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World Cup

American  

noun

Soccer.
  1. a trophy emblematic since 1930 of the world championship in soccer and competed for every four years by finalists who have won qualifying matches among more than 150 national teams.

  2. the quadrennial championship match for this trophy between the two finalists emergent from 24 qualifying teams, which include regional winners, the defending champion, and the host country team.


World Cup British  

noun

  1. an international competition held between national teams in various sports, most notably association football

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

MetLife stadium, outside the city in neighboring New Jersey state, will host its first match of the World Cup on Saturday.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

The incident occurred at one of the nation's busiest rail and subway transportation centers as the city prepares for two huge sporting spectacles in the coming week: basketball's NBA Finals and football's World Cup tournament.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

His association normally sends a group of fans to the World Cup but decided not to bother even trying to go to the US because of the regulations.

From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026

"The visa system is the invisible gatekeeper of the World Cup," Atallah says.

From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026

He was going ... he was going to the Weasleys’, he was going to watch the Quidditch World Cup!

From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling

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