The sports world prepares for a chaotically busy 2026 with the FIFA World Cup, Winter Olympics and more to come

This year has been exciting for sports, but as we reflect on 2025, it’s hard not to get excited about what’s in store for 2026.

It could well be the best sporting year in recent memory.

Not only is the stage set for some electrifying games, tournaments and leagues in the United States, but more importantly, the world stage will be set for multiple events.

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After all, the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics don’t always happen at the same time.

Let’s take a look at what awaits us in the world of sports in 2026:

College Football Playoffs (January 1-19)

First on the agenda is the CFP, which continued with Ohio State and Miami playing each other on New Year’s Eve, while three more games will be played on New Year’s Day to see who advances to the national championship.

No. 4 Texas Tech hosts No. 5 Oregon at noon, followed by No. 1 Indiana against No. 9 Alabama, which beat No. 8 Oklahoma to move on. Finally, No. 3 Georgia will play No. 6 Ole Miss.

These games will determine who will play in the CFP semifinals, the first of which will be played on January 8 and the other on January 9.

Then, the national championship game will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on January 19 at 7:30 pm ET.

NFL Playoffs (January 10-25)

There are still two playoff spots left to be determined (the AFC North and NFC South will have their winners this weekend), but most teams are ready to see who will compete for this year’s Vince Lombardi Trophy.

This year’s NFL Playoffs are expected to be wild, as there have been no clear favorites like in past seasons. For one thing, the Kansas City Chiefs won’t be playing in the AFC Wild Card Round, much less the AFC Championship Game for the fourth consecutive season. A rollercoaster year ended with Patrick Mahomes tearing his ACL in a game that eliminated them from the playoffs.

But the Detroit Lions are eliminated from playoff contention, as are the Washington Commanders, who traveled to the NFC Championship Game last season.

But there are exciting matchups ahead with the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots vying for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, while the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers will determine who gets the first-round bye as the No. 1 seed in the NFC during their Week 18 finale.

When those division titles are secured, the NFL Playoffs will begin with the Wild Card Round on January 10-12. Then, the Divisional Round will take place on January 17-18, followed by the Conference Championship Games on January 25.

It really is anyone’s year in the NFL, making this football a must-watch before our next event.

Super Bowl LX (February 8)

The Super Bowl has returned to the Bay Area, with Levi’s Stadium and Santa Clara, California, hosting the league’s 60th Super Bowl to determine the world’s home field champion.

The last time the Super Bowl was in the area was a memorable Super Bowl 50, when Peyton Manning and the Broncos defeated Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers. Manning retired after getting that second ring of his career, but it was Von Miller in his prime who received the Super Bowl MVP award in the end.

Time will tell who will show up in this fight, but it will surely be an electric showdown.

Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny will also perform at this year’s halftime show.

Winter Olympic Games (February 6-22)

While many eyes here in the United States will be focused on that weekend’s Super Bowl, it will be hard not to be excited about what’s happening in Italy as the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics begin with opening ceremonies on February 6.

From figure skating to ski jumping and a highly anticipated ice hockey slate for both men and women, this year’s Winter Games will be highly competitive as ever.

In men’s ice hockey, the rivalry between the United States and Canada intensified with the 4 Nations Showdown earlier this year, when Team Canada defeated the United States in Boston in overtime. Matthew Tkachuk, Auston Matthews and other Team USA stars will seek revenge along with a gold medal.

On the women’s side, they also want some revenge after losing to Canada in the gold medal match in Beijing in 2022.

Other Team USA stars to watch include Mikaela Shiffrin (alpine skiing), Chloe Kim (snowboarding), figure skating prodigy Ilia Malinin and speed skater Jordan Stolz, among many others.

Daytona 500 (February 15)

Once again, a classic American event will take place while the Winter Games are still ongoing.

It’s “The Great American Race,” as the Daytona 500 will kick off the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, as it does every year at Daytona International Speedway in Florida.

Can William Byron cross the finish line as winner for the third year in a row? Byron took advantage of 2025 by avoiding a late-race crash and overtaking Tyler Reddick and Jimmie Johnson for the win.

World Baseball Classic (March 5-17)

Just a couple of weeks after the Winter Games conclude, we will see some of the world’s best players on the diamond facing off to be crowned the true baseball world champions.

The WBC is back and will feature some great players, including an all-star team from Team USA that isn’t completely settled yet. But the Stars and Stripes already have some of the best players in MLB, including 2025 Cy Young Award winners Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal.

Fresh off another MVP award, Aaron Judge will be in the outfield, while players like Kyle Schwarber, Cal Raleigh, Corbin Carroll, Pete Crow-Armstrong and more will represent the United States.

But no one can overlook the 2023 winner, Team Japan, as they have won the event three times. Superstar Shohei Ohtani says he intends to play, while Japanese stars Hiromi Ito, Kaima Tair, Taisei Ota and more have signed on. The squads from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico always represent a threat as well.

NCAA March Madness (March 15-April 6)

It’s only March with all of these wonderful sporting events going on, but everyone knows that this month belongs to college basketball, specifically the tournament that determines both the men’s and women’s national champions.

Selection Sunday for the men’s tournament will be March 15, 2026, followed by the First Four on March 17-18. After the first and second rounds on March 19-22, the Sweet 16 will play on March 26-27, followed by the Elite Eight on March 28-29.

