1 of 5 | Norway fans celebrate during the first half of their FIFA World Cup win over Iraq on Tuesday in Foxborough, Mass. Photo by CJ Gunther/UPI | License Photo
Fans set a daily World Cup attendance record with a total of 281,223 present for four games on Day 6 of the tournament, FIFA announced Wednesday.
“Wow! 281,223 fans in FIFA World Cup stadiums [Tuesday] — the highest attended day in the history of the competition,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino wrote on Instagram. “June 16, 2026 will go down in FIFA World Cup history! I cannot thank our fans enough for bringing color, atmosphere and emotions to this tournament.
“The most inclusive FIFA World Cup 2026 continues to show just how much our game is loved and how football unites the world!”
A crowd of about 80,000 first watched Kylian Mbappe score twice in France’s 3-1 win over Senegal on Tuesday in East Rutherford, N.J. About 63,000 watched Erling Haaland also score twice in Norway’s 4-1 win over Iraq in Foxborough, Mass.
Nearly 70,000 fans were then treated to Lionel Messi’s historic hat trick, which led top-ranked Argentina to a 3-0 win over Algeria in Kansas City, Mo. Austria capped the day with a 3-1 win over Jordan in Santa Clara, Calif. About 68,000 fans watched that contest.
The record broke the previous mark of 277,070 set June 28, 1994, the last time the World Cup was held in the United States. FIFA said a total of 1,309,652 fans attended games through the first six days of the 2026 tournament. The per-game attendance average is 65,483.
The 2026 World up is on pace to break the cumulative attendance record by the end of group stage play. The current mark of 3.5 million was also established during the 1994 World Cup.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal will play in the first of four games on Day 7 of the tournament at 1 p.m. EDT Wednesday in Houston. England will face Croatia at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Arlington, Texas. Ghana will take on Panama at 7 p.m. in Toronto. Colombia will battle Uzbekistan at 10 p.m. in Mexico City.
Group stage games will be held through June 27.
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Cristiano Ronaldo – PortugalCristiano Ronaldo of Portugal looks on during the 2022 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 match at Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on December 06, 2022. Photo by Chris Brunskill/UPI | License Photo
