USMNT schedule 2026: USA men's soccer games, dates, times, live stream and TV channel including home World Cup

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• USMNT schedule for 2026 calendar year
• Everything you need to know about the USMNT at the 2026 World Cup
• What we know about the 2026/27 CONCACAF Nations League
• Annual January camp moved to December

As the calendar turns to 2026, the United States men's national soccer team will embark on one of the most significant 12-month period of its entire history.

Set to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup in June and July, the USMNT are hoping to put their best foot forward with the opportunity to captivate the nation and generate unprecedented levels of excitement around the sport of soccer, reaching potential heights this nation has never experienced before.

Success at the World Cup, in the form of a potential run to the quarterfinals or beyond, would position the U.S. To build on that electricity and buzz over the next decade or more. In contrast, disappointment at this summer's tournament could codify the sport's inferior comparative level, squandering a once-in-a-lifetime chance to generate course-altering levels of attention.

While 2026 will be defined by the World Cup, the soccer slate across the calendar year extends across much more than just those two months.

AllSportsPeople brings you a look at how the USMNT schedule will shape up across 2026 and what is in store for this era-defining year of football across America.

MORE: Predicting the USMNT starting lineup and squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup

USMNT schedule 2026: USA men's soccer games

The United States will play two friendlies in the March international break, and then two more in the immediate run-up to the FIFA World Cup. There is no January camp in 2026, as U.S. Soccer has done away with the annual tradition and moved it to December.

While not official, it has been heavily rumored that the USMNT will take on Portugal and Belgium in the March international break, likely to play both in Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. These are likely to be confirmed once Portugal and Belgium officially secure qualification to the World Cup in the November international break, thus freeing up the March window from their qualifying playoff obligations that would otherwise see them booked if they failed to see out direct passage.

Then, the 2026 World Cup will commence, with the U.S. Playing its first game on Friday, June 12. Their group-stage opponents will be determined at the World Cup draw held on December 5.

After the World Cup is complete, it's not known what will fill out the rest of the 2026 schedule. It's believed that the 2025/26 CONCACAF Nations League will begin at some point during the fall, but when is not terribly clear at this stage. There is no precedent for the current post-World Cup calendar in the Nations League era, as the only other time the Nations League was scheduled around a World Cup was in 2022 when the FIFA tournament was contested in December.

MORE: A look back at the 2025 fixtures and results as the USMNT built towards the 2026 World Cup

* If U.S. Qualifies
** Takes place outside official FIFA international window, meaning clubs are not required to release players for international duty
*** Not yet official, only heavily reported

USMNT schedule at 2026 FIFA World Cup

The United States will take part in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, playing host to the famed competition for the second time following the 1994 tournament won by Brazil.

This time, they are joint-hosts alongside Canada and Mexico, as the tournament is played across nations for just the second time ever after the 2002 competition in South Korea and Japan.

MORE: Does Donal Trump have the right to move World Cup games?

USMNT in the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The group-stage slate for the USMNT is already set in part, as all hosts are pre-drawn into specific pools. All that remains is to determine their opponents.

The United States were drawn into Group D, with the group's other three teams to be decided at the World Cup draw in early December.

To qualify automatically for the knockout stage, teams must finish top two in their group standings. The eight best-performing third-place teams will also qualify for the Round of 32 based on their group-stage results.

USMNT group stage fixtures

Group D standings

USMNT in the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup

While the group-stage slate for the USMNT was already solidified well in advance of the tournament, their potential knockout pathway remains up in the air until they secure mathematical qualification.

Should the U.S. Qualify for the Round of 32, either by placing top two in their group or being one of the eight third-place qualifiers, they have five potential places they could end up in.

Here are all five possible locations the U.S. Could wind up slotting into, as well as their path to the final from each one.

Path for USA in World Cup knockout — 1st place in Group D

Path for USA in World Cup knockout — 2nd place in Group D

Path for USA in World Cup knockout — 3rd place qualifier

As a member of Group D, the United States have three potential places in the knockout stage bracket they could be sorted into should they qualify as one of the eight third-place qualifiers.

Until all qualifiers are known, it is impossible to predict where or when they could potentially play should this come to pass. There are 495 mathematical combinations of third place qualifiers, with 330 of them involving a participant from Group D. All of these have been spelled out in advance, and every potential outcome can be found in Annex C (pg. 80) of the 2026 FIFA World Cup regulations.

Potential path 1 — Face Winner of Group E

There are 202 total combinations of third-place qualifiers that would see the U.S. Play the winner from Group E, which is by far the most likely result.

Potential path 2 — Face Winner of Group I

There are 111 possible combinations of third-place qualifiers that would see the USMNT face the winner of Group I in the Round of 32.

Potential path 3 — Face Winner of Group K

This is by far the least likely scenario for if the U.S. Were to qualify as a third place finisher, with only 17 of the possible 495 combinations of third-place qualifiers resulting in this placement.

* If USA qualifies via 1st place in Group D
** If USA qualifies via 2nd place in Group D

2026/27 CONCACAF Nations League

It's likely that the fall of 2026 will see the resumption of the CONCACAF Nations League for the 2026/27 edition of the competition.

The annual tournament, which was created to cut down on the number of friendlies being contested yearly, skipped the 2025/26 edition as North American teams focus on their World Cup preparations.

At this point, it's not known when the competition will be played, but judging by previous editions, it can be safely assumed that the two-legged quarterfinals will be played in November 2026, while the one-off semifinals and finals will be contested the following March, mirroring the last time this competition was played in 2024/25.

Annual January camp moved to December for 2026 and beyond

U.S. Soccer announced in late 2025 that it was permanently moving the annual January camp to December, meaning the early 2026 edition of the traditional meetup is being effectively skipped.

Every year, the USMNT convenes for either one or two international friendlies outside the traditional FIFA international break. As such, the roster is almost entirely made up of domestic-based players, who are in the middle of their offseason at the time of the camp, as MLS plays from March to November.

Clubs are not required to release players for international duty outside of officially designated international breaks, and therefore most European-based players would not be available for action at this time.

Convening in December instead of January affords players less conflict with their club's preseason ramp-up.