FIFA World Cup 2026 draw: Fan guide & everything to know | OneFootball

By MLSsoccer staff

The 2026 FIFA World Cup draw takes place on Friday in Washington, D.C., sorting the expanded 48-team field into groups before the tournament unfolds from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Here’s a breakdown of key information as 12 groups of four teams each are determined.

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How does the draw work?

Of the 42 qualified countries, 39 are split into four pots as determined by the November 2025 FIFA Men's World Rankings.

Host nations USA, Canada and Mexico enter Pot 1. Lastly, the two FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off Tournament placeholders, as well as the four European play-off placeholders, are allocated into Pot 4.

All the groups – A through L – can have no more than one team from each region, except for UEFA. Each group will have at least one European team and no more than two.

For the World Cup draw, FIFA has adopted a seeding structure to ensure that the four highest-ranked nations – Spain, Argentina, France and England – can't meet until the semifinals, should they win their respective groups.

Who has qualified?

Host nations USA, Canada and Mexico automatically qualified, with 45 other teams earning berths via their confederation’s respective path.

There are 42 spots locked up; the remaining six berths will be known next March via playoffs.

Africa (CAF)

Europe (UEFA)

North America, Central America & Caribbean (Concacaf)

Oceania (OFC)

South America (Conmebol)

Who else can qualify?

Six (6) spots remain undecided.

European pathway

From March 26-31, 16 UEFA nations will participate in the European playoffs – 12 group runners-up during qualifying and the four highest-ranked remaining UEFA Nations League section winners.

Each path's top team qualifies.

Path A

Final: Italy/Northern Ireland vs. Wales/Bosnia and Herzegovina

Path B

Final: Ukraine/Sweden vs. Poland/Albania

Path C

Final: Türkiye/Romania vs. Slovakia/Kosovo

Path D

Final: Czechia/Republic of Ireland vs. Denmark/North Macedonia

Inter-confederation playoffs

The final two (2) teams will also be decided in March, in Mexico, via playoff paths. They are as follows:

Pathway 1

Pathway 2

Which countries are in which pot?

The four pots were decided following the November 2025 update to the FIFA Men's World Ranking.

The draw will begin with all the teams from Pot 1 being drawn to groups A to L. It will then continue with Pots 2, 3 and 4 in that order.

Pot 1

Pot 2

Pot 3

Pot 4

When is the World Cup?

The 2026 FIFA World Cup takes place between June and July.

The tournament will unfold at 16 stadiums across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Five stadiums are home to Major League Soccer clubs, and 78 of the 104 games will occur in the United States.

The schedule breakdown is below:

How does it impact the MLS schedule?

MLS will pause regular-season play from May 25 - July 16 for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A record number of league players are expected to be called up for the World Cup, which will feature an expanded 48 participating nations.

Following the FIFA World Cup Semifinals, MLS will restart the 2026 regular season on July 16-17 with a selection of marquee rivalry matches.