Gothia Cup 2026: how to follow your team's matches live

What is Gothia Cup?

Gothia Cup, nicknamed “The World Youth Cup”, is the world's largest and most international youth football tournament. Held in Gothenburg, Sweden every July since 1975 and organised by the local club BK Häcken, it draws teams from every corner of the world for a week of football that takes over the whole city.

Around 2,000 teams and 35,000 players take part, from roughly 80 nations — the reason it feels less like a tournament and more like a small football World Cup for kids.

When and where: Gothia Cup 2026

• Dates: 12–18 July 2026.
• Opening ceremony: at Ullevi, Sweden's largest arena, on 13 July.
• Main venues: Heden in the city centre and Kviberg, the two largest pitch areas; the finals are played at Gamla Ullevi.
• Age groups: boys and girls, roughly 11 to 18.

Classes and format

Teams are drawn into groups by age and class, then play through group stages into knockout rounds and finals across the week. Most classes are 11-a-side, with smaller-sided football for the younger ages. With thousands of matches on dozens of pitches, the schedule moves fast — which is exactly why following along at a distance is hard without help.

Fixtures and results

The official schedule, groups and results live on gothiacup.se and in the tournament's app. z2play is not the official results source — but it is the easiest way to let your own team's supporters follow every match live, with a running commentary on top of the bare score.

How family back home follows your team live

Players travel to Gothenburg from all over the world, while grandparents, siblings and friends stay home. z2play closes that gap:

1. One person on the team (a parent or coach) starts the match in z2play and picks football.
2. Share the link in the team chat — family opens it in a browser, nothing to install.
3. Say what's happening — the AI turns it into a live commentary feed and keeps the score updated in real time.

Everyone at home gets the feeling of standing on the touchline in Gothenburg — goal by goal, match by match.

The Scandinavian summer cup circuit

Gothia Cup opens a busy three weeks of Nordic youth football. Many touring teams go straight on to Dana Cup in Hjørring (20–25 July) and Norway Cup in Oslo (25 July–1 August). Whichever cups your team plays, one person can carry every match home to those who can't be there.