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Which teams are playing in the 2030 World Cup?
The 2030 tournament is big: 104 matches over about six weeks, nearly all of them in the three main host countries, ending with the final on July 21, 2030 (and that location to be determined; more on that below).
It may get even bigger: South America’s soccer body, CONMEBOL, wants to grow the field from the 48 teams in this tournament to a whopping 64, and FIFA’s president signaled in mid-July that he’ll at least hear the idea out once this summer’s World Cup wraps.
Which cities will be hosting the 2030 World Cup?
Hosting for the first time since 1982, Spain gets the largest slice of the games, with Madrid and Barcelona at the forefront and additional matches spread across the country; the exact list of Spanish cities is still being finalized. Portugal, hosting for the first time ever, will hold games in Lisbon and Porto.
Morocco will make history as the first North African host and the second on the African continent (South Africa hosted in 2010), with matches spread across six cities from Tangier to Agadir. Outside Casablanca, in Benslimane, the country is building the 115,000-seat Grand Stade Hassan II, a 115,000-seat arena shaped like a traditional Moroccan tent that will be the largest soccer stadium in the world.
And of course, the South American capitals hosting opening matches will go all in on the experience, even if only for one game apiece: Montevideo’s Centenario closes later this year for a 30-month overhaul timed to the anniversary that will add a roof to every stand (except for its tower), and increase capacity from 60,235 to 63,000.
