2026 World Cup sets all-time attendance record with 3.6 million fans, surpassing 1994 mark
The 2026 Men's World Cup became the most-attended FIFA World Cup in history Thursday, with the matches at New York-New Jersey Stadium and Philadelphia Stadium surpassing the previous record of 3,587,538 fans set in 1994.
During Thursday's World Cup match at New York-New Jersey Stadium between Ecuador and Germany, the total tournament record was surpassed at 3,587,539 fans, FIFA said. In the 65th minute of the match between Ecuador and Germany, FIFA recognized fan No. 3,587,539 on the pitch alongside German legend Sami Khedira as the record was announced inside the stadium.
Following the end of the Côte d'Ivoire-Curaçao match at Philadelphia Stadium, the new World Cup all-time attendance record now stands at 3,605,357 — and counting.
The 2026 Men's World Cup also set a new daily attendance record on Thursday with 384,206 fans across all matches. The tournament is also on track to set its highest stadium occupancy in World Cup history at 99.7%.
The 1994 World Cup, which was in the United States, set the previous all-time attendance record at 3,587,538 in 52 matches. In that tournament, 24 national teams participated, and stadiums were at about 96% capacity. However, the number of teams participating has increased for this year's World Cup.
The 2026 World Cup is the first to feature 48 teams, which is 12 more than the last World Cup in 2022 in Qatar. A total of 104 matches will be played in the 2026 World Cup — 40 more than 2022.
Philadelphia will host two more World Cup matches — Croatia vs. Ghana on Saturday and a Round of 16 match on the Fourth of July.
Last week, organizers said Philadelphia's FIFA Fan Festival was the most visited in the United States.
