Ready for the world’s biggest sporting event? The countdown is on for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Spread across the countries (Canada, Mexico, and the U.S.), 48 teams will take part in the largest edition of the tournament ever next summer.
The qualifying process is back in action in November. Which teams are already in and which ones are close to booking their spot?
When is the World Cup?
The World Cup will run from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread across three countries, the tournament will culminate with the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The FOX family of networks and the FOX Sports app are your complete home for World Cup content, including live matches, complete highlights, commentary and analysis, and full-match replays.
What we know:
- 48 teams will participate in the World Cup;
- 42 of those 48 teams will qualify directly, with four qualifying via the European (UEFA) playoff and two via the intercontinental playoff;
- Three co-host teams — Canada, Mexico, United States — are in;
- Croatia, England, France, Norway and Portugal from Europe (UEFA) are also in;
- Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay are all in after qualifying through the South American (CONMEBOL) confederation;
- Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan and Qatar are in after qualifying through the Asian (AFC) confederation;
- Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco and Tunisia are in after qualifying through the African (CAF) confederation;
- New Zealand is in after qualifying through the Oceania (OFC) confederation;
Who is in (total World Cup appearances, including 2026):
These teams are in! Who else will join? Listed by geographical region:
Asia (AFC)
- Australia (7 appearances)
- Iran (7 appearances)
- Japan (8 appearances)
- Jordan (will make debut in 2026)
- Qatar (2 appearances)
- Tunisia (7 appearances)
- Uzbekistan (will make debut in 2026)
Africa (CAF)
- Algeria (5 appearances)
- Cape Verde (will make debut in 2026)
- Egypt (4 appearances)
- Ghana (5 appearances)
- Ivory Coast (4 appearances)
- Morocco (7 appearances)
- Senegal (4 appearances)
- South Africa (4 appearances)
- South Korea (12 appearances)
Europe (UEFA)
- Croatia (6 appearances)
- England (16 appearances)
- France (17 appearances)
- Norway (4 appearances)
- Portugal (9 appearances)
North America, Central America, Caribbean (CONCACAF)
- Canada (co-hosts; 3 appearances)
- Mexico (co-hosts; 18 appearances)
- United States (co-hosts; 12 appearances)
South America (CONMEBOL)
- Argentina (19 appearances)
- Brazil (23 appearances)
- Colombia (6 appearances)
- Ecuador (5 appearances)
- Paraguay (8 appearances)
- Uruguay (14 appearances)
Oceania (OFA)
- New Zealand (3 appearances)
What to Expect in November From Across the Globe:
Asia (AFC) — The six spots are wrapped up with Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and South Korea. Now it’s about which team will book the playoff spot – UAE or Iraq. Those two teams play each other twice to see who’ll advance.
South America (CONMEBOL) — The qualifying rounds are done. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay have booked direct spots. Bolivia secured an intercontinental playoff spot. Chile, Peru, and Venezuela were eliminated.
Europe (UEFA) — Croatia, Norway, Portugal, France and England are in. Spain is on the cusp. Germany and the Netherlands are also on the cusp of qualifying. Italy, which hasn’t made the World Cup since 2014, will have to qualify via the European playoffs in March.
North America/Central America/Caribbean (CONCACAF) — Aside from the three co-hosts, no one from this region has booked their spot yet. There are 12 teams (split into three groups) playing through November. The three group winners will head directly to the World Cup. Look for teams like Curaçao, Costa Rica, Jamaica and Honduras to be among the contenders.
Africa (CAF) — Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia have clinched the region’s spots. Two teams (DR Congo and Nigeria) will play in November to see who’ll grab the intercontinental playoff spot.
Oceania (OFA) — This is also done and dusted, with New Zealand already in and having this confederation’s only direct spot. The tiny island of New Caledonia, officially a French overseas territory, still has a shot as a participant in the intercontinental playoff.
The Intercontinental Playoff, Explained:
Six teams will participate in a mini-tournament of their own to qualify for the big stage, with Europe (UEFA) not taking part in this event. This event will take place in March 2026, and reportedly will take place at two neutral venues in Mexico.
- 1 Africa (DR Congo)
- 1 Asia (Iraq or United Arab Emirates)
- 2 North and Central America/Caribbean (TBD)
- 1 Oceania (New Caledonia)
- 1 South America (Bolivia)
These six teams will be placed in two separate three-team brackets. The two teams with the highest FIFA rankings will get byes to the two separate finals. The other four teams will face each other to reach those finalists. The two teams to emerge from this playoff round will go to the World Cup.
The UEFA Playoff, Explained:
As for Europe (UEFA), it will have its own playoff tournament to finalize the last four teams from Europe who will go to the World Cup.
Remember, 12 European teams will head directly to the World Cup, having won their respective four-team qualifying groups. The runner-ups of those 12 groups will be joined by four other lower-ranked European teams. These 16 teams will then be bracketed into a mini-tournament of their own in March 2026 to decide those remaining four World Cup spots.
Teams that are confirmed to be in the UEFA playoff include:
- Albania
- Czechia
- Italy
- Ireland
- Ukraine
Region-by-region breakdown:
AFC (Asia)
How many World Cup teams can qualify?
8 automatically, 1 enters the intercontinental playoff round
Who is in?
Australia, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan, Qatar
Who remains in contention?
Iraq, United Arab Emirates (vying for an intercontinental playoff spot)
The qualifying tournament in Asia started back in October 2023 with 46 teams participating. After three rounds of qualifying, six teams have booked World Cup spots, with two more direct spots up (and one playoff berth) up for grabs. Round 4 consisted of six teams (the third- and fourth-placed teams from Round 3), and split into two groups. Those group winners advanced to the World Cup. Final full standincs can be found here.
