World Cup Seattle
World Cup 2026 - Seattle
Seattle is one of 16 cities across three countries, USA, Mexico and Canada, to host world cup matches in 2026, and one of only 11 US cities. Seattle is part of the Western Region for the 2026 World Cup, joining Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver. Lumen field, the current name of the soccer and football stadium where the games will be held, will need to be converted to a grass field, as it currently sports an artificial turf field. Although this will be the first time grass has been used in Lumen field, the stadium was built with the expectation it may one day hold World Cup Games, and does have some infrastructure in place to support grass fields.
The stadium is located within the city of Seattle, in an area often referred to as SODO (South of Downtown). The stadium is conveniently located near public transportation, including buses, trains and ferries, and is walkable from many hotels in the downtown Seattle area.
Schedule
The world cup kicks off in Mexico with the opening match slated for June 11, 2026, in Mexico City. Seattle will host a total of six games through June and July. Four of the games will be in the group stage in June, with the one of the games featuring the US Men's National Team. The other two games are in July and consist of a round of 32 game and a round of 16 game. Seattle was fortunate to land a US Men's National Team game in the group stage, ensuring a chance to catch the USMNT. While the exact process for determining locations isn't divulged, the coach of the USMNT Greg Berhalter mentioned he requested the US team play the group stage in nearby cities, to minimize travel times and time zone issues. Hence, Los Angeles and Seattle were selected for the USMNT group stage games. Given two of the three group stage games will be played in Los Angeles, the team is expected to be based out of LA for the group stage, traveling to Seattle for the one game.
- June 15, 2026: Group stage
- June 19, 2026: USMNT group stage
- June 24, 2026: Group stage
- June 26, 2026: Group stage
- July 1, 2026: Round of 32
- July 6, 2026: Round of 16
Transportation
Lumen Stadium, the venue for the World Cup 2026 games in Seattle, is located just south of downtown Seattle in a neighborhood called SODO (South of Downtown) and has a number of transportation options. There are parking garages and private parking lots located near the stadium, with prices for parking expected to be $50 and above, although lower pricing may be available farther away from the stadium.
For public transportation, there are a number of options, including bus routes which terminate just north of the stadiums. The light rail train's SODO station is conveniently located near the stadium, and let's not overlook the ferries, with the Seattle terminal less than a half mile away from the stadium.
Lodging
Seattle sees about 18 million overnight visitors per year, and has a large number of lodging options. However, nearby hotels are expected to sell out well in advance of the World Cup, with some hotels reporting they were already receiving booking requests when Seattle was announced as a venue, but match dates had not been released yet. Hotels on the outskirts of Seattle may provide the best value, and combined with public transportation, still provide a relatively easy commute to the game.
Another popular option, especially for larger groups or families, involves renting a house, typically through AirBNB or VRBO. In recent years, Seattle has capped the number of short term rentals by disallowing multiple short term properties to be owned by an individual or corporation, however, there is still a decent supply of short term rentals in Seattle and the surrounding areas.
