NEW YORK — Major League Baseball's 2026 World Series begins Tuesday, October 20, with the National League champion hosting Game 1 after clinching home-field advantage through the regular season.

The World Series opener follows the conclusion of both League Championship Series rounds. The Los Angeles Dodgers entered the postseason as defending champions and remained among the favourites to return to the Fall Classic.

Home-field advantage in the series is awarded to the pennant winner with the superior regular-season record. Game 1 and Game 2 are staged at that club's ballpark, while the best-of-seven format shifts to the opposing champion's city for Games 3 through 5.

The matchup caps a dramatic autumn in American sport, running alongside a full National Football League week and the opening of the NBA regular season. Fox retains the national broadcast rights to the World Series, which draws the largest baseball audiences of the year.

First pitch is scheduled for the early evening in the host city to maximise the prime-time television window across the United States.