Two Rules Changes Made to Regulations for 2026 SheBelieves Cup, Presented by Visa
Teams Will Be Allowed 26-Player Tournament Rosters With 23 Players Named to Game Day Rosters; Coaches Can Rotate Game Day Squads Among the 26 Players; All Matches That End in Ties Will Go Directly to Penalty Kicks with Shootout Winners Earning an Additional Point

ATLANTA (Feb. 11, 2026) – As the annual SheBelieves Cup, presented by Visa®, hits its 11th year, U.S. Soccer has made two significant changes to the regulations for one of the most prestigious four-team tournaments in women’s soccer.
Teams will now be allowed to field 26-player tournament rosters (up from 23 players in previous tournaments), but each head coach will have to name 23 players to suit up for each match with the coaches allowed to rotate the game day rosters among the 26 players. Teams will name their 23 eligible players for each game when starting lineups are turned in for each match.
Additionally, in an exciting new twist for players and fans, all matches that end in ties will go directly to penalty kicks. Therefore, while the winner of the tournament will still be determined by total points, teams will get three points for a win, one point for a tie after regulation, and another point for winning the penalty kick shootout.
Should teams be tied on points after the completion of round-robin play, the first tiebreaker will be overall goal difference, followed by most goals scored, then the head-to-head result at the end of regulation time. If the game between the teams that are tied on points ended in a draw, then the draw stands as the head-to-head result no matter which team won the penalty kick shootout. The last tiebreaker will be the Fair Play ranking, if necessary.
In 2026, the tournament takes on a Concacaf vs. CONMEBOL slant as the USA welcomes Argentina, Canada and Colombia. The USA is currently ranked second in the world, Canada is 10th, Colombia is 20th and Argentina is 30th. The USA and Canada are the top two teams in the Concacaf region while Colombia and Argentina faced each other in the semifinals of the 2025 Copa American Feminina, with Colombia winning on penalty kicks before losing to Brazil in the final, also on penalty kicks, after a wild 4-4 draw in regulation and overtime.
Ticket presales for all three matches are on sale via ussoccer.com.
The schedule will see the USA open the tournament against Argentina on Sunday, March 1 at GEODIS Park in Nashville, Tenn. at 4 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. ET (TNT, truTV and HBO Max in English and in Spanish on Universo and Peacock) while Canada faces Colombia at 1 p.m. CT / 2 p.m. ET (truTV and HBO Max in English and Universo and Peacock in Spanish).
The teams will then move to ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus, Ohio where the USA faces Canada on March 4 at 6:30 p.m. ET (TNT, truTV and HBO Max in English and in Spanish on Universo and Peacock) while Colombia takes on Argentina at 3:30 p.m. ET (truTV and HBO Max in English and Universo and Peacock in Spanish).
The final two games will take place at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J. on March 7, with the USA facing Colombia at 3:30 p.m. ET (TBS, truTV and HBO Max in English and in Spanish on Telemundo, Universo and Peacock) and Canada opening the doubleheader vs. Argentina at 12:30 p.m. ET (trueTV and HBO Max in English and Universo and Peacock in Spanish).
All the U.S. matches will also be available on the radio on Westwood One Sports in English and Futbol de Primera in Spanish.
On Feb. 3, LA28 announced the soccer venues for the 2028 Olympic Women’s and Men’s Soccer Tournaments and included are two 2026 SheBelieves Cup venues in Nashville and Columbus. While the USWNT has played in those stadiums before (twice at both GEODIS Park and ScottsMiracle-Gro Field), the matches mark the first time the USA will play in those stadiums since their announcement as Olympic venues.
Before the USA’s match against Colombia at Sports Illustrated Stadium on March 7, USWNT legend and 2026 National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee Tobin Heath will be honored with a pregame retirement celebration. The New Jersey native played 181 times for the USA from 2008-2021 and scored 36 goals while helping the USA win two World Cups and two Olympic gold medals. She announced her retirement last July and will be inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame on May 1, 2026.


