⚽ World Cup 2026 Schedule in Damascus Time (Syria) — Updated Daily: Today's Matches & Round of 32

The 2026 World Cup runs from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico: 48 teams, 104 matches. The tournament is now at its peak — most group-stage matches are done and the knockout phase opens with the round of 32 on June 28. This page has the full schedule converted to Damascus time: today's and this week's remaining group games, the round of 32 bracket, all eight Arab teams' fixtures, and the road to the final on July 19.

Last updated: June 26, 2026. This page is refreshed daily throughout the tournament, and knockout kickoff times in Damascus time are locked in as soon as qualifiers are official.

We are now in the final days of the group stage (it ends in the early hours of June 28 Damascus time), and the round of 32 begins the same day. If you landed here looking for "today's matches," jump straight to this week's table below, then the round of 32 bracket.

How Damascus time works for this World Cup

Syria has stayed on UTC+3 all year round since dropping daylight saving in 2022, which makes Damascus time identical to Mecca and Doha time. World Cup 2026 matches are played across four North American time zones, so kickoffs land at very different hours of the Damascus day, from comfortable evenings to brutal pre-dawn slots. The conversion rule is simple: add the offset for the host region shown in the comparison table below, and you get the exact Damascus kickoff without needing any app or time calculator.

Because Damascus time equals Mecca and Doha time, any schedule published in Saudi or Qatari time applies to Syria unchanged.

This week's matches: the group-stage finale (June 24-28)

This is the decisive final round of the group stage, where both matches in each group kick off simultaneously to prevent collusion, and the round-of-32 qualifiers are settled. The dates below are the actual Damascus calendar date at kickoff, so a match listed at 01:00 on a Sunday is played on the Saturday-to-Sunday night.

This round is the Arab teams' night of destiny: Egypt vs Iran, Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia, Algeria vs Austria and Jordan vs Argentina all decide qualification. Follow these results to know who advances before reading the round of 32 bracket below.

Round of 32 schedule in Damascus time (starts June 28)

For the first time, 32 teams advance to the knockout phase: the top two from each of the 12 groups plus the 8 best third-placed sides. The 48-team format guide explains exactly how the best-third ranking is calculated, with worked examples. The round of 32 runs from June 28 to July 3, usually four matches a day. The table below shows the official Damascus-time slots; team names lock in once the group stage ends, and we update them here rather than guess.

The slots above follow the official venue and stadium schedule; each team's identity (winner/runner-up/third) is decided by the June 28 results. As soon as the brackets clear, we replace the placeholders with team names directly in this table.

Round of 16, quarter-finals, semis and final

After the round of 32, the knockout phase continues on this officially confirmed timeline, all in Damascus time:

• Round of 16: July 4 to 7, two or three matches per day.
• Quarter-finals: July 9, 10 and 11, four matches deciding the semi-finalists.
• Semi-finals: Tuesday July 14 and Wednesday July 15.
• Third-place match: Saturday July 18.
• Final: Sunday July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey near New York.

The exact minute-by-minute Damascus kickoff times for these matches are confirmed progressively as qualifiers are settled, and we will add them to this section as soon as they are official rather than guess. Most late-round matches kick off in US Eastern time between 15:00 and 21:00 local, which is between 22:00 and 04:00 Damascus time.

All eight Arab teams' fixtures in Damascus time

This is a record World Cup for Arab football: eight teams qualified. Saudi Arabia (Group H), Morocco (C), Egypt (G), Tunisia (F), Algeria and Jordan drawn together in Group J, Qatar (B), and Iraq (I), back after a 40-year absence. They play 24 group fixtures in total, including the Jordan vs Algeria derby that counts for both. For the full story of each team's group and qualification chances, see the Arab teams at World Cup 2026 guide, and for the title favourites read who wins World Cup 2026.

The first two group-stage weeks (archive and results reference)

For reference to the week-one and week-two matches played between June 11 and 23 — useful for anyone tracking results and qualification maths — here is the complete reference table in Damascus time. These matches are already done; we keep them here so the full picture is in one place before the round of 32.

