The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
24 national teams across four southern and central Polish cities — September 5–27, 2026, Poland's tournament debut as host
The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup runs September 5–27, 2026, across four Polish cities — Łódź, Bielsko-Biała, Katowice and Sosnowiec — with 24 national teams competing across all six confederations. It's Poland's first time hosting this tournament, and unlike a men's World Cup spread across a huge host country, the whole event is concentrated in the country's south and center, genuinely manageable to follow across multiple cities in one trip.
Quick facts
The four host cities
Arena Katowice (15,000) and Arena Sosnowiec (11,600) sit in adjacent cities in Poland's industrial south — the Katowice-Sosnowiec area is a short trip apart and easy to base between. Stadion Miejski in Bielsko-Biała (15,000) is about 40 miles further south, while Stadion Miejski LKS in Łódź (18,000) is in central Poland, a genuinely separate trip from the southern cluster rather than a quick hop.
Planning a multi-city trip
Given the four venues split into a southern cluster (Katowice, Sosnowiec, Bielsko-Biała) and a separate central-Poland city (Łódź), most visitors following multiple matches pick one cluster rather than bouncing constantly between all four — Poland's rail network connects all of them, but Łódź specifically requires a dedicated leg of the trip.
Beyond the matches
None of the four host cities are Poland's usual tourist headliners (that's Kraków and Warsaw), which means genuinely lower hotel prices and crowds than a typical World Cup host city — but also fewer built-in tourist attractions around match days. Kraków is roughly 90 minutes from Katowice by train, a realistic add-on for anyone building a longer trip around the tournament.
Practical tips
- —Katowice and Sosnowiec are close enough to base in one and day-trip to the other — treat Łódź as a separate leg of the trip rather than assuming it's a quick add-on.
- —Hotel prices in these host cities are meaningfully lower than Poland's major tourist cities even during the tournament — a genuine budget advantage over attending a World Cup in a bigger host city.
- —Consider adding Kraków (about 90 minutes from Katowice by train) if you want classic old-town sightseeing alongside the football.
- —Check the match schedule once fixtures are confirmed — with four spread-out venues, it's worth planning your city sequence around your specific matches, not the other way around.