What It's Like to Photograph the 2026 World Cup for Getty Images

Chief sports photographer Patrick Smith takes Muse behind the scenes

Patrick Smith’s life and work are consumed by soccer this summer. The chief sports photographer for Getty Images is in the midst of traveling around North America covering the 2026 FIFA World Cup, taking team portraits and capturing the action at well over a dozen matches.

Throughout his career, Smith has trained his lens on plenty of high-profile sporting events, including the Olympics and Super Bowl, as well as previous World Cups. For him, there’s nothing quite like photographing the soccer tournament the planet obsesses over every four years.

“The World Cup just has this stature that no other sport has. You really feel it when you’re on the sidelines—how important this is compared to other sports,” he tells Muse.

That said, Smith doesn’t get distracted by the excitement. “My job is not to get caught up in it. My job is to record that visual history so it lives forever, not just for Getty, but for the world beyond,” he says.

Before every match, Smith contacts the manager of the venue he will be shooting in to get the run of show. He has access to that info “very early since I’m working for FIFA through Getty.” (The company has been the official photographic agency of FIFA since 2009.) He also checks in with his colleague Maddie Meyer, a staff photographer. They have been working games together and share information on specific stadiums in relation to traffic patterns, entrances, how the light hits at certain times of the day and other factors. “Working as a team really helps us get there,” Smith says.

To clear his mind before starting work, Smith, an avid runner who has competed in the Boston Marathon, tries to log a few miles on match days.

Once at the stadium, being respectful of the venue staff, fellow media and the athletes is key to his success. Much of his communication with the players is nonverbal. He’ll make eye contact with the likes of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé as they head to the pitch through the tunnel, giving a nod of acknowledgement and letting them know he is there to do this job without being invasive.

“A lot of that’s never been taught to us. It’s not like we get a handbook when we’re hired, like: this is how you work in a tunnel, this is how you work next to a Steadicam operator. That just takes years and years of timing and trust and making relationships.”

When Smith is shooting a game, he gets locked in, using all of his senses. “Some photographers put on noise-blocking headphones,” he notes. “I’m like, I want to hear it. I want to hear what’s happening. I want to hear, even if I don’t speak the language, I want to hear someone shouting when I’m on the pitch, or just standing around feeling it. You have to feel it. You feel these moments as a photographer. And I’m constantly scanning to be aware of what’s happening and to predict what’s going to happen so I can be there.”

Smith shared some of his favorite photos from the World Cup so far with Muse. Here, he reflects on the moments he has captured thus far:

Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo scores the knockout goal that brings his team victory over Croatia in the photo above. “Talk about somebody who has a presence. You see him. You’re like, whoa. He has this presence of being this international footballer,” Smith says. “I found myself really connecting with him on the pitch that game. I thought it was really special when he scored that goal and came right at me. He’s coming right at me, and he does his signature celebration.”

“When Ecuador beat Germany, there’s a player ripping his jersey off, laying backwards. You can see the layers in the background,” Smith says, “the dejection of the German players.” Smith grew up playing sports. He relates to the competitive spirit that drives the athletes he photographs.

Norway’s Erling Haaland (right) sings the Norwegian national anthem with fans before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match between Norway and Senegal in the photo above. “Haaland is this big name and someone I’ve learned to really enjoy photographing. He’s this crazy, powerful man,” Smith says. “So, you would think as a photographer, you want to focus on this big name and face. However, [this photo] is about the atmosphere. I’m just trying to show that this isn’t about what’s happening on the pitch. It’s what’s happening behind them—what’s really powerful is this collective journey that everybody’s taking.”