Will AT&T Stadium host final match of 2026 World Cup? Here’s what FIFA brass has to say

It’s unclear where the final match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be played, but Jerry World is sure to be in the mix.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be hosted jointly — for the first time — by three nations. Hosting duties will be split between the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Arlington and AT&T Stadium found out it would be a host city for matches last year.

“We have the option in this country to have so many stadiums that would be a good potential final venue,” said Heimo Schirgi, chief operating officer for FIFA World Cup. “So that’s a privilege, but I’ll not speculate about the final.”

FIFA officials were in North Texas on Tuesday on a second wave of visits with local representatives of the 16 host cities and stadiums across the North American continent. The FIFA brass were in town to talk about stadium infrastructure such as how a grass pitch can be installed, what hospitality features may be offered and how to move fans around the Dallas-Fort Worth area to Arlington for the matches.

The global soccer organization has not announced how many matches AT&T Stadium will host, but the venue is hungry for whatever comes its way, said Monica Paul, Dallas Sports Commission executive director.

Whenever the local Dallas organizers made their pitch to FIFA officials several years ago, they were hopeful to host four to six matches. Now that FIFA has expanded the number of teams for the 2026 event, it’s likely to be the biggest World Cup ever.

“We anticipate roughly possibly seven to eight matches,” Paul said.

As for the World Cup Final, rumors have swirled around soccer circles on whether AT&T Stadium could host the biggest match of the tournament — a tantalizing prospect that would put literally a billion set of eyeballs on North Texas..

A total World Cup experience in Arlington

When it comes to getting North Texas ready to host FIFA matches, AT&T Stadium isn’t the only venue getting in on the fun.

Discussions are ongoing with nearby Globe Life Field and Choctaw Stadium, about hosting concerts and fan experiences to coincide with the matches, FC Dallas president Dan Hunt said. There’s a chance some of those fan events could even be spread out into Fort Worth and Dallas.

“We’re hoping to make Dallas-Fort Worth the absolute epicenter of soccer in the world in 2026,” Hunt said.

FIFA World Cup matches are only played on grass, which will compel AT&T Stadium to make a significant adjustment.

The stadium has had grass surfaces in the stadium before, but this time it will be an entirely different process, said Chad Estis, Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President of Business Operations.

For the first time ever, the stadium will use a grow light system for the grass and will be in consultation with FIFA to meet all pitch standards, Estis said. As for the cost of converting to grass, Estis said the local organizing committee is still working on finalizing a budget.

“We’re still actually piecing together total cost, that will be part of today as well,” Estis said. “Today’s very focused on the operational plan of the venue itself.”

Getting fans to the stadium for matches was always going to be a challenge — one that Tarrant County is certainly aware of. If multiple matches are played in Arlington, which has one public transportation option called Via Rideshare (a service akin to calling a taxi or Uber), an expansive transportation solution has to be found.

Paul said there’s been ongoing discussions with the North Texas Council of Governments and local transportation providers about how to get fans to and from AT&T Stadium.

Despite a wealth of work to do, local organizers for the 2026 event are just happy to be a part of it.

“Honestly just humbled and honored to be a host city of any matches, regardless of the number of matches or the level of matches in 2026,” Paul.

How did the World Cup make it back to North Texas?

The United States, Canada and Mexico have been vying to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup as far back as 2017.

A joint bid from the three countries had 23 host city candidates on the list, including Arlington’s AT&T Stadium. In June 2018, FIFA officials voted on the host countries for the 2026 event and chose the three country bid by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Two years later in 2020, FIFA officials visited North Texas where a group of local representatives from the Dallas Sports Commission, Dallas Cowboys and FC Dallas, made their pitch to host matches at AT&T Stadium.

Another two years would pass and finally in 2022, FIFA announced the host cities for the 2026 World Cup with Arlington’s AT&T Stadium making the cut.

The host country for every FIFA World Cup automatically qualifies for the tournament, meaning that teams for the U.S., Canada and Mexico are in.

Dallas hosted six World Cup games in 1994, but that was at the Cotton Bowl in Fair Park. AT&T Stadium has hosted soccer, though, including some Gold Cup games this past summer.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026.