Overview
- The tournament kicks off on Thursday, June 11, with Mexico facing South Africa at 21:00 MESZ in Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca, which becomes the first venue to host three World Cup openers.
- ZDF will air the opener on free TV, while Telekom/MagentaTV hold rights across all 104 matches with ARD/ZDF sublicenses and a free Joyn livestream for selected games.
- Germany, drawn in Group E, plays Curaçao on June 14 in Houston, Ivory Coast on June 20 in Toronto, and Ecuador on June 25 in New York/New Jersey, with ARD or ZDF plus a free Joyn stream carrying each match.
- FIFA’s expanded format features 48 teams in 12 groups of four, creating 104 games as group winners, runners-up, and the eight best third-placed teams move into the knockouts.
- Kit reveals are rolling out as Adidas unveils Germany’s deep-blue away shirt and media list released designs with retail prices, marking the commercial build-up to the event.