Week one: June 11-17

Week two: June 18-23

Why most matches kick off after midnight in Syria

Most World Cup matches are scheduled for afternoon and evening slots in North American local time, which suits stadium crowds and peak TV hours there. Add 7 to 10 hours for Damascus and the bulk of the tournament slides into the window between midnight and 07:00. The numbers are blunt: only 5 of the 24 Arab-team group fixtures land in the comfortable 19:00-22:00 evening window, and the rest are late-night or dawn affairs, including the Jordan vs Algeria derby at 06:00. As the knockout rounds begin the slots improve slightly, because there are fewer matches and they cluster in the US evening window, but late nights stay the rule for viewers in Syria. So you need a realistic plan: pick the matches genuinely worth staying up for from the tables above, and settle for morning highlights on the rest, especially on work days.

Before committing to a dawn kickoff, check the iCashy AI match predictions the evening before. If the model sees a one-sided game, sleep wins; if it is genuinely close, prepare the coffee. As the knockout rounds arrive and every match is do-or-die, that read-ahead matters even more.

The prime-time shortlist

Matches kicking off between 19:00 and 23:00 Damascus time are rare enough to plan an evening around. The remaining and upcoming evening highlights:

• Fri, Jun 26, 22:00: Norway vs France and Senegal vs Iraq simultaneously, Group I decision night.
• Round of 32 — Mon, Jun 29, 22:00: the Group E winner opens knockout night in a comfortable slot.
• Round of 32 — Tue, Jun 30, 22:00: the Group I winner, the group Iraq could qualify from.
• Round of 32 — Wed, Jul 1, 22:00: the Group B winner in an evening slot.
• Round of 32 — Thu, Jul 2, 22:00: the Group K winner enters in a Damascus evening.

Stick to Damascus evenings only and you still catch a good share of round-of-32 matches with almost no lost sleep, since at least one match each night is scheduled in the 22:00 Damascus window. For the strongest sides likely to clear these rounds, read the group-stage favourites analysis.

Where to watch and how to follow consciously

Every fixture in the tables above has a story before kickoff: who holds the edge, where the weaknesses are, and which scenario is most likely. iCashy publishes AI-powered match predictions for World Cup games, analysing team form, head-to-head history and player numbers before the whistle, and you can go deeper with the complete AI football predictions guide. To watch the matches themselves for free, beIN SPORTS airs a number of World Cup games on its open channels; full details and frequencies are in the free World Cup channels in Syria guide.

If you follow World Cup betting on the external iChancy platform, the World Cup 2026 betting via iChancy guide covers the markets and how Syrians deposit in SYP through a direct account from iCashy. And remember: no prediction is guaranteed and no profit is certain; watch consciously and stay within your budget above all else.

FAQ

What are today's World Cup matches in Damascus time?

The list of today's matches changes daily as the tournament progresses. In the final group-stage days (June 24-28), both matches in each group kick off simultaneously. Go to the "this week's matches" table above for today's exact list, then the round of 32 table from June 28 onward. We refresh this page daily.

When does the round of 32 start at World Cup 2026, and at what time?

The round of 32 begins on Sunday, June 28, 2026 — the same day the last group-stage matches finish in the early hours of Damascus time. The first round-of-32 match is scheduled at 23:00 Damascus time, and the round runs through July 3 with usually four matches a day.

When and where is the World Cup 2026 final?

The final is on Sunday, July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, near New York, preceded by the third-place match on Saturday, July 18. Published schedules point to an evening kickoff in Damascus time; the exact time will be confirmed here once official.

How many Arab-team matches fall in a convenient evening slot for Syria?

Only 5 of the 24 Arab group-stage fixtures kick off between 19:00 and 22:00 Damascus time, headlined by Spain vs Saudi Arabia on Sunday, June 21 at 19:00. The rest are played between midnight and 07:00. In the knockout rounds the ratio improves slightly as there are fewer matches.

How do I convert any match time to Damascus time myself?

Add 7 hours to US Eastern time, 8 to Central, 9 to Mexico City and 10 to Pacific. Any schedule published in Mecca or Doha time matches Damascus time exactly.

Where can I watch World Cup 2026 matches for free in Syria?

beIN SPORTS airs a number of matches free on its open channels, and other free-to-air satellite options reach Syria. Full details and frequencies are in the free World Cup channels in Syria guide.

Do third-placed teams advance to the round of 32?

Yes. The 8 best third-placed teams across the 12 groups advance alongside the group winners and runners-up, completing the 32-team field. The tie-break criteria between third-placed teams are explained in the tournament format guide.