Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan fans watch the 2026 World Cup from Tashkent (UZT, UTC+5). Their Group K matches kick off between 00:00 and 06:00 local time, requiring midnight and pre-dawn commitments for every group stage fixture.

What the schedule means for Uzbekistani fans

Uzbekistan Time is UTC+5, placing Tashkent 10 hours ahead of Central Time and 9 hours ahead of Eastern Time in June. Every Group K venue translates its afternoon and evening US kickoffs into the middle of the night or early morning in Tashkent and Samarkand.

Group K local kickoff times in Tashkent

• June 17: vs Colombia at Mexico City. 06:00 June 18 (Tashkent)
• June 23: vs Portugal at Houston. 00:00 June 24 (Tashkent)
• June 27: vs DR Congo at Atlanta. 04:30 June 28 (Tashkent)

A debut at the hardest hours

This is Uzbekistan’s first FIFA World Cup appearance. No Uzbekistani fan arrived at this moment expecting favorable viewing hours, and none will use the schedule as a reason to miss any match.

The Colombia opener arrives at sunrise in Tashkent: a 06:00 kickoff as the Central Asian sun rises over the city’s famous Registan Square. The Portugal match falls exactly at midnight, and the DR Congo finale at 04:30 pre-dawn requires the deepest overnight commitment.

Uzbekistan’s World Cup debut is a landmark for Central Asian football, which has developed its infrastructure and talent pipeline substantially over the past decade. The country has produced players competing in Russian, Korean, and Japanese leagues, building toward this qualification.

The large Uzbek diaspora in Russia and Kazakhstan watches from UTC+3 and UTC+5 respectively, placing the Colombia match at 04:00 in Moscow and 06:00 in Almaty. South Korean fans of the Uzbek diaspora community watch at similar morning hours to the home country.

Check Uzbekistan time for live conversions throughout the tournament. For full match previews and analysis, see whensport.com.