World Cup 2026 is coming, with the UEFA qualifying groups decided on Friday 13 December 2024. Unlucky for some, of course.
The tournament will be held in North America, as Canada, the United States and Mexico put on the first World Cup ever hosted by three separate nations. Mexico will become the first nation to have hosted three, while the US will mark 32 years since they hosted in '94: it's Canada's first go.
In another first for the Greatest Show on Earth, the World Cup will be expanded for this edition to a whopping 48 teams from across the globe. More chance of home nations getting to World Cup 2026, right?
Here's how this works. The qualifying group stage will feature twelve groups of four or five teams, with the winner of each group automatically qualifying for the World Cup in 2026.
The second-placed teams will advance to the play-offs, along with the four best-ranked group winners from the 2024/25 Nations League, who finished outside of the top two of their World Cup qualifying group. This is designed to give the likes of San Marino a chance.
16 nations from the UEFA confederation will be present at the World Cup in North America – a third of everyone there – with a great opportunity for all home nations. England have been drawn into a group with Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra, giving Thomas Tuchel his first tests as Three Lions boss.
Wales, meanwhile, will meet Belgium once more, after famously defeating the Red Devils at Euro 2016 in the quarter-finals, with North Macedonia, Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein making up the rest of their group. Scotland have been drawn into a four-team group, where they will play the defeated team from Portugal and Denmark's Nations League quarter-final, along with Greece and Belarus.
Across the Irish Sea, both Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland have tricky tests. Northern Ireland face the winners of Germany and Italy's Nations League quarter-final, Slovakia and Luxembourg, while Republic of Ireland take on the winners of Portugal and Denmark, along with Hungary and Armenia.
World Cup qualifying kicks off on March 21 2025 when the next international break rolls around. We won't know the full line-up for the 2026 competition, however, until March 31 2026.
The UEFA qualifying groups for World Cup 2026
World Cup 2026: The UEFA qualifying groups
Group A
- Germany/Italy (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Slovakia
- Northern Ireland
- Luxembourg
Group B
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- Slovenia
- Kosovo
Group C
- Portugal/Denmark (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Greece
- Scotland
- Belarus
Group D
- France/Croatia (winner team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Ukraine
- Iceland
- Azerbaijan
Group E
- Spain/Netherlands (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Turkey
- Georgia
- Bulgaria
Group F
- Portugal/Denmark (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Hungary
- Republic of Ireland
- Armenia
Group G
- Spain/Netherlands (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Poland
- Finland
- Lithuania
- Malta
Group H
- Austria
- Romania
- Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Cyprus
- San Marino
Group I
- Germany/Italy (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Norway
- Israel
- Estonia
- Moldova
Group J
- Belgium
- Wales
- North Macedonia
- Kazakhstan
- Liechtenstein
Group K
- England
- Serbia
- Albania
- Latvia
- Andorra
Group L
- France/Croatia (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
- Czech Republic
- Montenegro
- Faroe Islands
- Gibraltar
Pots
Pot 1
- Spain
- Netherlands
- France
- Croatia
- Portugal
- Denmark
- Italy
- Germany
- England
- Belgium
- Switzerland
- Austria
Pot 2
- Ukraine
- Sweden
- Turkey
- Wales
- Hungary
- Serbia
- Poland
- Romania
- Greece
- Slovakia
- Czech Republic
- Norway
Pot 3
- Scotland
- Slovenia
- Republic of Ireland
- Albania
- North Macedonia
- Georgia
- Finland
- Iceland
- Northern Ireland
- Montenegro
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Israel
Pot 4
- Bulgaria
- Luxembourg
- Belarus
- Kosovo
- Armenia
- Kazakhstan
- Azerbaijan
- Estonia
- Cyprus
- Faroe Islands
- Latvia
- Lithuania
Pot 5
- Moldova
- Malta
- Andorra
- Gibraltar
- Liechtenstein
- San Marino
Banned from entering
- Russia
Schedule
| Round | Groups A–F | Groups G–L | Dates |
| First round (group stage) | — | Matchday 1 | 21–22 March 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | — | Matchday 2 | 24–25 March 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | — | Matchday 3 | 6–7 June 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | — | Matchday 4 | 9–10 June 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 1 | Matchday 5 | 4–6 September 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 2 | Matchday 6 | 7–9 September 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 3 | Matchday 7 | 9–11 October 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 4 | Matchday 8 | 12–14 October 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 5 | Matchday 9 | 13–15 November 2025 |
| First round (group stage) | Matchday 6 | Matchday 10 | 16–18 November 2025 |
| Second round (play-offs) | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | 26 March 2026 |
| Second round (play-offs) | Finals | Finals | 31 March 2026 |
‘People said I was unsporting in the 1984 European Cup Final – my logic was if an international player can’t hit the target from 12 yards, it’s not my fault’: Liverpool hero Bruce Grobbelaar justifies penalty tactics against Roma
‘I had it in my contract when I joined Barcelona from Spurs that I’d wear the No.8 shirt – Bernd Schuster said no, so I took Diego Maradona’s No.10 instead’: Scotland hero recalls replacing Argentinian legend at Barca in 1984
