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International football competition From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification will decide the teams that will join hosts Canada, Mexico and the United States at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
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Tournament details | |
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Dates | 7 September 2023 – 31 March 2026 |
Teams | Maximum of 207 (from 6 confederations) |
Tournament statistics | |
Matches played | 302 |
Goals scored | 814 (2.7 per match) |
Attendance | 4,688,573 (15,525 per match) |
Top scorer(s) | ![]() ![]() (7 goals each) |
Qualification began on 7 September 2023 with three matches of the CONMEBOL zone played that day.[1] The first goal of the qualification series was scored by Colombian player Rafael Santos Borré.
On 30 March 2017, the Bureau of the FIFA Council (composed of the FIFA president and the presidents of each of the six confederations) proposed a slot allocation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The recommendation was submitted for the ratification by the FIFA Council.[2][3]
On 9 May 2017, two days before the 67th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation in a meeting in Manama, Bahrain. This includes an intercontinental play-off tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup spots.[4]
The ratification of slot allocation also gives the OFC a guaranteed berth in the final tournament for the first time in FIFA World Cup history: the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament in which all six confederations have at least one guaranteed berth.
Team | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
Finals appearance |
First time qualified |
Last time qualified |
Current consecutive appearances[note 1] |
Previous best performance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Hosts | 14 February 2023[note 2] | 3rd | 1986 | 2022 | 2 | Group stage (1986, 2022) |
![]() | Hosts | 14 February 2023[note 2] | 18th | 1930 | 2022 | 9 | Quarter-finals (1970, 1986) |
![]() | Hosts | 14 February 2023[note 2] | 12th | 1930 | 2022 | 2 | Third place (1930) |
Notes
On 9 May 2017, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation scheme for the new 48-team final format.[4]
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Confederation | Direct slots | Play-off slots | Teams started | Teams eliminated | Teams can still qualify | Teams qualified | Qualifying start date | Qualifying next match date | Qualifying end date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AFC | 8 | 1 | 46 | 28 | 18 | 0 | 12 October 2023 | 10 September 2024 | 18 November 2025 |
CAF | 9 | 1 | 53 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 15 November 2023 | March 2025 | November 2025 |
CONCACAF | 3+3 (hosts) | 2 | 32+3 (hosts) | 2 | 30 | 0+3 | 22 March 2024 | 4 June 2025 | November 2025 |
CONMEBOL | 6 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 September 2023 | 5 September 2024 | September 2025 |
OFC | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 6 September 2024 | 6 September 2024 | March 2025 |
UEFA | 16 | 0 | 55 | 0 | 55 | 0 | 21 March 2025 | 21 March 2025 | 31 March 2026 |
Play-offs | 2 | — | (6) | 0 | (6) | 0 | March 2026 | March 2026 | March 2026 |
Total | 45+3 | 6 | 207+3 (hosts) | 30 | 177 | 0+3 | 7 September 2023 | 5 September 2024 | 31 March 2026 |
Eritrea withdrew from qualification prior to playing any matches.[6][7]
Each confederation is responsible for its own qualification tournament, which will consist of at least one round of competition using the following formats (Regulations Article 11.3):[8]
In the two round-robin formats, the tiebreaker criteria are as follows (Regulations Article 11.5):[8]
Should two or more teams still have equal rank after criteria 1–3 are applied, then the following criteria are used:
If the tournament is being held in a single host nation or in neutral territory, then criterion 7 will not be applied (Regulations Article 11.6).[8]
In the home-and-away knockout format, the team scoring more goals on aggregate wins the tie and advances. If the aggregate score is level, then 30 minutes of extra time will be played. If the score is still level at the end of extra time, the away goals rule will not be applied and the winners will be decided by a penalty shoot-out (Regulations Article 11.9).[8] In the single-leg knockout format, the team scoring more goals in a single match wins and advances. If the teams are tied after regulation, then extra time will be played, followed by a penalty shoot-out if the score is still level (Regulations Article 11.10).[8]
On 1 August 2022, the Asian Football Confederation Executive Committee approved the qualification format for Asia's road to the 2026 World Cup, as well as the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, in preparation for the eight direct spots and the single intercontinental play-off slot allocated to the AFC by FIFA following the expansion of the FIFA World Cup to 48 teams.[9] The draw for the first round was held on 27 July 2023 at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[10] The draw for the second round took place two hours later.
The qualification structure is as follows:
Sri Lanka were suspended in January 2023[12] and they did not appear in the draw information the AFC released in early July.[13] However, they were re-added with the condition that their federation hold elections at least ten days before qualification starts.[14]
Group A | Group B | Group C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Updated to match(es) played on 5 September 2024. Source: AFC |
Updated to match(es) played on 5 September 2024. Source: AFC |
Updated to match(es) played on 5 September 2024. Source: AFC |
The draw was held on 13 July 2023 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.[15][16] All 54 FIFA-affiliated football associations from CAF entered qualification, however Eritrea withdrew before matches began.[17]
The CAF Executive Committee announced a new African qualification format on 19 May 2023.[18][19]
The qualification structure is as follows:
Group A | Group B | Group C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Updated to match(es) played on 10 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group D | Group E | Group F | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group G | Group H | Group I | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Updated to match(es) played on 10 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 10 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Ranking of runners-up | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Three nations in CONCACAF—Canada, Mexico and the United States—automatically qualified as host nations. On 28 February 2023, CONCACAF announced the qualifying format for 2026 World Cup qualification.[20]
Group A | Group B | Group C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group D | Group E | Group F | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 June 2024. Source: FIFA |
On 22 August 2022, CONMEBOL petitioned FIFA to keep the qualification format which had been used since the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification, where all CONMEBOL members play home-and-away round-robin matches against each other.[21][22][23][24] This was approved, with the first games of the qualifiers played in September 2023.[25]
Before the qualification competition began, Ecuador were deducted 3 points for falsifying birth documents for Byron Castillo in the previous World Cup qualification cycle.[26]
2026 marks the first time OFC will be granted one guaranteed slot in the World Cup, as well as a possible second slot via the inter-confederation play-offs.
The qualification structure is as follows:[27]
Matchday 1 | Matchday 2 | |||||
6 September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
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9 September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
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Winner Match 1 | ||||||
6 September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
Winner Match 2 | ||||||
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The UEFA Executive Committee announced a new European qualification format on 25 January 2023. Teams will be drawn into twelve groups of four or five teams to play home-and-away round-robin matches. The group winners will qualify for the World Cup, while the runners-up will participate in play-off matches.[28]
Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia's national team is currently suspended and their participation is yet to be confirmed.
A play-off tournament involving six teams will be held to decide the last two FIFA World Cup berths:[2] these consist of one team per confederation, except for UEFA, and one additional team from the confederation of the host countries (CONCACAF).
Two of the teams will be seeded based on the World Rankings, and these seeded teams will play for a FIFA World Cup berth against the winners of the first two knockout games involving the four unseeded teams.
The four-game tournament is to be played in one or more of the host countries and to be used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup.
There have been 814 goals scored in 302 matches, for an average of 2.7 goals per match (as of 5 September 2024). Players highlighted in bold are still active in the competition.
7 goals
6 goals
5 goals
4 goals
Below are goalscorer lists for all confederations and the inter-confederation play-offs:
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