FIFA President Gianni Infantino declared that the FIFA World Cup 2026 "destroyed every record" in its history, wrapping up what he described as a tournament so extraordinary that entirely new words may be needed to capture its scale.

Spain claimed the trophy at the New York New Jersey Stadium, defeating reigning champions Argentina in the final to lift the title for the second time in their history. The tournament ran for 39 days across Canada, Mexico, and the United States — the first edition to feature 48 teams and 104 matches.

Attendance and viewing figures rewrite the history books

A total of 6,810,966 fans attended matches across the 16 venues — surpassing the combined attendances of the 2018 and 2022 editions — with stadiums operating at 99.7% capacity and an average crowd of 65,490 per game.

Beyond the stadium gates, engagement figures are expected to exceed six billion people worldwide once final numbers are confirmed. More than 9 million fans attended FIFA Fan Festivals in the three host nations, with Mexico alone welcoming over 4.5 million visitors to those events.

Goals flow at highest rate in 56 years

The 48 competing nations produced 208 goals across the tournament — shattering the previous record of 172 set at the 2022 edition in Qatar — at an average of 2.96 per match. That figure represents the highest goals-per-game ratio at a FIFA World Cup since the 1970 tournament in Mexico.

"This World Cup has not just broken all possible records, it has smashed them, it has destroyed every record," Infantino said. "All the top players performed extremely well — from Rodri, who was the best player of the tournament, to Leo Messi, to Kylian Mbappé, to Erling Haaland, to Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham: every player was there."

Infantino also highlighted the romance of debut nations, singling out Cabo Verde as one of the tournament's most compelling stories. "You cannot script the perfect World Cup in such a way as this World Cup happened," he said. "I think we have to invent a new vocabulary, new words to define the success of this FIFA World Cup."

Football as a force for unity

The FIFA President reflected on what the tournament meant beyond the football itself, emphasising the scenes of joy shared across host cities and around the globe.

"We made millions of people in America and around the world happy," Infantino said. "This reminds us that football and the FIFA World Cup is not just a competition — it is actually there to unite the world and to make, maybe, the world a little bit better."

Eyes turn to FIFA World Cup 2030

With the 2026 edition now in the books, attention shifts to the FIFA World Cup 2030, which will be co-hosted by Morocco, Portugal, and Spain, with additional matches played in Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay as part of a unique centenary celebration.

"Nothing can touch the power and the magic of the FIFA World Cup, because the world needs events like this to bring people together in joy and happiness," Infantino said. "This FIFA World Cup has been incredible; the next one will be fantastic."