Summary of this article
The FIFA World Cup 2026 kicks off June 11 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico
Broadcast rights in India remain unresolved
As uncertainity lingers, Indian fans can turn to alternative sporting events
The FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to start on June 11, with the largest-ever edition of the football showpiece being co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico. 48 teams have sealed their place in the tournament, including debutants like Curacao and Cape Verde.
The quadrennial tournament will return to a traditional summer schedule following a change four years ago, with the first match to be played between Mexico and South Africa at Estadio Azteca.
However, for fans in the subcontinent, there is a very real chance of missing out on the tournament itself. The negotiations between JioStar and FIFA over streaming rights are yet to reach a conclusion, with no certainty of broadcast in India. This has led to some extreme steps, including a plea in the Delhi High Court, asking for Prasar Bharati to acquire the rights for the tournament.
As the deadlock over broadcast persists, let’s look at some alternative, major sporting events that Indian fans can enjoy during the FIFA World Cup 2026.
ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026
The biggest women’s cricket tournament of the year is set to be played from June 15 to July 5, and will be hosted by England and Wales. India are among the 12 teams taking part in the tournament, and will challenge defending champions New Zealand for their first-ever T20 World Cup title. India have been drawn in Group 1 along with Australia, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Pakistan, and South Africa.
The tournament will be shown live on JioHotstar and Star Sports Network TV channels.
Cricket Tours of Ireland, England
The Indian men’s cricket team will first host Afghanistan from June 6 to 20. The series will begin with a one-off Test on June 6 before playing a three-match ODI series in Dharamsala, Lucknow, and Chennai.
Then the Indian team will travel to Ireland for a two-match T20I series from June 26 to 28. After that, India will follow it up with a tour of England between July 1 and July 19, which will comprise five T20Is and three ODIs.
Franchise Cricket Tournaments
With the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 nearing the playoff stage, cricket fans can continue to enjoy franchise tournaments, beginning with the start of Major League Cricket (MLC) on July 18, which will feature Ravichandran Ashwin. On July 18, the sixth edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) will begin in Sri Lanka.
Diamond League
The Diamond League 2026 season will feature five events while the World Cup is underway. The Doha Diamond League leg, which was supposed to take place on May 8 but was postponed due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, will be played on July 19. This will be followed by the Meeting de Paris (June 28), the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene (July 4), the Herculis EBS in Fontvieille (July 10), and the London Athletics Meet (July 18).
While Neeraj Chopra has delayed his return this season while undergoing rehabilitation in Turkiye, he is certain to make a comeback sooner rather than later. He will be joined by fellow javelin thrower Sachin Yadav and steeplechase expert Parul Chaudhary.
Wimbledon
The 2026 Wimbledon Championships, the biggest grass tennis tournament in the world, will take place between June 29 and July 12 at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in SW19, London. The 139th edition of the tournament will be a historic one, being the first to feature video reviews.
128 players will take part in the third Grand Slam tournament of the year, although the entry list has not been released yet.
Formula One
With the government pushing for a return of Formula One to India by 2027, F1 has enjoyed a surge in popularity in the country. While the World Cup is being held in North America, motorsport fans will be treated to four F1 Grands Prix races.
First, the Spanish Grand Prix will be hosted in Madrid on June 14, followed by the Austrian GP on June 28. Next, the Silverstone Circuit will host the British GP on July 5, followed by the Belgian GP on July 19.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance racing event will take place on June 13 and 14.
Tour de France
The 113th edition of the Tour de France will take place from July 4 to 26. This year’s race will start from Barcelona, marking the third time that the Grand Depart has been held in Spain. 23 teams will take part in the race, which includes the current champion, Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia.
UFC Freedom 250
The UFC Freedom 250 is a special event hosted by the Ultimate Fighting Championship to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence. The event will be hosted on the South Lawn of the White House on June 14.
The main event of the night will be the lightweight title bout between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje. The co-main event is the heavyweight fight between Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane.
ISSF Junior World Championship
The ISSF Junior World Championship 2026 will be hosted in Suhl, Germany, from June 16 to 26. The Indian contingent will be represented by 24 shooters participating in 10 events. The Indian contingent is as follows:
Air Rifle Junior Men: Abhinav Shaw, Pritam Kendre, Divyanshu Dewangan
Air Rifle Junior Women: Shambhavi Shravan Kshirsagar, Aneesha Sharma, Lavanya Rawat
50m Rifle 3 Positions Junior Men: Rohit Kanyan, Vedant Nitin Waghmare, S. Hithesh
50m Rifle 3 Positions Junior Women: Prachi Shashikant Gaikwad, Anushka H. Thokur, Shrivalli Shrivastava
Air Pistol Junior Men: Sandeep Bishnoi, Shiva Narwal, Chirag Sharma
Air Pistol Junior Women: Sanskriti Bana, Vanshika Chaudhary, Navya
25m Rapid Fire Pistol Junior Men: Sameer, Sahil Choudhary, Abhinav Choudhary
25m Sports Pistol Junior Women: Parisha Gupta, Nithila Ivy Darling, Anjali Mahendra Bhagwat
Air Rifle Mixed Team Junior: Abhinav Shaw & Shambhavi Kshirsagar, Pritam Kendre & Aneesha Sharma
Air Pistol Mixed Team Junior: Sandeep Bishnoi & Sanskriti Bana, Shiva Narwal & Vanshika Chaudhary
Others
Apart from the major events listed above, there will be other tournaments during this period. The 2026 US Open golf tournament will be hosted in New York from June 18 to 21. The Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Game will take place on July 14 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
