World Cup 2026 time zones: complete guide for fans in the USA

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the first in history to be held simultaneously in three countries — the United States, Mexico, and Canada — and spans four different time zones. For Brazilians living abroad or with family in different parts of the world, understanding this timezone distribution is essential to avoid missing any match. This guide explains how each timezone works during the tournament and how to convert any kickoff time to Brasília, Lisbon, or any other city.

How many time zones does the 2026 World Cup cover?

The 16 host cities of the 2026 World Cup are spread across four main time zones, all with daylight saving time active during the tournament (June–July):

• Eastern Time (EDT, UTC-4): New York, Boston, Miami, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Toronto
• Central Time (CDT, UTC-5): Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey
• Mountain Time (MDT, UTC-6): Denver (no confirmed group-stage matches)
• Pacific Time (PDT, UTC-7): Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver

Eastern Time (EDT) is the most important zone: it hosts the majority of the highest-profile matches, including all of Brazil's group stage games.

How to convert ET to Brasília and other time zones

FIFA publishes match times in the host city's local timezone. But most international broadcasts use ET (Eastern Time) as the reference, especially on American channels. Throughout the entire 2026 World Cup, use these fixed formulas:

From ET (Eastern Time, EDT, UTC-4):

• Brasília (BRT, UTC-3) = ET + 1 hour
• Lisbon (WEST, UTC+1) = ET + 5 hours
• London (BST, UTC+1) = ET + 5 hours
• Paris (CEST, UTC+2) = ET + 6 hours
• Tokyo = ET + 13 hours
• Dubai = ET + 8 hours

Practical example: a match at 6:00 PM ET in New York = 7:00 PM in Brasília, 11:00 PM in Lisbon, 7:00 AM the next day in Tokyo.

Matches in Central Time (CDT) cities — Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Mexico

Matches in Central Time cities start 1 hour earlier relative to ET. So to convert to Brasília, add 2 hours to the local host city time:

Brasília = local CDT time + 2 hours

For example, a match at 1:00 PM in Dallas (CDT) starts at 3:00 PM in Brasília. And a match at 9:00 PM in Houston starts at 11:00 PM Brasília time.

The Mexican cities — Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey — also operate on Central Time during the tournament. Mexico does not observe daylight saving time the same way as the US, but in June the differences are minimal for calculation purposes.

Matches in Pacific Time (PDT) cities — Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Vancouver

Pacific Time is the farthest from Brazil among the host city time zones. To convert to Brasília, add 4 hours to the local time:

Brasília = local PDT time + 4 hours

This means a match at 3:00 PM in Los Angeles starts at 7:00 PM in Brasília — the same time as Brazil's opening match against Morocco in New York. Meanwhile, matches at 8:00 PM in Seattle or San Francisco start at midnight in Brasília.

Why does daylight saving time matter so much for the 2026 World Cup?

During June and July, daylight saving time is active across the entire United States (except Arizona) and Canada. This makes the timezone differences relative to Brazil smaller than in winter. To understand exactly how US daylight saving time works, which states don't change their clocks, and how this affects calls and meetings with Brazil, read our complete guide on the QueHoras blog.

Brazil abolished daylight saving time in 2019 and remains fixed at UTC-3 year-round. This means that, unlike in previous years, there is no mid-tournament timezone shift between Brazil and the US — the calculation is stable from the first match to the final. To learn more about time zones within Brazil itself, check the dedicated article on QueHoras.

Reference table: typical match times in Brasília

FIFA organizes matches into four fixed time windows, always in ET. See the conversion for Brasília and Lisbon:

• 12:00 PM ET / 11:00 AM CDT / 09:00 AM PDT = 13:00 Brasília / 17:00 Lisbon
• 3:00 PM ET / 2:00 PM CDT / 12:00 PM PDT = 16:00 Brasília / 20:00 Lisbon
• 6:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM CDT / 3:00 PM PDT = 19:00 Brasília / 23:00 Lisbon
• 9:00 PM ET / 8:00 PM CDT / 6:00 PM PDT = 22:00 Brasília / 02:00 Lisbon (next day)

Brazil's group stage matches fall in the 6:00 PM ET (7:00 PM Brasília) and 9:00 PM ET (10:00 PM Brasília) windows. See detailed times at: Brazil match times at the 2026 World Cup.

Brazilians in the USA: what time to watch?

For Brazilians living in the United States, the national team's matches fall at very convenient times:

• East Coast (New York, Miami, Boston): Brazil vs Morocco and Scotland vs Brazil at 6:00 PM (prime time). Brazil vs Haiti at 9:00 PM.
• Central (Dallas, Houston): Brazil vs Morocco and Scotland vs Brazil at 5:00 PM. Brazil vs Haiti at 8:00 PM.
• West Coast (Los Angeles, Seattle): Brazil vs Morocco and Scotland vs Brazil at 3:00 PM. Brazil vs Haiti at 6:00 PM.

To see the full schedule of all World Cup matches, visit: quehoras.co/world-cup-2026.