The 2026 World Cup is officially the most attended ever, according to FIFA.
Following the match between Ecuador and Germany at the New York/New Jersey stadium, the tournament’s cumulative attendance surpassed 3.6 million spectators.
For comparison, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar had just over 3.4 million spectators.
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The previous attendance record was set in 1994, when the World Cup — also held in the United States — drew a total of 3,587,538 spectators.
While the higher numbers can be attributed partly to an expanded tournament (from 32 countries to 48), this milestone comes before the start of the round of 32.
As of Friday, June 26, FIFA reported that June 25 marked the highest-attended day in World Cup history, with 426,834 spectators.
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Television numbers have been boosted as well, especially for the U.S. Men’s National Team.
The team’s 4–1 World Cup-opening win over Paraguay drew nearly 16 million viewers across FOX, FOX One, and Tubi, making it the most-watched USMNT telecast ever.
