinner window that tends to generate the largest U.S. sports audiences — anything later than 3 PM would make the final a late night start in much of Europe.
According to Murphy, the mid-afternoon start is not set in stone. It is hard to see any other option if FIFA wants to accommodate both the North American and European markets, save for moving the final up to an earlier window — which would be less than ideal for FOX.
