England will begin their 2026 World Cup campaign against Croatia in Dallas on Wednesday 17 June, as Thomas Tuchel's side aim for glory in North America. The Three Lions enter the 48-team tournament as one of the favourites after an unbeaten qualifying campaign and a prolific season from captain Harry Kane.
England face Croatia, Ghana and Panama in the group stages, seeking a deeper run after finishing runners-up at Euro 2020 and Euro 2024. Croatia, led by 40-year-old midfielder Luka Modric, have an excellent recent record at major tournaments, and the two teams met in the 2018 World Cup semi-finals.
Tuchel's team won their final warm-up fixture against Costa Rica the night before the tournament kicked off. England will be one of the last teams to start their campaign, almost a week after the opening match. The match against Croatia takes place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, with kick-off at 4pm local time (9pm BST), broadcast on ITV 1 and ITV X.
England's remaining group matches are against Ghana on 23 June at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, and Panama on 27 June at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. Both matches kick off at 4pm ET (9pm BST) and 5pm ET (10pm BST) respectively.
