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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Sport
Alexander Abnos in New York

Tickets, travel and Trump: How the 2026 World Cup is shaping up six months from the final

Lionel Messi’s Argentina won the last World Cup. Who will triumph in this year’s final?
Lionel Messi’s Argentina won the last World Cup. Who will triumph in this year’s final? Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

We’re only six months from the biggest single sporting occasion in the world. On 19 July in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the men’s World Cup final will kick off and a champion will be crowned (although it will be hard to top the last one).

The final will be more than a coronation (or confirmation, if Argentina repeat as champions). It will also be a culmination of six weeks of near non-stop soccer played across three countries, four time zones, and 16 cities. It’s likely that conclusions will already be drawn at that point on how the whole tournament fared. But for now, at this semi-convenient milestone, it’s worth taking stock of where we are six months out.

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