The year 2026 is packed with football events right from the opening month of January, starting with the Spanish Super Cup, leading up to the biggest festival the sport has to offer, the World Cup in the summer. The year will be historic as it will have the largest showpiece in the USA, Canada and Mexico and also several other fantastic tournaments on offer, like the Africa Cup of Nations. There will be a lot of action in club football too, with hype increasing around the Premier League and the Champions League like never before. In all, 2026 has all the ingredients to become a seismic year in the history of the sport.
Here are all the top Football Events to watch in 2026:
Spanish Super Cup 2026 (January 8-12)
The 2026 Spanish Super Cup will be the first competition to look forward to in the New Year, with Riyadh anticipating another thrilling tournament like the previous edition. The holders, Barcelona, will take on Athletic Bilbao once again in the semifinal, whereas a spicy Madrid derby awaits in the other. The semifinals will be played on 8th and 9th January 2026, respectively, with the grand final scheduled on 12 January 2026. Domestic treble winners of last season, Barcelona, would look to defend the title, while Real Madrid will be desperate to seek revenge for their crushing 5-2 defeat in the El Clásico final last time. Los Blancos’s cross city rivals Atletico have not lifted this trophy since 2014, so this will be their first honour in the present format if they manage to pull it off. Meanwhile, three-time winners, Athletic Club, will want to spring a surprise as they did in their latest Spanish Super Cup success in 2021, beating Barcelona 3-2 to take the silverware home.
African Cup of Nations 2025-26 Final (January 18)
The greatest continental competition in Africa, the Africa Cup of Nations or the AFCON 2025, started on 22nd December 2025, with the 35th edition proving to be a significant one for the African teams that have qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026. However, top names like Cameroon and Nigeria, who have missed out on the grand show next year, will be eager to replace their heartbreak with continental glory. Pressure will be on the hosts, Morocco, to win their first AFCON title since 1976 in front of their fans, with the fantastic development they have made over the last few years. Mohamed Salah will have his final opportunity to win an international trophy with record winners Egypt, while Senegal wants to repeat their heroics of 2021. Defending champions Ivory Coast will hope to be only the fifth side in competition history to retain the title and the first since Egypt in 2010. The knockout rounds of the AFCON will be played in January 2026, with the focus on the 18th when the final will be hosted in the
Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat to see whether any of the favourites etch their name on the trophy, or a fairytale story is scripted instead.
UEFA qualifiers for FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 (March 3 - December 5)
Three years on from Spain declaring themselves world champions to conclude a historic Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, the fight to be in the next one, the 2027 edition hosted in Brazil, begins for European teams. The UEFA qualifiers for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 begin on 3 March 2026, with 53 teams participating this time. Gibraltar and Liechtenstein will enter World Cup qualifying for the first time, with the format of the UEFA Women’s Nations League being followed, with teams divided into three leagues. The top teams from each group in League A will qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup automatically. The rest of the teams, along with the top-three teams in each group in League B and the group winners with the two best-second placed teams from League C, will enter the playoffs to decide the remaining spots. This will be the final time that Europe will have 11 slots for the Women’s World Cup, as it will increase to more slots once the competition gets expanded to 48 teams, similar to the men’s, from the 2031 edition.
Carabao Cup Final 2026 (March 22)
The 2025-26 Carabao Cup final is the first mega showdown of the season in English football, with this being the 66th edition of the competition. Four teams are in the running for the honour, with the semifinal scheduled in January 2026, including Newcastle United, who were surprise winners last time, ending Liverpool’s dominance in the competition. That was Magpies' first silverware in 56 years and the first trophy under the present regime, but they have a severe challenge to overcome to keep their hopes of defending the title alive as they will cross paths with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City over two legs in the semis. Then Chelsea or either of Arsenal and Crystal Palace will be their opponents in the final. The showpiece will be hosted in Wembley Stadium on 22 March 2026, with a cracker of an encounter expected.
UEFA Playoffs for the FIFA World Cup 2026 (March 26 - April 1)
The month of March 2026 will also be significant as the UEFA playoffs for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will take centre stage in the final international break before the tournament kicks off in the USA, Mexico and Canada. The playoffs will determine the final four teams from 16 participating teams, joining the 12 qualifying group winners from Europe who are automatically qualified for the global event. The 12 runners-up from the qualifying groups will contest the playoffs alongside the four best-ranked winners in the 2024-25 Nations League, outside of the top two in qualifying groups. The teams were divided into four paths, each containing four teams, with each play-off path featuring two single-leg semi-finals and one single-leg final. Some previous World Cup campaigners' chances of being in the 2026 edition are at stake, including Denmark and four-time World Cup champions Italy, who could miss out on the tournament for the third time in a row. The Azzurri will face Northern Ireland at home in the semifinals before taking on either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina away in the final, while the Danes will take on North Macedonia, with Czechia or the Republic of Ireland their opposition should they reach the final. The other pathway semifinals include Ukraine facing Sweden, with the winners fighting Poland or Albania in the final and Turkey going head to head with Romania to face either Slovakia or Kosovo in the final to secure their place in the World Cup. The semifinals of each pathway will take place on March 26, 2026, with the final scheduled for April 1, 2026.
Intercontinental Playoffs for the FIFA World Cup 2026 (March 27 - March 31)
At the same time, the intercontinental playoffs for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will take place in Mexico in Monterrey and Guadalajara, serving as a test event for the competition. Six teams from five confederations will participate in the playoffs to determine the final two spots in the World Cup, with the semifinals for each path taking place on 27 March 2025. OFC third round runners-up New Caledonia will face one of the best two runners-up in the third round of CONCACAF qualifiers, Jamaica, in the semifinal of Pathway 1, with the winners locking horns with CAF playoff winners DR Congo, who have been given a bye to the final due to their high FIFA rankings. In the other pathway semifinal, the other best runners-up in the CONCACAF third round, Suriname, will compete against Bolivia, which finished seventh in the CONMEBOL qualifiers, with the winning team facing the AFC fifth round winner Iraq in the final.
