World Cup 2026 fixtures in UK time

Time zone overview

The 16 host cities span four time zones. In UK summer time (BST, UTC+1), the offsets are:

Note: Mexico observes different summer time rules. Check individual fixture times as the tournament approaches — FIFA will publish confirmed kick-off times closer to the start date.

What typical kick-off times mean for UK viewers

FIFA typically schedules matches at local times of noon, 3pm, and 6pm or later. Here is how those translate to UK time (BST):

West Coast venues (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver) will produce late-night and post-midnight kick-offs for UK viewers. East Coast and central venues will be more civilised.

Key matches to watch for

Fixtures that will matter most to UK sweepstake players:

• England's group stage fixtures — dates and times will be confirmed by FIFA in advance. England's first match is anticipated in mid-June 2026.
• Opening ceremony and first match — typically a showcase fixture at one of the premium stadiums. Likely an afternoon UK time kick-off.
• Quarter-finals, semi-finals, and Final — knockout stage fixtures at higher-profile venues; expect some late UK evening kick-offs.

The BBC and ITV will broadcast the tournament in the UK, and both will publish confirmed schedule guides closer to kick-off.

How fixture timing affects your sweepstake

With 104 matches spread across up to three games per day, the leaderboard in a World Cup 2026 sweepstake will be moving constantly. A few things to bear in mind:

• Late kick-offs mean overnight score changes — participants may wake up to a very different leaderboard
• Multiple matches per day means big point swings are common, especially early in the group stage
• An auto-updating leaderboard means you do not need to manually update anything — playdrawr tracks scores automatically