Friday, December 13, 2024
World Cup holders France, European champions Spain and England under new boss Thomas Tuchel all learned their potential route to the 2026 finals.
The draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers has been made in Zurich, plotting the path to the final tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The groups involving teams in UEFA Nations League quarter-final action will be finalised after those ties in March, with the four winners placed in groups of four.
Group A: Germany/Italy winners, Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg
Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo
Group C: Portugal/Denmark losers, Greece, Scotland, Belarus
Group D: France/Croatia winners, Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan
Group E: Spain/Netherlands winners, Türkiye, Georgia, Bulgaria
Group F: Portugal/Denmark winners, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Armenia
Group G: Spain/Netherlands losers, Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta
Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino
Group I: Germany/Italy losers, Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova
Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra
Group L: France/Croatia losers, Czechia, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar
Teams were placed into four pots and drawn into 12 groups of four and five teams, with traditional home-and-away matches and “all play all” principles retained.
Teams drawn in groups of five will begin qualifying in March and teams drawn in groups of four start their campaigns in September. All groups conclude in November 2025.
In total, 16 UEFA nations will qualify for the 2026 World Cup. The 12 group winners qualify directly for the World Cup; the four remaining berths are determined by play-offs involving the 12 group runners-up.
The 12 group runners-up will participate in the play-offs, along with the four best-ranked group winners of the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League that did not finish their European Qualifiers group stage in first or second place.
The 16 teams who enter the play-offs will be drawn into four play-off paths, with four teams in each. Play-off matches will be played in single-leg semi-finals followed by single-leg finals within the same international window in March 2026.
Group stage match dates
March to November 2025
Play-off match dates
26 & 31 March 2026
Final tournament dates
11 June to 19 July 2026
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