By Bright Boabeng

Copyright ahotoronline

Starting from the 2026-27 season, FIFA will combine the traditional September and October international breaks into a single, extended window, reducing the overall number of disruptions to domestic leagues from four to three per year.
This decision was approved by the FIFA Council in March 2023, following discussions with all six confederations, the European Club Association, and FIFPro, to address fixture congestion, player welfare, and the scheduling needs around the 2026 World Cup—whose final is set for July 19, the latest for a summer tournament since 1966.
The merged break will span from September 21 to October 6, 2026 (with slight variations in some reports, such as September 23 to October 8), allowing national teams to play four matches instead of the previous two per window, while keeping the total annual matches at six across the fall period.
The March and November windows remain unchanged, each hosting two matches over nine days.
This restructuring, locked in through at least 2030, aims to minimize travel fatigue for players (especially those in European clubs from distant regions like Africa and South America) and streamline the calendar