The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup will be held from June 11 – July 19, 2026, in 16 cities across the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The 2026 World Cup will feature 104 matches between 48 countries (up from 32 in previous years) and marks the first time a World Cup has been hosted by more than one country. The influx of hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors, including prominent global leaders, requires a multi-faceted, comprehensive safety and security plan not just for the stadium and its immediate surroundings, but also for the city, state, and broader geographic regions. The World Cup’s global scale, multi-match structure, length of time, and cultural impact make it fundamentally different from other large-scale events like the Super Bowl. As such, jurisdictions preparing to host World Cup matches face unique challenges for emergency response and safety preparation that they need to start preparing for today.
Since 1998, the NPDC and its member organizations have been preparing our nation’s responders to respond to and recover from a variety of natural and manmade threats. The NDPC stands ready to train responders as their cities prepare to host the influx of people and events that the World Cup will bring.
Learn more about the NDPC’s members and their training lanes here. For more information on the World Cup’s impact on the responder community, please visit NDPC member LSU NCBRT/ACE’s World Cup webpage.
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