World Cup announces initial Gillette Stadium dates
FIFA has officially announced when Gillette Stadium will host the 2026 World Cup.
There will be seven soccer matches taking place in “Boston” for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will actually be at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. The stadium will host seven matches total, including five group stage matches, one from the round of 32, and finally, one quarterfinal match. That means up to 14 national teams could compete on the Gillette Stadium pitch come 2026.
MORE: Revs’ Christian Makoun named to Team Venezuela for World Cup Qualifiers
The quarterfinal match will mark the biggest World Cup event to be held in Massachusetts since the 1994 quarterfinal between Spain and Italy, which took place on July 9, 1994 at Foxboro Stadium.
Here are the official dates for all seven Gillette Stadium World Cup matches:
Saturday, June 13, 2026: Group Stage
Tuesday, June 16, 2026: Group Stage
Friday, June 19, 2026: Group Stage
Tuesday, June 23, 2026: Group Stage
Friday, June 26, 2026: Group Stage
Monday, June 29, 2026: Round of 32
Thursday, July 9, 2026: Quarterfinal
The Boston Consulting Group is projecting “nearly half a million” visitors to the Greater Boston area for the 2026 World Cup, and an “economic impact” of $500 million. According to World Cup Boston, multiple organizations, including Kraft Sports & Entertainment, are “working hard to ramp up coordinated efforts to ensure visitors experience Boston like never before.”
Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Check out all of Matt’s content.
Changes Patriots fans can expect at Gillette Stadium in 2023
2. Impact of the new lighthouse
Scott Zolak: You see the lighthouse when you drive by, what is the foot traffic pattern if any that has changed around that area for fans able to access gates from the north?
Jim Nolan: I think the biggest thing is and you know Zo, we started doing it last year, but we’ve moved the security line out from where it used to be right next to the pro shop. So we do the security screening first and we’ve actually expanded that plaza significantly. The the new plaza is over six acres of land. So what you’ll do is you’ll be screened as you come into the plaza, and then we’re going to have three ticket points of entry. One at our new grand stairs, you know, which comes up right behind the lighthouse. One is behind the pro shop, which is also ADA access to ADA elevators, and then one which is our Ticketmaster ramp, is as soon as you come through, the security screening is on your left and what it does is it spreads out both the security process and the ticketing process to make it much easier for fans coming in from the north to get into the building. You know, but the grand stairs, once you take the grand stairs up, it brings you to our 100 level, literally right beneath the lighthouse where we’ve added a ton of new fan amenities. When you arrive on the 100 level, we have three new food and beverage locations and we have three new bars, you know, all situated to create a communal space in the middle and each of these locations will have some new things that we haven’t served at Gillette Stadium before and then also some old favorites.
4. What are some of the new food favorites?
Inside the tunnel adjacent to the Bud Light Celebration Beer Hall.
Scott Zolak: What are some of the new favorites?
Jim Nolan: One of our locations iss called the Beacon Market and in the beacon market, we have new frying technology that all the big fried food chains use. I won’t name them, but we’re going to have a fried chicken sandwich, which I have tested, and it’s delicious. We’re going have a beef brisket sandwich. We’re going to have a pulled pork sandwich and we’re going to have mac and cheese with pulled pork. And at each of these locations, we’re also going to have healthy options, too. So, you know, we’re going to have salads and wraps and other things. For folks who’ve been down here before, these are more like the the markets that we’ve had on the 100 level. Just with different options.
5. Fans will be able to pour their own beers
Doctor’s Island Beer – Hull, Massachusetts.
Jim Nolan: I think my favorite is going to be The Takeaway Tavern. You’re going to be able to pour your own beer. And in in these locations, over the course of the month, we’re rolling out what is the technology called Zip In, which is kind of the just walk out technology, you know, where you’ll scan your credit card on the way in, you’ll pick up your items and you literally just walk out. So it’ll be much faster. But in The Takeaway Tavern, first of all, you can pour your own beer, which is really cool on a game day and then as you walk around, you can grab a smashed burger, which is top notch. So in that location we’ll have smashburger and french fries, of course. And then, you know, a big favorite at Gillette are the fried chicken tenders. So that’s a location. If you’re looking to grab a beer and grab a burger and do it really quickly, come find the Takeaway Tavern.
6. What’s the technology behind pouring your own beer?
Marc Bertrand: It’s just like a soda machine. Yeah, it’s go up and get your own.
Jim Nolan: No, you can’t do that. It’s a controlled pour, so you can’t top it off. But as we do with all alcohol servers in Gillette Stadium, it’s monitored. And so it will have the same, you know, our same attention to detail will go into that place. But it just kind of unique where you get to physically pour your own beer in an NFL Stadium.
Scott Zolak: Is it a special cup? Does it have a chip in it that like when you place it down… I’ve seen it. It’s like Pittsburgh has these.
Jim Nolan: There’s no chip in our cups, you know, so what you do is you pop the cup underneath the system and then you hit a button and it pours the exact amount. So on a 24 ounce cup, it’s going to pour 24 ounces of beer. And like I said, then you can’t you can’t top it off. But with the Zip In technology, once we, you know, we check your ID, we check your sobriety before your beer, you’re just literally going to walk out the door.