Finalissima 2026 (March 27)
The other big international tournament in March 2026 is the Finalissima, the second edition of the competition that will see the Euro 2024 Spain winners taking on Copa America 2024 champions Argentina. The pulsating encounter between the top two nations in the FIFA rankings will be hosted in Doha, Qatar, on 27th March 2026. Both teams are the top favourites to win the FIFA World Cup 2026 next summer and it will be a big opportunity for each side to test each other out to win the title, which will be a great morale booster for the main event in just a few months. Top-ranked Spain is the side to beat, having not lost a single game since March 2024 or a competitive affair in three years, crushing opponents at will with their sensational football, which helped them win the Euros and qualify for the World Cup in dominating fashion. Their opposition, Argentina, are the defending champions of the World Cup and are aiming to be only the third team in the competition's history to retain the honour, something which they did with back-to-back Copa America triumphs. Lionel Scaloni’s men are in good form too, topping their South American qualifiers and beating Spain would be making more statements of the team that will be hungry for success again. The clash will also be headlined by the face-off between one of the greatest to ever play the game, Lionel Messi, facing the brightest talent to come up in world football recently, Lamine Yamal.
FA Cup Final 2026 (May 16)
The final of the 145th edition of the FA Cup will take place on 16 May 2026 at Wembley Stadium, with the winners getting a chance to play in the League Phase of the 2026-27 Europa League. 64 teams are left in the competition, including all 20 Premier League teams this season, starting their journey in the third round. Winning the FA Cup remains prestigious and it continues to be a tournament that produces fairytales of the highest order, just like Crystal Palace, who defeated the favourites Manchester City, not only clinching the title but their first trophy in their 120-year history. This season also hopes to produce a remarkable storyline as teams look to add the historic Cup to their trophy cabinet either for the first time or for the collection.
UEFA Women’s Champions League Final 2026 (May 22)
The 2025-26 UEFA Women’s Champions League became a historic season as the group stage format of the competition was abolished in favour of a new Swiss Model League Phase format, just like the men’s. 18 teams were put into a single league, with each team playing six different opponents, home and away, with the top four teams automatically advancing to the quarterfinals, with teams ranked fifth to 12th going through a knockout phase playoffs to determine the other four sides. The final of the competition will be played at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, Norway, on 23 May 2026, with several contenders for the trophy. Barcelona would look to reclaim their dominance in the competition with a fourth title in six years, while Arsenal, who ended their chance for a three-peat, will look to defend the title. City rivals Chelsea will hope to finally end their thirst for a European trophy in their era under Sonia Bompastor, while her ex-employee Lyon is in the mix to add a record-extending ninth honour and remind everyone why they are the undisputed queens of the competition.
2025-26 Premier League Final Matchday (May 24)
Like any season, the final day of the 2025-26 Premier League season on 24 May 2026 will be a big event in itself. The title race is looking to be tight with Arsenal, once looking to be head and shoulders above everyone, now carries just a two-point lead at the top, although they are in excellent form with just two losses in the first 17 matches at the time of writing. After a horrendous campaign last time, Manchester City are back on track this season, making themselves a title contender, while Aston Villa is a surprise name on the list with Unai Emery continuing to do a marvellous job at the club. Chelsea are also in the conversation, but they most likely will be in the battle for Champions League alongside holders Liverpool, who have fallen off significantly this season, surprise packages Sunderland and probably Manchester United, among others. It is left to see which battle drags on for another dramatic final day decider.
UEFA Champions League Final 2026 (May 30)
The month of May also means that it is the time for the UEFA Champions League final, marking the last big club event before the World Cup in 2026. The 71st final of the European premier club competition was played at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary, on 30 May 2026. Paris Saint-Germain won their first Champions League trophy last season in a dominating fashion and will be looking to maintain their supremacy this term. However, they will be challenged more severely this time with some top sides around, like FC Barcelona, who are desperate to overturn their disappointment of losing in the semifinals narrowly and missing their chance of an emphatic quadruple. Vincent Kompany’s Bayern Munich are playing some mesmerising football and have already defeated PSG in the League Phase as they look to add a seventh Champions League title in their history. Record winners Real Madrid are never out of the competition, while Manchester City, Liverpool, Inter Milan, or even a surprise contender could pop up in what is expected to be another thrilling end to the contest.
FIFA World Cup 2026 (June 11 - July 19)
The biggest event not just in the football calendar for 2026, but also among the sports events in the year, the FIFA World Cup 2026 will get underway in the USA, Canada and Mexico from 11 June 2026 to 19 July 2026, making it the first time the three nations are hosting the competition. The 23rd edition of the perennial international football competition on the planet will be historic in all senses, as this will be the biggest World Cup ever, featuring an incredible 48 teams, a significant increase from 32 and also the longest one to date. The total number of games played will increase from 64 to 104, with a new stage, the Round of 32, which will be played as the first round of the knockout phase of the competition. The teams will be split into twelve groups of four teams, with the top two teams in each group and the eight best third-placed teams will progress. Defending champions Argentina, Euro winners Spain, France, etc are among the frontrunners for the silverware, but the tournament will create far more stories, fairytales and drama of the highest order. The World Cup is always a whirlwind of emotions with the eyes around the globe hooked on, but the doze is expected to be more this time as it will be a tournament like nothing else.
