Getting their kicks: San Diego region included in World Cup mix
The San Diego region’s soccer scene just got a bit more crowded with the announcement that 11 soccer matches from the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games will be staged in town, which is already home to San Diego FC of Major League Soccer and the San Diego Wave FC of the National Women’s Soccer League.
The 11 matches will take place at Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley. Because of a sponsorship rights conflict, the venus will be referred to as San Diego Stadium for the event.
The local Olympic matches will include three women’s group dates on July 11, July 14 and July 17, a women’s quarterfinal match on July 21, a men’s and women’s semifinal match on July 24-25 and a men’s and women’s bronze medal match on July 27-28.
LA Olympic Soccer 2028 will feature 16 women’s and 12 men’s teams. Matches will be played across the United States with key events at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and SoFi Stadium.
The Team USA men’s and women’s teams automatically qualify as hosts.
The tournament runs July 10-30. Matches begin four days prior to the Opening Ceremonies.
The men’s roster includes a U23 format plus three overage players.
The Paralympic Games follow the conclusion of the Summer Olympics schedule.
The 2028 L.A. Games will include 36 sports while the Paralympic Games will feature 23.
World Cup
The 2028 Los Angeles Games will build on the momentum established by this summer’s 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup, which will be the first to include 48 teams and hosted by three nations: the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The tournament runs June 11 through July 19. With the addition of 16 teams, there will be 12 groups of four teams each for the 2026 edition.
As host nations, the United States, Mexico and Canada are automatic qualifiers.
All 48 berths have been filled through regional qualifying.
The United States is embedded in Group D along with Paraguay, Australia and Turkey.
The USA kicks off tournament play June 12 against Paraguay.
Group A includes Mexico, South Africa, South Korea and the Cech Republic.
Mexico kicks off tournament play June 11 against South Africa.
Group B includes Canada, Qatar, Switzerland and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Canada kicks off tournament play June 12 against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Group C includes Brazil, Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
Group E includes Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast and Ecuador.
Group F includes the Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia and Sweden.
Group G includes Belgium, Egypt, Iran and New Zealand.
Group H includes Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.
Group I includes France, Senegal, Norway and Iraq.
Group J includes Argentina, Algeria, Austria and Jordan.
Group K includes Portugal, Uzbekistan, Colombia and DR Congo.
Group L includes England, Croatia, Ghana and Panama.
Sixteen cities will host matches — 11 in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada.
San Diego will serve as base camps (training sites) for New Zealand (University of San Diego) and Switzerland (San Diego Jewish Academy).
The region played host to a pair of World Cup warm-up matches last weekend at Snapdragon Stadium dubbed “Countdown to 2026.” Saturday’s pairing featured a 1-1 draw between Australia and Switzerland in front of 6,107 fans. Sunday’s contest between Colombia and Jordan attracted a much larger audience – 28,300 — that took in a 2-0 Colombian victory.
Argentina is the defending champion after defeating France in a kicks-from-the-mark tiebreaker in 2022 in Qatar. Croatia defeated Morocco in the third-place game.
With the expansion to 48 teams, 32 teams will qualify for this year’s knockout round. They will include the top two teams in each of the 12 groups, plus the next best third-place teams.
The Round of 32 will pare down in successive rounds to 16, eight, four, two and ultimately the 2026 World Cup champions.
Argentina, Spain, France, England. Portugal and Brazil enter the tournament as the top six nations in the official FIFA men’s soccer world rankings. Many are predicting a final between Spain and France.
MLS Cup MVP Lionel Messi (Inter Miami) will compete for Argentina in defense of its title.
The United States, with a 1-0 win over Iran, a 1-1 draw against Wales and 0-0 draw against England, advanced to the knockout stage in 2022 while Mexico and Canada did not.
The Netherlands defeated the USA, 3-1, in the Round of 16.
Mexico is ranked 14th globally by FIFA in 2026, the United States17th and Canada 30th out of 211 national teams.
New horizons
The next FIFA Women’s World Cup is scheduled for 2017 in Brazil, making the first time the event will be held in South America
Spain is the defending women’s world champion following a 1-0 victory over England while the United States owns the most titles at four (1991, 1999, 2015, 2019).
The United States hosted the FIFA Club World Cup in 2025 with Chelsea (England) defeating Paris Saint-Germain (France), 3-0. The event featured the top clubs from all six continental confederations.
Three MLS teams participated: Inter Miami, L.A. FC and the Seattle Sounders. Monterrey and Pachuca represented Mexico.
The Pasadena Rose Bowl hosted matches closest to San Diego. Other venues included Seattle, Atlanta, Charlotte, Cincinnati, East Rutherford, Miami, Nashville, Orlando, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
The current format includes 32 teams (eight groups of four). Real Madrid has the most titles with five. The site of the 2029 tournament is to be determined.
The inaugural Women’s Club World Cup is in the planning stages for January 2028.
Locals only
Both SDFC and the Wave have already kicked off their 2026 league seasons.
SDFC ended the first half of the season with four wins, six losses and five ties, 10th out of 15 teams in the Western Conference table, while the Wave is 8-4-1 — at the top of the table among the 16 NWSL teams.
San Diego FC finished its inaugural season with the top record in the regular season in the Western Conference standings before advancing to the MLS semifinal playoffs. The team set numerous league records for an expansion club, including those for wins, points and attendance.
The Wave finished in sixth place in the regular season standings and advanced to the quarterfinal playoffs with a 1-0 loss to the No. 3 Portland Thorns.
Fan-tastic
San Diego FC will be hosting public viewing parties for selected World Cup matches on giant screen TVs from June 11-27 in Mission Bay, Little Italy and Chula Vista. Opening Weekend matches are June 11-14.
The summer soccer celebrations in Chula Vista kick off Friday, June 12, at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center with a viewing party for the USA-Paraguay match. Gates open at 5 p.m. ahead of the 6 p.m. kickoff. Fans can enjoy local vendors and a beer garden.
The celebration continues June 18 along downtown’s Third Avenue Memorial Park with a daylong schedule of games (Switzerland-Bosnia and Herzegovina at noon, Canada-Qatar at 3 p.m., Mexico-Korea at 6 p.m. and Banda El Recodo concert from 8-10 p.m.).
Southwestern College will serve as the final Chula Vista location on July 19 with doors opening at 11 a.m. for an afternoon of food, entertainment and the championship match giant screen viewing experience.
Fit Social in Belmont Park (3125 Ocean Front Walk, San Diego) and Piazza della Famiglia in Little Italy (523 W. Date St., San Diego,) will serve as additional viewing locations.
Admission is free to the events with an RSVP through the team’s website (www. sandiegofc.com).
Additionally the Vogue Tavern in downtown Chula Vista is hosting a watch party at noon on Thursday, June 11, highlighting the South Africa-Mexico match.
2026 Golden Moments Summer of Soccer Watch Party Takeover Tour schedule:
• Thursday, June 11: Mexico vs South Africa | 12:00 p.m.
Vogue Tavern, Chula Vista
• Friday, June 12: USA vs Paraguay | 6:00 p.m.
McGregor’s Bar and Grill, Mission Valley
• Thursday, June 18: Mexico vs South Korea | 6:00 p.m
Press Box, Rancho San Diego
• Friday, June 19: USA vs Australia | 12:00 p.m.
Fairplay, North Park
Le Papagayo, Carlsbad
• Sunday, July 19: Final match | 12:00 p.m.
Oggi’s Pizza, Del Mar
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