Table of Contents
- 1 First Time in History — 8 Arab Teams at the World Cup
- 1.1 Arab Teams’ Next Matches
- 1.2 Arab teams — all fixtures
- 1.3 Where to Bet on the 2026 World Cup
- 1.4 World Cup Bonuses Worth Claiming
- 1.5 Where the 2026 World Cup is Played, and the New Format
- 1.6 How the Tournament Works
- 1.7 Groups and Gulf Teams’ Schedules
- 1.8 The Eight Arab Teams at the World Cup
- 1.9 The Best World Cup Betting Markets
- 1.10 A Few Tips Before You Bet
- 1.11 How to Start Betting on the World Cup
- 1.12 FAQs
First Time in History — 8 Arab Teams at the World Cup
Kuwait did not make it to the 2026 World Cup, but three Gulf neighbours did: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan, the last of them reaching a first ever World Cup. With 48 teams and more matches than ever, there is plenty for a Kuwaiti bettor to follow. This page covers where to bet, the best World Cup offers, the format and the markets worth your money.
Want to bet on the World Cup? Betfinal is running one of the strongest campaigns this tournament. Read more in our BetFinal World Cup 2026 review.
Arab Teams’ Next Matches
Kuwait are not at the World Cup, but the Gulf and Arab sides are. Here are the upcoming fixtures for the Arab teams, with kick-off times in Kuwait time (GMT+3). We update this after each matchday.
Arab teams — all fixtures
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 15 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇺🇾 Uruguay |
Miami, USA | 01:00 | |
| Sun 21 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇪🇸 Spain |
Atlanta, USA | 19:00 | |
| Fri 27 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇨🇻 Cape Verde |
Houston, USA | 03:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 13 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇨🇭 Switzerland |
Seattle, USA | 22:00 | |
| Thu 19 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇨🇦 Canada |
Seattle, USA | 01:00 | |
| Wed 25 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herz. |
Toronto, Canada | 22:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 17 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇦🇹 Austria |
San Francisco, USA | 19:00 | |
| Tue 23 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇩🇿 Algeria |
San Francisco, USA | 06:00 | |
| Sun 28 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇦🇷 Argentina |
Boston, USA | 05:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 13 June | 🇲🇦 Morocco vs 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Miami, USA | 02:00 | |
| Thu 19 June | 🇲🇦 Morocco vs 🏴 Scotland |
Boston, USA | 22:00 | |
| Wed 25 June | 🇲🇦 Morocco vs 🇭🇹 Haiti |
Atlanta, USA | 02:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 16 June | 🇩🇿 Algeria vs 🇦🇷 Argentina |
Kansas City, USA | 04:00 | |
| Mon 22 June | 🇩🇿 Algeria vs 🇦🇹 Austria |
Dallas, USA | 19:00 | |
| Sun 28 June | 🇩🇿 Algeria vs 🇯🇴 Jordan |
San Francisco, USA | 05:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 15 June | 🇪🇬 Egypt vs 🇧🇪 Belgium |
Seattle, USA | 21:00 | |
| Sun 22 June | 🇪🇬 Egypt vs 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
Vancouver, Canada | 00:00 | |
| Fri 27 June | 🇪🇬 Egypt vs 🇮🇷 Iran |
Seattle, USA | 04:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off (Kuwait) | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 14 June | 🇹🇳 Tunisia vs 🇸🇪 Sweden |
Guadalajara, Mexico | 06:00 | |
| Sun 21 June | 🇹🇳 Tunisia vs 🇯🇵 Japan |
Guadalajara, Mexico | 03:00 | |
| Thu 26 June | 🇹🇳 Tunisia vs 🇳🇱 Netherlands |
Kansas City, USA | 03:00 |
Where to Bet on the 2026 World Cup
A handful of sites stand out for the World Cup, each with its own welcome offer and tournament promotions. We have used all of them, and the list below is our honest take on what each does well. If you sign up for just one, Betfinal is our pick this tournament, mainly because of the rewards it keeps running through the matches rather than a one-off welcome bonus.
⭐ 1st pick
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
World Cup Bonuses Worth Claiming
A welcome bonus matters, but the World Cup is a month of football, so the offers that keep paying are the ones that count. Betfinal has leaned into that. Its $25,000 Leaderboard runs all the way to the final on 19 July, with the top 20 players sharing the pool and first place taking $10,000 in cash, and even losing bets earn points. For outright bettors there is a Top Scorer offer: place a $20 outright on your pick and you get a $5 Freebet every time he scores. Collect all 10 badges in the Digital Passport during the tournament and you enter the draw for an iPad Pro. Add Early Settlement, which pays out a 3-0 lead straight away even if the final score changes, and you have offers that reward you across the whole month, not just at sign-up.
