The 2026 FIFA World Cup will go down in history as the first tournament featuring 48 teams and taking place across three countries: the USA, Mexico, and Canada. The majority of the matches – 78 – will be held in the USA, while Canada and Mexico will host 13 matches each. The tournament is set to kick off on June 11 at the famous Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, with the final match scheduled for July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The group stage draw is planned for December 5, 2025, and will take place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. In the competition, 48 teams will be divided into 12 groups, each consisting of four national teams, taking into account FIFA rankings and principles of balanced distribution.
In the first pot will be the three host countries (USA, Canada, Mexico) and nine teams with the highest FIFA rankings. It is already known that Mexico will occupy Group A, Canada will be in Group B, and the USA will be in Group C.
Pots 2–4 will be filled with the remaining teams based on their rankings to ensure an equal distribution of team strength across the groups.
It is worth noting that teams from the same confederation will not be placed in the same group, except for European teams – a maximum of two such teams can be in one group.
The playoff format will be new: the top two teams from each group and the eight best third-placed teams will advance to the Round of 16. The ranking of third-placed teams will be calculated based on points, goal difference, goals scored, disciplinary records (yellow and red cards), and if necessary, the world ranking.
Continental quotas
UEFA (Europe): 16 teams
CAF (Africa): 9 teams
AFC (Asia): 8 teams
CONMEBOL (South America): 6 teams
CONCACAF (North America): 6 teams (including 3 hosts)
OFC (Oceania): 1 team
Already qualified teams
Europe: England
Asia: Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan (debut), Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan (debut)
Africa: Algeria, Cape Verde (debut), Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
North America: Canada (host), Mexico (host), USA (host)
South America: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
Oceania: New Zealand
Key features of the tournament:
The 2026 World Cup will be the largest in history, opening doors for debutants like Cape Verde and Uzbekistan. The tournament will take place in three countries simultaneously for the first time and will expand to 48 teams, increasing the total number of matches and allowing more national teams to participate in the World Cup.
