When are the World Cup qualifying play-offs?

In partnership with

The Football Faithful

·17 de novembro de 2025

When are the World Cup qualifying play-offs?

The 2026 World Cup lineup is almost complete, though upcoming playoffs will determine the full list of teams taking part in next summer’s tournament.

March will see 16 European teams battle to book their ticket to the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026.

Vídeos OneFootball

Among them are the Republic of Ireland, following a dramatic 3-2 win over Hungary, inspired by Troy Parrott’s hat-trick. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also assured of a playoff place at least.

When are the World Cup playoffs for European teams?

The matches will be held in March 2026. 16 teams will enter the playoffs and will be drawn into four groups. Each four-team tournament will feature one-legged semi-finals (March 26th) and final (March 31st).

When is the World Cup play-off draw?

The play-off draw for UEFA teams will take place on Thursday 20th November at 12pm GMT.

What teams are in the World Cup play-offs?

The 16-team playoffs will feature the runners-up from the 12 groups in Europe’s qualification campaign, alongside the four best-ranked teams from the previous Nations League campaign, who failed to finish in the top two during qualification. Northern Ireland’s place is confirmed due to their Nations League performance.

The draw will be seeded. Pot A to Pot C is determined by FIFA rankings and Pot D will be the four teams qualified via the Nations League. Seeded teams will play at home.

Confirmed group runners-up (5/12): Italy, Ukraine, Republic of Ireland, Albania, Czech Republic.

Confirmed Nations League teams (3/4): Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland.

Are there other World Cup playoffs?

Yes. There are intercontinental playoffs due to take place in the new year. The draw for these games also takes place on November 20th, ahead of March games. DR Congo booked their place as Africa’s qualifiers this week, after beating Nigeria on penalties. Bolivia and New Caledonia are also confirmed entrants.

There will be one entrant from Asia, which will be the winner of the tie between the United Arab Emirates and Iraq. The first leg ended in a 1-1 draw.

Currently, Jamaica and Panama are best placed to qualify as CONCACAF’s entrants. Jamaica will condemn Curaçao to a playoff place if they win the fixture between the teams on November 18th.

The format will see the six teams split into two three-team groups. The highest FIFA-ranked teams on each side will be given a bye to the final. These fixtures are due to be played in North America.

Qualified teams (3/6): DR Congo, Bolivia, New Caledonia