Where the 2026 World Cup is Played, and the New Format
The 2026 World Cup is the first hosted by three countries, the United States, Canada and Mexico, and the first with 48 teams instead of 32. They are split into 12 groups of four. For bettors, more teams means more matches and more markets, and a longer group stage where value is often easier to find than in the knockouts. Read our full format guide here.
How the Tournament Works
Each group plays three matches. The top two from every group advance, along with the eight best third-placed teams, which gives 32 teams in the first knockout round, the new Round of 32. From there it is the Round of 16, the quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final on 19 July. The Round of 32 is new for 2026, so a few extra teams get a knockout shot they would not have had under the old format.
Groups and Gulf Teams’ Schedules
Here is how the 12 groups line up. Saudi Arabia are in Group H, Qatar in Group B, and Jordan in Group J alongside Argentina — their first ever World Cup opponents.
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 15 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇺🇾 Uruguay |
Kansas City, USA | 01:00 |
| Sat 21 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇪🇸 Spain |
Dallas, USA | 19:00 |
| Sat 27 June | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia vs 🇨🇻 Cape Verde |
Atlanta, USA | 03:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 13 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇨🇭 Switzerland |
Los Angeles, USA | 22:00 |
| Thu 19 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇨🇦 Canada |
Seattle, USA | 01:00 |
| Wed 24 June | 🇶🇦 Qatar vs 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herz. |
Toronto, Canada | 22:00 |
| Date | Match | Venue | Kick-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 17 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇦🇹 Austria |
Philadelphia, USA | 19:00 |
| Tue 23 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇩🇿 Algeria |
San Francisco, USA | 06:00 |
| Sun 28 June | 🇯🇴 Jordan vs 🇦🇷 Argentina |
Boston, USA | 05:00 |
The Eight Arab Teams at the World Cup
A record eight Arab nations are at the 2026 World Cup: Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan and Iraq. Morocco arrive as the side that reached the semi-finals in 2022. Jordan are here for the very first time. Iraq are back after a 40-year wait.
← Scroll to see all 8 teams →
The Best World Cup Betting Markets
Two kinds of bet carry most of the World Cup action. Outrights, where you back the tournament winner or the top scorer, and match markets, where you bet on a single game. Outrights are where the season-long offers pay off: if you are backing a Golden Boot pick, Betfinal’s Top Scorer offer turns every goal he scores into a $5 Freebet once you have placed the $20 outright. For match betting, the most popular markets are over/under, handicap, both teams to score and first goalscorer.
| Market | How it works | Guide |
|---|---|---|
|
Outright winner
|
Back one team to win the whole tournament. Odds are longest before the group stage and shorten as teams progress. | Read guide |
|
Top scorer / Golden Boot Betfinal offer
|
Back a player to finish as top goalscorer. Place a $20 outright on Betfinal and earn a $5 freebet every time your pick scores. | Read guide |
|
Over / Under
|
Bet on whether total goals will be over or under a set line (usually 2.5). You do not need to pick a winner. | Read guide |
|
Handicap
|
One team starts with a virtual goal advantage or deficit. Useful when backing a strong favourite at short odds. | Read guide |
|
Both teams to score
|
Bet on whether both sides will score at least once. The result does not matter, only that each team finds the net. | Read guide |
|
First goalscorer
|
Back a player to score the very first goal of the match. Higher odds than anytime scorer, best on strikers with a strong opening-goal record. | Read guide |
|
Accumulator
|
Combine multiple match selections into one bet for bigger returns. All legs must win, but the World Cup’s volume of games makes it popular. | Read guide |
|
Group stage betting
|
Markets specific to the group stage: who qualifies, which team tops the group, total group goals. Good value before the knockouts tighten things up. | Read guide |
A Few Tips Before You Bet
How to Start Betting on the World Cup
Getting set up takes a few minutes. Choose a site, create an account, make your first deposit with a method that works in Kuwait, and claim the welcome offer before your first bet. Betting is for adults aged 18 and over. Always bet responsibly.
Betting is for adults aged 18 and over. Always bet responsibly.
FAQs
It runs from 11 June to 19 July 2026, hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Eight: Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan and Iraq. It is a record for Arab representation at a World Cup.
Kuwait did not qualify through the AFC qualification rounds. Three Gulf neighbours did — Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan — giving Kuwaiti fans plenty to follow this summer.
The new first knockout round introduced for the 48-team format. The top two from each of the 12 groups advance automatically, plus the eight best third-placed teams, making 32 teams in total.
We rate Betfinal highest this tournament for the rewards that run throughout it, including the $25,000 Leaderboard and the Top Scorer Freebet. Read our full Betfinal World Cup review for the details.
Yes, Saudi Arabia are available in the outright winner market. They are in a tough Group H with Spain and Uruguay, but qualifying from the group is a realistic market to consider. See our Saudi Arabia World Cup guide for more.
