An impressive number of fans celebrate the FIFA World Cup™ at the FIFA Fan Festival™ after first 24 matches played
Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey drawing the biggest crowds
Venues in Canada and the US operating consistently at capacity
Expansive programme of events planned for rest of tournament, which runs until 19 July
As the FIFA World Cup 2026™ captures global attention, the FIFA Fan Festival™ is becoming the place to be for fans across North America looking to soak up the atmosphere and play their part in the world’s greatest show.
During this year’s tournament, 13 Host Cities – across all three host nations – are staging events, and all of them have enthusiastically welcomed visitors eager to watch world-class international football.
Indeed, one of the early storylines has been the enthusiastic, packed crowds at the FIFA Fan Festival, which reached the 2 million visitor mark today after registering 1,992,302 visitors throughout the first round of matches in the FIFA World Cup 2026 that concluded yesterday, 17 June. While venues in Canada and the US have been consistently operating at capacity, the three Mexican host cities take the lead so far when it comes to attracting the biggest crowds, with cumulative attendance figures of 527,100, 244,710 and 218,424 in Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara respectively.
“The FIFA Fan Festival has been a key part of our offering to fans, and we are delighted at the reception it has received from visitors so far,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “We wanted to create spaces across the host nations where local residents and fans from around the globe could come together to enjoy the FIFA World Cup 2026, as well as spectacular entertainment and local flavours. The fantastic response we have already received is testament to the vision and dedication of the host cities, and we look forward to welcoming millions more fans over the coming weeks.”
The tone was set on Thursday, 11 June, the opening day of the competition, as fans descended upon Mexico City’s Zócalo main square to watch the co-hosts win their opening match, with full crowds cheering on El Tri in Monterrey and Guadalajara as well.
The strong turnout built on momentum that began 24 hours earlier, at the special Countdown Concert in Mexico City, Los Angeles and Toronto, with the FIFA Fan Festival in the Canadian city drawing a crowd to watch performances by Bryan Adams, The Beaches, Nora Fatehi featuring Sanjoy and Vegedream, as well as a collaboration between AHI and Wyclef Jean.
Then on 12 June, as Canada and the USA both kicked off their campaigns with positive results, full venues were reported across locations in both host countries.
Subsequent days have seen well-attended events in cities as diverse as Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Miami and Vancouver – all of them bringing their own unique cultural highlights and entertainment to the party. Musical performances from the likes of Luis Fonsi (Philadelphia), Pitbull (Miami), Jessie Reyez (Vancouver) and Summer Walker (Atlanta) have also attracted great interest.
With plenty of concerts and events planned alongside live broadcast of FIFA World Cup™ matches on big screens, the FIFA Fan Festival experience is set to become even more memorable over the coming weeks.
Upcoming highlights include performances by Ludacris, Killer Mike, Ceelo Green, and Davido in Atlanta, while the likes of Mötley Crüe, The All-American Rejects, Flo Rida, Ashanti, Ja Rule and The Chainsmokers are lined up in other locations.
For opening times in each Host City and information around artist performances, match screenings and tickets, please visit the , sign up to the Host City WhatsApp channels and download the official FIFA Tournament App, available on the and .
Sources: FIFA Official
