2026 World Cup draw: times, how to watch and how it works | OneFootball

Today, Friday, December 5, the 2026 World Cup draw will take place in Washington: a complete guide on how it will work and everything you need to know.

2026 World Cup Draw, Everything You Need to Know: Times, Where to Watch, and How It Works

The 2026 World Cup, for the first time featuring 48 teams, will be hosted by Mexico, Canada, and the United States. Today in Washington, the groups for the competition will be drawn. Italy will be a spectator, as its participation is not yet certain; the path to returning to the World Cup goes through the playoffs: beating Northern Ireland on March 26 in Bergamo and winning the potential final against either Bosnia or Wales.

How the Ceremony Works

The draw will begin at 6:00 PM. It will be hosted by former Manchester United and England legend Rio Ferdinand, along with Heidi Klum, Kevin Hart, and producer Danny Ramirez. Musical stars such as Andrea Bocelli, Robbie Williams, and Nicole Scherzinger will perform. Former stars of American and Canadian sports like Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, and Shaquille O’Neal will also be present. The speech that will kick off the draw will be delivered by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and United States President Donald Trump.

What Are the Criteria?

The 48 teams have been divided into four pots of 12 based on the FIFA world rankings. Here are the 4 pots: Pot 1 Spain (1), Argentina (2), France (3), England (4), Brazil (5), Portugal (6), Netherlands (7), Belgium (8), Germany (9), United States (14), Mexico (15), Canada (27). Pot 2 Croatia (10), Morocco (11), Colombia (13), Uruguay (16), Switzerland (17), Japan (18), Senegal (19), Iran (20), South Korea (22), Ecuador (23), Austria (24), Australia (26). Pot 3 Norway (29), Panama (30), Egypt (34), Algeria (35), Scotland (36), Paraguay (39), Tunisia (40), Ivory Coast (42), Uzbekistan (60), Qatar (51), Saudi Arabia (60), South Africa (61). Pot 4 Jordan (66), Cape Verde (68), Ghana (72), Curaçao (82), Haiti (84), New Zealand (86), UEFA Play-off A (Italy's, ed.), UEFA Play-off B, UEFA Play-off C, UEFA Play-off D, FIFA Play-off 1, FIFA Play-off 2.

How Does It Work?

Four pots will be used for the draw, each containing 12 teams. Pot 1 will include the three host nations (United States, Canada, and Mexico), which will be pre-assigned to groups D1, B1, and A1 respectively, and the top nine teams in the FIFA rankings. The top 4 ranked teams (Spain, Argentina, France, and England) will be drawn in such a way that, if they win their respective groups, they will not face each other before the semifinals. Pots 2 to 4 will include the next 36 qualified teams based on their FIFA ranking. The last pot will also include the spots reserved for the six teams whose qualification has yet to be confirmed. Only 42 of the 48 participating teams have qualified so far. The remaining six spots will be determined through playoffs scheduled for March 2026.

Where to Watch?

The 2026 World Cup draw will be broadcast live at 6:00 PM Italian time on Rai and Sky Sport, and will be available for streaming on NOW, Sky Go, and Dazn.

Francesco Avano

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.