Kickoff in Houston
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The German national team will play its group games at the 2026 World Cup in Houston, Toronto and in the final arena in East Rutherford near New York. As FIFA announced at its second show act on the day after the group draw in Washington, the DFB team’s opening game against Curaçao will kick off on June 14th at 12:00 p.m. local time in the Houston Stadium, i.e. at 7:00 p.m. German time.
The arena in Texas has a roof and can be air-conditioned, so the expected high temperatures should not be a problem for players and fans.
World Cup 2026: Games two and three until shortly before midnight
For the next two games, fans will have to stay awake until just before midnight in order to be there live until the final whistle. The second game on June 20th against Ivory Coast will take place in Toronto, Canada. Kick-off is at 4 p.m. local time, 10 p.m. in Germany.
We’re heading to the east coast for the group final against Ecuador. The MetLife Stadium, which has the somewhat awkward name New York-New Jersey Stadium during the World Cup, will also be played on June 25th at 4 p.m. US time, again 10 p.m. in Germany. The final will also take place there, kick-off is on July 19th at 3:00 p.m. local time, i.e. at 9:00 p.m. German time.
For national coach Julian Nagelsmann and the national players, the later kick-off times also mean that the very hot midday heat is avoided.
As group winners, Germany would return to the final in East Rutherford via Foxborough near Boston, Philadelphia, Foxborough again and Arlington near Dallas. As a group runner-up, the tournament path to the final would mean: Arlington, East Rutherford, Miami Gardens and Atlanta. Then kick-off times on the German night are also possible in knockout games.
