July 2026 Calendar: Five Fridays and a 250th Birthday
July 2026 opened on a Wednesday and closed on a Friday, and it spent its biggest weekend first. The United States turned 250 on Saturday, July 4, and a birthday that lands on a weekend becomes a three-day semiquincentennial on its own. The month ran 31 days across weeks 27 to 31, holding 23 business days and eight weekend days. The printable grid is blank on purpose. This page is what to write on it.
The shape of the month
July 2026 holds five Wednesdays, five Thursdays and five Fridays, and only four Saturdays: the 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th. A month that starts midweek spends its weekends early. Business days came to 23 and weekend days to eight.
The new moon fell around Tuesday, July 14, the darkest skies of the month. It arrived just as the World Cup entered its final fortnight. The full moon followed around Wednesday, July 29. Early July also ran hot, with red alerts across southern Europe and heat warnings in roughly two dozen US states.
The world of work had its own news. Microsoft cut about 4,800 jobs on July 6, mostly in Xbox and commercial sales, and divested four game studios. A month can be a spectacle and a spreadsheet at once.
A month of finals
The sport ran on schedule all month. At Wimbledon, Linda Noskova won her first Grand Slam in an all-Czech final on July 11, beating Karolina Muchova. Jannik Sinner defended his title the next day, overcoming Alexander Zverev for a fifth major.
On Sunday, July 19, Spain beat Argentina 1-0 after extra time at MetLife Stadium. It was the country's second men's World Cup. Ferran Torres scored the goal and Rodri took the Golden Ball. The tournament had begun on June 11 at the Azteca and ran to 104 matches.
Away from the stadiums, Japan's Hayabusa2 probe made a close flyby of the asteroid 98943 Torifune on July 5. Torifune is the first asteroid target of its extended mission. One new rock on the itinerary, and one quiet cheer from the teams.
The month's hard news
July also carried grief, and it deserves plain words. A ballistic-missile and drone attack on Kyiv on July 2 killed at least 30 people and wounded 98. It forced more than 50,000 civilians into shelters.
Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, killed in a US-Israeli strike on February 28, lay in state in Tehran from July 3. Rites followed in Qom, Najaf and Karbala, with burial in Mashhad.
On July 30, an avalanche on Broad Peak in Pakistan buried ten climbers. Among them was the record-holding mountaineer Nirm Purja, and all ten were later confirmed dead. The same day, tens of thousands of people surged from Morocco into Spain's enclave of Ceuta within 48 hours. Dozens drowned, and the crisis triggered recriminations across Europe's Schengen zone.
August 2026 opens on a Saturday and hands out ten weekend days. July's eight were the warm-up.