Kings League’s Kings World Cup Clubs: format, teams and schedule for 2026 edition in Italy

Los Troncos FC will defend their title in Italy this summer as the Kings World Cup Clubs returns in a revamped 2026 edition featuring 16 of the strongest seven-a-side teams from across the Kings League ecosystem.

The week-long tournament – the showpiece club event of Gerard Pique’s Kings League project – will run from 26 July to 1 August, bringing together champions from Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Italy, Germany, France and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to decide what organisers bill as the undisputed world champions of 7v7 football.

Los Troncos FC, who lifted the trophy in Paris in 2024 after beating Porcinos FC in an all-Spanish final, are back aiming to retain their crown but face heavyweight opposition, including clubs backed by Lamine Yamal, Neymar Jr and James Rodriguez, alongside other high-profile football figures.

This year’s competition marks the first time the club World Cup is staged in Italy.

What is the Kings World Cup Clubs?

The Kings World Cup Clubs is the premier club tournament in the Kings League calendar, sitting above the various national and regional Kings League competitions around the world.

Unlike the Kings World Cup Nations – which pitches national sides against each other – the club event is contested by local clubs representing domestic Kings League competitions in Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Brazil, Mexico and the MENA region.

Launched in 2024, it quickly became the flagship club tournament within the Kings League structure, bringing together domestic champions and top-performing sides from different territories in a single global event.

Origins and distinctive rules

Kings League was founded by former Barcelona and Spain defender Gerard Pique, reimagining football by combining traditional seven-a-side with a series of experimental laws.

These include “secret weapons”, game-changing cards and highly theatrical penalty shootouts, all designed to increase unpredictability and entertainment.

Those same innovations remain central to the Kings World Cup Clubs, ensuring matches can swing dramatically in seconds and that no tie is ever truly settled until the final whistle.

New 2026 format: 16 teams and Swiss-style opening phase

For 2026, the competition has been streamlined from 32 to 16 teams and given a new structure that guarantees every club more than one match.

Instead of beginning with straight knockout ties, the tournament opens with a Swiss-style phase before moving into a traditional single-elimination bracket.

The opening phase is played over three rounds:

– All 16 clubs take part in Round 1, with the draw configured so that teams from the same domestic league do not meet in their first fixture.
– Winners of those opening ties move into a “winners’ path”, while the losing sides drop into a “losers’ path”.
– In Round 2, any team improving its record to 2-0 secures an automatic place in the quarter-finals, while those slipping to 0-2 are eliminated.

The remaining clubs then contest a “Last Chance” round. Victors in that stage claim the four remaining spots in the knockout phase; defeated teams go out.

Knockout stage and route to the title

The eight survivors progress to a single-elimination bracket from the quarter-finals onwards.

As a reward for their perfect 2-0 record in the earlier rounds, the four clubs that qualified directly for the quarter-finals will be drawn against teams that had to advance via the Last Chance matches, providing a seeding advantage based on early performance.

The competition then follows a straightforward format through quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.

The winners of the showpiece match on 1 August will be crowned champions of the Kings World Cup Clubs 2026.

Who has qualified?

Sixteen clubs from seven different Kings League competitions have secured their places at the 2026 tournament.

Spots have been earned through a mixture of domestic league titles, success in continental cup competitions and consistent performances across regular-season campaigns, rather than through open wildcard invitations.

The line-up underlines the rapid international expansion of Kings League, with representatives from Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Brazil, Mexico and the MENA region all contesting the world title.

Organisers describe this as the strongest field in the history of the Kings World Cup Clubs, featuring domestic champions, continental winners and teams fronted by some of the biggest names in world football.

Match calendar in Italy

The entire event is compressed into seven days in Italy, with fixtures played on every matchday:

– Sunday 26 July – Round 1
– Monday 27 July – Round 2
– Tuesday 28 July – Round 2 (continued)
– Wednesday 29 July – Rest day
– Thursday 30 July – Last Chance round
– Friday 31 July – Quarter-finals
– Saturday 1 August – Semi-finals and final

That schedule is designed to deliver a high-intensity week in which the remaining sides must navigate a demanding sequence of games to be crowned world champions.

How to watch on DAZN

Kings League matches, including the Kings World Cup Clubs 2026, are available live on DAZN in most international markets.

DAZN holds global broadcast rights except in the following territories, where local broadcast arrangements apply: Brazil, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Martin, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Portugal, the United States, the Caribbean, Central America, Latin America, South America and Israel.

Supporters in eligible regions can watch every match live via the DAZN app or through DAZN.com, accessible on smart TVs, mobile phones, tablets, streaming devices, video game consoles and web browsers.