Set Your Clocks: The Story Behind the World Cup Timings

Games at 4 a.m.? Better get used to it. Here is the explanation for a schedule that will frustrate Israeli fans, from the globalization of football to the impact of a worsening climate. Welcome to the new era.

Sport 5, published: 11.06.26, 13:57 Photo: Sport 5

Set your clocks. After the 2018 World Cup was held in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the tournament has moved back to the other side of the globe. The 2026 World Cup, the biggest ever, will take place in the United States, Canada and Mexico, at very difficult hours for the Israeli public. How difficult? There will be matches at 1 a.m., 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. There will indeed be quite a few matches at convenient times, but in practice, between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. there is not expected to be any football. This is different from Qatar, where we saw midday matches, or from Russia, in locations more convenient for Europeans. To the credit of the World Cup organizers, most European teams will play in the evening hours in Israel, but Norway, Senegal, for example, will play at 3 a.m. Two of Brazil’s three matches will be deep into the night, and the intriguing Colombia, Portugal match will be at 2:30 a.m. between June 27 and 28.

Water breaks are becoming part of football (Vincent Mignott/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) | Photo: Sport 5

The first and most significant explanation is related to broadcasting rights. While Qatar was, of course, one country with stadiums close to one another, the geographic spread across the 2026 United States, Mexico and Canada is among the largest there has ever been. There are three time zones and 16 different cities, so control over the schedule is limited. We see something similar, for example, in the NBA, where regular-season games start alternately from 7 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Eastern time, in an effort to accommodate the different cities.

This explanation is even more true in the global context. Europe is still, by far, the largest football market, but viewing habits in the developing world have changed significantly. Access to football matches in South America has increased sharply thanks to the streaming revolution and social media. Once many people can watch matches, FIFA’s ratings potential rises. This is where the new markets come in, the real growth engine of football and what influenced the postponement of the Champions League. Football viewing habits in China, India and Africa differ dramatically, thanks on one hand to increased exposure to the sport and on the other to changes in viewing habits. Hundreds of millions of fans in China and Indonesia watch matches, not only those of the local teams. In such a case, the European market is no longer so important and will not be the only consideration when it comes to match times. It is an economic interest for FIFA.

An examination we conducted found that in the 1994 World Cup, about 73% of the matches, 38 of 52, were at convenient times for viewers in Israel, compared with 41%, 43 of 104, in the 2026 World Cup. The tournament doubled in size, but the number of convenient matches fell. Football has become more global and has drawn more fans, but that comes at the expense of convenient viewing hours here in Israel. Given the way the game is developing, there is a scenario in which we will see similar things in the 2030 World Cup, which will be held in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, or even in 2034, in Saudi Arabia.

That is one explanation. The second, and even more significant, is global warming, one of the central issues in last year’s Club World Cup. Given the expected heat in some of the cities where the World Cup will be held, especially on the eastern side of the United States, it is simply impossible to play during the day. In last year’s Club World Cup we saw matches delayed because of extreme heat loads and lightning storms at the same time, and the problem is only getting worse from year to year. In 2022 and 2034 the World Cup simply moved to winter, while in 2018 it was held in cool Russia. A study by the players’ organization claimed that a quarter of the matches are expected to take place in extreme heat conditions, which could endanger the players’ health. That is nearly twice the amount seen in the 1994 World Cup, and it is likely we will see match times gradually shift under pressure from protest and concern for the players’ health themselves. If it is too hot to play during the day, they will wait until night.

Given that midnight in Israel is 5 p.m. Eastern time, we will see more matches at later hours in an effort to create balance between the different teams. A team that plays in extreme heat and only at noon will be at a physical disadvantage compared with a team that plays in the evening, which could decide the World Cup. That is why England, Panama or Norway, Senegal will be played in the small hours of the night. Even if that means the second match will take place at 2:00 in Oslo or at midnight in Dakar. Sporting fairness matters too.

Could this be the future of football and sport in general? Maybe. It will be interesting to see the impact by the time Los Angeles 2028 arrives, since the Tokyo Olympics also took place at hours that were not really hours for the Israeli public, in part because of exactly these considerations. If it is too hot, to the point that it endangers the players, they should not be on the pitch.

The third and simplest explanation, probably, is that the World Cup has grown. The 2026 World Cup is the first with 48 national teams, which led to 104 matches and a much more crowded group stage and knockout phase. FIFA wants to avoid a situation in which there are two matches at the same time, in an effort to give viewers the opportunity to consume as much football as possible, which leads to an impressive spread of matches throughout the tournament. Given that the hours available to play are already limited? Football at night, at least in the early stages. The knockout rounds will look different. In the round of 16, there are two matches in the small hours of the night, two that start at midnight, two that start at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., and two in our early evening. The semifinals and the final will be at 10 p.m. our time. One quarterfinal will start at 4 a.m., the others between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. Not ideal, but that is the way it is in our world. Everyone has to be considered.

2026 World Cup, found a language error?