The 66,000-capacity venue in Foxborough, 22 miles south-west of Boston, is due to host seven matches during the 2026 tournament, including England’s second group game against Ghana on 23 June.

Scotland are also scheduled to play their opening two matches – against Haiti and Morocco – in Massachusetts.

However, city officials remain locked in a financial stand-off with Fifa, demanding £6 million to cover manpower and infrastructure costs associated with staging the games.

Without a licence, the matches cannot proceed at the home of the New England Patriots.

Members of the town’s Select Board have now given Fifa until 17 March to settle the issue or risk Foxborough refusing to issue the licence altogether.

Select Board chairman Bill Yukna said: “We have to secure that facility for 39 days straight, I think there’s a lot of manpower involved there. So all we’re asking for is a collaboration that gets us the answer as to who.”

After confirming the deadline, Bill added: “We’ve got four weeks as far as we’re concerned. Without those answers and without us ordering some needed materials very soon, it will be impossible for us to implement those plans that we’ve developed.”

Under the official hosting agreement, cities are liable for policing, safety and protection costs, although federal funds are available to borrow.

It had been expected that the Patriots’ owners, the Kraft family, would cover those overheads, but they declined, stating the stadium is in Fifa’s hands for the duration of the event.

Kevin Clark, Fifa’s World Cup 2026 Director of Venue Operations, said: “With respect to the financial agreement, we have to defer to both the stadium and the host city. We are not in a position to comment on the financial requirements.”

Board members have raised concerns that the £6 million bill represents 10 percent of the city’s entire 2026 budget. Massachusetts state officials are now preparing to seek additional federal funds in a bid to resolve the dispute before the deadline expires.