Month-wise guide to every major global sporting event in 2026
Covers football, cricket, tennis, motorsport, Olympics and more
Major Events: T20 World Cup 2026, FIFA World Cup, Wimbledon
2026 is shaping up to be a spectacular year on the global sports calendar, from heart-pounding football and cricket to multi-sport extravaganzas and elite athletics meets. Sports fans worldwide have plenty to look forward to as the year brings together long-awaited tournaments, fresh rivalries, and major comebacks.
Whether you follow winter sports, athletics, football, or cricket, you won’t be bored. With big events scattered throughout the year, 2026 promises constant top-level drama and celebration across disciplines.
For cricket fans, events like T20 World Cup and Indian Premier League are enough to provide a lot of entertainment. However, the upcoming year is going to be more entertaining for the football fans, with exciting domestic leagues, Champions League and the pinnacle of all football events, the FIFA World Cup.
January
Australian Open (Grand Slam tennis), mid-January start (Australian summer major).
Early rounds of various winter and indoor athletics fixtures and national championships.
February
Winter Olympics - Milano-Cortina, 6-22 Feb 2026.
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup - co-hosted by India & Sri Lanka, 7 Feb – 8 Mar 2026.
Six Nations (rugby) rounds continue through Feb–Mar.
March
Winter Paralympics, Milano-Cortina, early March (Paralympic Winter Games schedule).
Formula 1 season gets underway (Australian GP in early March), with F1 running through the year.
April
Classic European one-day cycling and spring classics build into the Grand Tour season.
Cricket bilateral series windows and early domestic T20 tournaments in some countries.
May
French Open (Roland-Garros), late May to early June (clay-court Grand Slam).
Early rounds of domestic football cup finals and European competitions finish.
June
FIFA World Cup 2026 (USA, Canada, Mexico), 11 June to 19 July 2026 (48-team expanded tournament).
Wimbledon (starts late June; runs into July).
Tour de France (major stage race in July, with build-up in late June/early July).
July
Wimbledon (finishes early July).
Commonwealth Games: Glasgow, 23 July – 2 August 2026.
FIFA World Cup knockout rounds continue into mid-July.
August
US Open (tennis) build-up and start late August.
European Athletics Championships: Birmingham, 10–16 August 2026.
September
Asian Games: Aichi–Nagoya, Japan, 19 Sept – 4 Oct 2026 (multi-sport continental Games).
Autumn international windows in rugby and football resume.
October
Asian Games (Aichi–Nagoya, Japan): Concludes on October 4, featuring 460 events across 42 sports.
Formula 1 – Singapore Grand Prix (Sprint Weekend), United States Grand Prix (Austin).
November
ATP Finals (Turin, Italy): Season-ending elite tennis championship for the world’s top 8 players.
Formula 1 – Mexico City Grand Prix, Sao Paulo Grand Prix (Brazil) and Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Youth Olympic Games (Dakar 2026): Held 31 October–13 November, marking the first Olympic event in Africa.
December
Formula 1: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - Season finale; championships often decided here.
Indoor athletics and world indoor tour events begin: Winter track season restarts.
NBA & NHL regular seasons enter full flow: Holiday matchups and early standings battles.
Note: Domestic leagues (IPL, NBA, NFL, MLB regular seasons and playoffs, English Premier League, La Liga, etc.) continue their usual annual schedules and often overlap with these global events; check each league’s official calendar for exact fixtures.
2026 is one of those calendar years where every sports fan will find weeks of unmissable action, T20 World Cup, football’s expanded World Cup, and major multisport festivals. Bookmark the big dates above, pick your must-watch weekends, and brace for a year packed with historic moments, record chases and new champions.
