Where Is The 2026 World Cup And Who Are The Favourites?

The FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world, attracting millions of viewers a year, but when did it start? And how many nations have won it?

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) was created in 1904, and its creation planted the seed for the World Cup.

FIFA, from its formation, reserved the right to form a global competition and first tried it in 1906.

It wasn’t until after World War I that FIFA took over the administration of the Olympic Games football tournaments, the first of which was a huge success and shocked European fans due to the high levels of play that were seen from South America, with Uruguay winning the tournament.

Less than thirty years after the development of FIFA, the first World Cup was played in Uruguay in 1930. It was originated by Jules Rimet, a French lawyer and businessman who was the Honorary President of FIFA from 1921 to 1954.

He was in Paris for the Olympic Games in 1924, and it inspired him to create a worldwide professional competition open to all world nations.

Where Is The 2026 World Cup?

The 2026 World Cup is set to be held in three North American countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada. This will mark a significant milestone as it will be the first time in history that the tournament is jointly hosted by three different nations.

Additionally, it will be a groundbreaking moment for Canada as they will be hosting the event for the very first time.

The tournament is set to be a historic event with 48 teams taking part; it will be the largest expansion the tournament has ever seen.

In Which Stadium Will The 2026 World Cup Final Be Held?

The 2026 World Cup final will be held at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States.

MetLife Stadium is a renowned sports venue and serves as the home stadium for the NFL teams, the New York Giants and New York Jets.

It has a seating capacity of over 82,000 spectators and will host the culminating match of the tournament, determining the champion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

World Cup 2026 Odds

Betfred Odds applicable as of 12/05/2023- FIFA World Cup 2026
France	*5/1*	Brazil	*11/2*	England	7/1
Argentina	*9/1*	Spain	9/1	Germany	9/1
Portugal	*14/1*	Netherlands	18/1	USA	*18/1*
Italy	*22/1*	Uruguay	*30/1*	Belgium	*30/1*
Mexico	*50/1*	Croatia	*50/1*	Morocco	*60/1*
Switzerland	*60/1*	Denmark	*60/1*	Japan	*80/1*

As we can see, France is currently the favourite. Then again, on recent form they really do deserve it! But just who will win in 2026 remains to be seen.

What Country Won The First FIFA World Cup?

The first FIFA World Cup was won by the national team of Uruguay. The tournament took place in 1930 in Uruguay’s capital city, Montevideo. Thirteen teams from around the world participated in the competition.

Uruguay won the tournament by defeating Argentina 4-2 in the final match, which was held on July 30, 1930. The match took place at the Estadio Centenario, a newly built stadium in Montevideo. The atmosphere was electric, with an estimated crowd of 93,000 spectators witnessing the historic event.

The final itself was a closely contested match. Argentina took an early lead with a goal from Carlos Peucelle, but Uruguay quickly equalised through Pedro Cea. The score remained 1-1 at halftime.

In the second half, Uruguay’s Victoriano Iriarte scored the go-ahead goal, and Hector Castro extended their lead shortly after.

Argentina managed to pull one back through Guillermo Stábile, but it wasn’t enough to catch up. Uruguay sealed their victory with a fourth goal from Santos Iriarte, securing a 4-2 win.

Uruguay’s triumph in the first World Cup was a significant achievement for the host nation. It showcased their footballing prowess and marked the beginning of a storied football history for Uruguay.

All The World Cup Winners

World War II interrupted the World Cup, with the 1942 and 1946 tournaments being cancelled.

However, afterward, the UK rejoined FIFA, and the Home Championship was used as a qualifying round. That resulted in England going through to the 1950 competition in Brazil.

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It was England’s first time playing in the tournament, but they lost to a USA team called the ‘Ellis Island Team’ because of their high numbers of immigrant players. England lost again to Spain, who progressed to the final round, but Uruguay won the World Cup again!

England did, of course, go on to win the World Cup in 1966. They beat West Germany 4-2 in the final at Wembley, with Geoff Hurst scoring a hat-trick.

Since then, England has never been to a World Cup final. The closest they got was the Semi-Finals in 2018. Other than England, here is every country that has won a World Cup.