The 2026 FIFA World Cup is edging ever closer, and the anticipation is building. But now the UEFA Champions League final has come and gone, widely recognized as heralding the end of Europe’s club season, there will be a gaping void for many football fans until the biggest tournament ever kicks off on June 11.
But fear not! You won’t have to wait for Mexico and South Africa to kick off at the Estadio Azteca to hear the satisfying thud of boot on ball. And no, we don’t mean the usual smattering of pre-World Cup friendlies, which no one seems to really enjoy.
For one thing, there’s a full set of European Women’s World Cup qualifiers on Friday — including Spain vs. England in a rematch of the last two major tournament finals — and June 9, featuring Netherlands vs. Poland ()
Plus, the Maurice Revello Tournament — perhaps better known under its former guise, the Toulon Tournament — one of men’s football’s prominent youth events, starts on Sunday May 31 when China‘s under-20s play against Saudi Arabia’s U23s.
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But those matches at or near the top level are just the tip of the iceberg of what’s happening over the next couple of weeks and beyond. The beautiful game never sleeps.
So before you dive into a month of the game’s biggest stars playing at the very pinnacle of the game, why not be captivated by some of the more quirky options that are out there for your soccer viewing pleasure?
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Forget FIFA and UEFA. Try CONIFA!
The CONIFA (Confederation of Independent Football Associations) European Football Championship is a tournament for teams with no UEFA or FIFA affiliation that takes place every two years. The 2026 edition is taking place in Insubria, a cross-border region between Italy and Switzerland that is home to two of the six participants: Padania and Canton Ticino.
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One of the more attention-catching entrants is Greenland. After being denied entry into UEFA following a rule change restricting membership to sovereign states, the autonomous territory of Denmark later applied to join Concacaf but was unanimously rejected by its 41 member associations in the summer of 2025. Now, the Polar-Bamserne (Polar Teddy Bears) will turn to CONIFA competition in search of glory.
The group stage, with each team playing two matches, takes place between June 2 and 4, followed by three placement matches on June 6 to determine the final standings. The bottom-placed teams in each of the two groups will meet in the fifth-place playoff, while the runners-up contest the third-place playoff and the winners meet in the final.
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An international tournament older than the World Cup
On the same day as the CONIFA Euros conclude, another biennial European tournament gets underway — the oldest still-active international competition on the continent, no less.
The Baltic Cup, which dates back to 1928 (making it two years older than the World Cup) pits the three neighboring countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania against each other for bragging rights in the region. In recent years the trio have invited a guest nation, enabling a straight four-team knockout format. Finland participated in 2012 and 2014, while Iceland even won the tournament on their sole appearance in 2022. The Faroe Islands debuted in 2024 and are set to make up the numbers once again this summer.
The semifinals take place on June 6, with Lithuania hosting Latvia in Kaunas and Estonia welcoming the Faroe Islands to Tallinn.
The battle to face Barcelona, Real Madrid
While other players across Europe are off on holiday (or headed to the World Cup), Spain’s second tier still hasn’t wrapped for the year. The final set of LaLiga2 matches takes place on the evening of May 31 and for four teams there are still the playoffs to come as they battle it out for a place at Spanish football’s top table.
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The playoffs finish on June 21, meaning that the likes of Brazil will have played two group games at the World Cup by the time the Spanish club season officially draws to a close. Winning is the difference between facing Barcelona and Real Madrid in LaLiga next season or navigating trips to the Pyrenees to take on FC Andorra and an arduous trip to the African mainland to play Ceuta, so you can expect teams to leave it all out there.
Watch Liverpool in action … in Uruguay
South America’s club competitions aren’t going into hibernation for the World Cup. The Copa Argentina is serving up feisty clashes in June right up to the big kickoff, and so is the Copa Ecuador.
If you’re inspired by watching Ecuador, seen by many as dark horses, at the World Cup, then why not watch Independiente del Valle in the round of 32 against Vargas Torres on July 8. Independiente del Valle’s youth system is responsible for producing a huge quantity of Ecuador’s World Cup stars, such as all-action midfielder Moisés Caicedo and defensive duo Piero Hincapié and Willian Pacho.
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And for any Liverpool fans already missing their team (despite a grim season that ended with Arne Slot being fired), there’s Liverpool FC in Montevideo competing in the Uruguayan Primera División. They play Boston River on June 1 and make a long trip to Cerro Largo, the most remote team in the league, on June 8.
Go grassroots in the U.S.
The World Cup isn’t the only football taking place in the USA over the summer. The USL Championship — the second tier of the United States league system — continues throughout June and July for those who like their football a little more down to earth.
There are teams across the United States and very few of them are located close to World Cup venues. For some fans, going to a USL game will be a great addition to a trip to the World Cup, for others it might be a more realistically priced alternative.