The Final Four will be April 4 and 6, the latter of which will be the national title game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

For the women’s tournament, the Final Four will be played on April 3 and 5 at the Mortage Matchup Center in Phoenix.

Masters Tournament (April 9-12)

Just after March Madness comes the first major golf tournament of the year in beautiful Augusta, Georgia.

The Masters features the world’s best golfers competing for the coveted green jacket, which Rory McIlroy finally clinched last year to achieve the Grand Slam of his career.

Will you be able to keep it or will you give it to another competitor? Plus, will we see Tiger Woods again on the hallowed fairways in April?

NFL Draft (April 23-25)

One of the biggest offseason events in the states, the NFL Draft, will be held in Pittsburgh after a successful event in Green Bay last year.

Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and Oregon’s Dante Moore are expected to be the top two quarterback prospects, while players like Ohio State’s Carnell Tate, Arvell Reese and Caleb Downs, USC’s Makai Lemon and Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love are suspected first-round talents.

Of course, every NFL fan knows that a full draft class is what makes teams better each year, and the three days are sure to feature blockbuster trades, impact picks and stories that will carry over into NFL training camp in the summer.

Kentucky Derby (May 2)

The annual Kentucky Derby, always the first of the Triple Crown horse races, begins in the month of May.

The Preakness Stakes will follow on May 16 and conclude with the Belmont Stakes on June 6.

The horse to watch this year for a possible Triple Crown victory is Ted Coffey, the colt of Aaron and Marie Jones.

PGA Championship (May 14-17)

Can Scottie Scheffler once again be crowned winner of the PGA Championship and add it to his list of major titles?

He was the winner at Quail Hollow in 2025, but this year’s tournament will be held at the historic Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. – one of the most difficult golf courses on the PGA Tour.

FIFA World Cup (June 11 to July 19)

One of the biggest events of the year will take place here in the states, as well as in Mexico and Canada: the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Millions are expected to tune in to see who will hoist the trophy as the best soccer team in the world, to be determined at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 19.

The World Cup will hold matches in 11 American cities ses: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle.

The United States was selected for Group D of the tournament and its first match will be played on June 12 against Paraguay. Group D still needs one more team, while Australia was also selected.

The current champions are Argentina, who defeated France and gave soccer superstar Lionel Messi his long-awaited World Cup victory. He is expected to return with Argentina, as is Cristiano Ronaldo with the Portugal team.

UFC White House (June 14)

The first-of-its-kind event will be produced by Dana White’s company, as the mixed martial arts promotion will take place on the South Lawn of the White House to commemorate the United States’ 250th anniversary.

Not only will the White House be part of this monumental occasion, but the Lincoln Memorial is the expected location for the weigh-ins for the card, which is expected to be the best in UFC history.

The wrestlers have yet to be announced, but White confirmed in August 2025 that plans for the event had been finalized.

US Golf Open (June 18-21)

JJ Spaun gave us a 2025 US Open to remember at Oakmont, burying a birdie putt from over 60 feet to secure the first major of his career.

This year, the tournament heads to the iconic Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on Long Island. It is the sixth time Shinnecock will host the tournament, which is in its 126th year.

Wimbledon (June 29 to July 12)

While the World Cup is taking place, one of the most important Grand Slams in the world of tennis is also taking place.

With the Australian Open (January 18 to February 1) and French Open (May 24 to June 7) already completed, the All England Club is the next site for the penultimate Grand Slam of the year.

Last year, Iga Świątek produced a perfect performance over American Amanda Anisimova to take the women’s singles victory 6-0, 6-0.

It was more of a struggle in the men’s singles final, as Jannik Sinner overcame a first set loss to Carlos Alcaraz and took the next three sets to secure the victory. Those two should be among the favorites to win it all along.

US Tennis Open (August 31-September 13)

Sticking with tennis, the world’s best return to Flushing, Queens and Arthur Ashe Stadium for this year’s US Open.

Carlos Alcaraz won it in the men’s singles tournament, while Aryna Sabalenka took home the trophy against Anisimova.

Opening of the 2026 college football season (September 5)

It’s time for the tailgate charcoal grills to light up and for all the students and fans to converge on their favorite stadium as the college football season begins.

Opening of the 2026 NFL season (September 10)

After the training camp battles and preseason storylines come to a close, the start of the new NFL season will feature some of the game’s best, as well as new faces in the 2026 rookie class hoping to make their mark.

Will the Chiefs have a revenge tour with Patrick Mahomes hopefully back on the field in red and yellow in time for kickoff? Can another team in either conference emerge as the team to beat in Super Bowl LXI? There’s a lot to unpack next year around this time.

World Series (October 23)

Now that the MLB postseason (September 29) determines which two teams won their respective pennants, it’s time to determine who will be crowned world champions.

The Fall Classic will begin in late October, and only time will tell if it needs to be moved to November in the seven-game winner-take-all series.

Thanksgiving Day Football (November 26)

Since we’re halfway through the NFL season, classic Thanksgiving games across the league will take place over the holiday.

While the NFL schedule will be released in the spring of 2026, we know that teams like the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys will appear in the noon and 4:30 p.m. slots, respectively, as they do every year.

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Who will be your opponents? They are generally divisional games, meaning the Lions will face the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, or Chicago Bears, while the Cowboys will face the Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles, or New York Giants.

2026 College Football Playoffs (TBD)

Finally, we conclude what the CFP will be for the 2026-27 season, although dates, times and teams have not yet been determined.

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