What’s next in November?
The Round 4 runners-up play (Iraq and the United Arab Emirates) each other in Round 5 in November with the winner then heading to the intercontinental playoff in March 2026. After drawing in the first leg 1-1, they’ll play the second leg next Tuesday to see who’ll secure that spot.
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CAF (Africa)
How many World Cup teams can qualify?
9 automatically, 1 enters the intercontinental playoff round
Who is in?
Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
Who remains in contention?
DR Congo (intercontinental playoff participant)
In all, 54 teams (which was later reduced to 52) were split into nine groups of six teams each. The nine group winners advanced directly to the World Cup. Full final standings can be found here.
What’s next in November?
The best second-place teams entered their own mini-tournament in November (two semifinals and a final). The winner of this round qualifies for the intercontinental playoff round in March 2026.
The playoff semifinals were:
Nigeria 4, Gabon 1
Congo DR 1, Cameroon 0
The playoff final was:
DR Congo 1-Nigeria 1 (DR Congo advances on penalties, 4-3)
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CONCACAF (North & Central America and the Caribbean)
How many World Cup teams can qualify?
6 automatically (3 co-hosts, 3 through qualifying), 2 enter the intercontinental playoff round
Who is in?
Canada, Mexico, United States
What’s next in November?
The three co-hosts are in, leaving three more automatic spots for the region. There are also two spots for the intercontinental playoff to be determined. Initially, 32 teams began the process, with 30 teams – six groups of five teams – advancing into the second round of qualification, which concluded in June. The top two teams from each group advanced to Round 3.
Round 3 began in September with three groups of four teams, and will conclude in November. The group winners move onto the World Cup, and the two best runners-up get intercontinental playoff spots. Full standings can be found here.
| Group A | GP | W | D | L | Pts |
| Suriname | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Panama | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Guatemala | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| El Salvador | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| Group B | GP | W | D | L | Pts |
| Curaçao | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 11 |
| Jamaica | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Trin. and Tob. | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| Bermuda | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Group C | GP | W | D | L | Pts |
| Honduras | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Haiti | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Costa Rica | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| Nicaragua | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
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CONMEBOL (South America)
How many World Cup teams can qualify?
6 automatically, 1 enters the intercontinental playoff round
Who is in?
Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay, Colombia, Paraguay
Who remains in contention?
Bolivia (intercontinental playoff participant)
How did things finish?
Six teams from the 10-team region have clinched, with Argentina, Brazil, and Ecuador moving onto the World Cup. Uruguay, Paraguay, and Colombia also booked their spots. Bolivia will be heading to the intercontinental playoff. Venezuela, Chile and Peru are officially eliminated. Full final standings can be found here.
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OFC (Oceania)
How many World Cup teams have qualified?
1 automatically, 1 enters the intercontinental playoff round
Who is in?
New Zealand
Who else is in contention?
New Caledonia (intercontinental playoff participiant)
How did it finish?
The 11-team qualifying tournament from this region, consisting of countries and territories in the South Pacific, concluded in March. One team emerged from Round 1, joining the seven top-ranked teams of the region. Those eight teams were split into two groups for Round 2, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the semifinals. Full final standings can be found here.
Semifinals, March 21
New Caledonia 3, Tahiti 0
New Zealand 7, Fiji 0
Final, March 24
New Zealand 3, New Caledonia 0
New Zealand will head to the World Cup, while New Caledonia will be one of the six teams in the intercontinental playoff in March 2026.
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UEFA (Europe)
How many World Cup teams can qualify?
16 (12 automatically, 4 through a UEFA-only playoff)
Who is in?
Croatia, England, France, Norway, Portugal
There are 54 (excluding Russia) teams who began the qualifying process in March. In all, there are 12 groups of either four or five teams each. The winner of each group will clinch World Cup spots. European teams cannot reach the World Cup via the intercontinental playoff. Full current standings can be found here.
What’s next in November?
Croatia, England, Norway, Portugal and France have clinched so far. Teams like Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands should be in. Italy is going to have to qualify via the European playoff route.
The 12 runners-up move to a subsequent playoff round, added by the four best-ranked Nations League group teams that did not finish their World Cup qualifying group in first or second place. These 16 teams will then be bracketed to clinch the Europe’s remaining four World Cup spots in March 2026.
| Group A | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Germany | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| Slovakia | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| N. Ireland | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Luxembourg | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Group B | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Switzerland | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Kosovo | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Slovenia | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| Sweden | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Group C | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Denmark | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Scotland | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Greece | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Belarus | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Group D | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| France* | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| Iceland | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Ukraine | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Azerbaijan | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Group E | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Spain | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Turkey | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| Georgia | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| Bulgaria | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Group F | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Portugal* | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| Rep. Ireland | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Hungary | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| Armenia | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 |
| Group G | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Netherlands | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 17 |
| Poland | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 14 |
| Finland | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| Malta | 7 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
| Lithuania | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Group H | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Austria | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 15 |
| Bosnia-Herz. | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| Romania | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Cyprus | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| San Marino | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Group I | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Norway* | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Italy | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 18 |
| Israel | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| Estonia | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 |
| Moldova | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| Group J | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Belgium | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| N. Macedonia | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 13 |
| Wales | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 13 |
| Kazakhstan | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| Liechtenstein | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Group K | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| England* | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Albania | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 14 |
| Serbia | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 |
| Latvia | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Andorra | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| Group L | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| Croatia* | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 19 |
| Czechia | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 13 |
| Faroe Isl. | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| Montenegro | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 9 |
| Gibraltar | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
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