The 2026 World Cup is approaching next year and qualifying is finally getting underway. Most of the biggest national teams around the world are yet to book a spot in the first 48-team World Cup ever, after FIFA decided to expand from the old 32-team format that had been in place since the 1998 World Cup. The 2026 edition will kick off on June 11, 2026 and will end on July 19 at the MetLife Stadium in New York City. The most anticipated soccer tournament in the world will be jointly hosted by United States, Canada and Mexico. The European confederation (UEFA) is guaranteed 16 slots of the 48 teams, while the African confederation (CAF) has nine and Asian (AFC) has eight. There will also be a minimum of six each from South America (CONMEBOL) and the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF). On top of this, for the first time in history, the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) has one guaranteed slot while the remaining two spots will be decided through intercontinental playoffs.
List of teams that qualified
- United States – hosts of the tournament
- Mexico – hosts of the tournament
- Canada – hosts of the tournament
- Japan – AFC qualifying third round
Who will be next?
With UEFA qualifiers just starting, no European national team will be confirmed soon, while the Oceania Football Confederation will reveal this month their team that will play in the World Cup. New Zealand play Fiji in one semifinal, while New Caledonia face Tahiti in the other and on March 24 the winners of the two games will play the final that will guarantee a spot for the 2026 World Cup.
Lionel Messi’s Argentina might clinch their spot for the 2026 this month to defend their 2022 title and might also be followed by Uruguay as the two are currently at the top of the standings. Both CONCACAF and CAF won’t have any team confirmed in March, while both Iran and Uzbekistan might join Japan in the AFC qualifiers over the next days if they don’t drop points, becoming the second and third side to qualify after the hosts of the tournament.
Who are heavy favorites to qualify from Europe?
Eight national teams will qualify for the World Cup by winning their groups in the first stage of qualification. Spain, 2024 European Champions, are one of the big favorites to ultimately lift the World Cup trophy, with their stars and young talent like FC Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal, who will also likely be a candidate for the World Cup’s MVP. Germany, who most recently won the World Cup in 2014 are also playing well, while England will be playing their first tournament under new manager Thomas Tuchel, who took charge of the Three Lions after the departure of Gareth Southgate after losing to Spain their second Euro final in a row.
England, who are now starting a new era under Tuchel, are also expected to be among the candidates to win the final win alongside France, who will also see manager Didier Deschamps leaving the national team, ending a run which began in 2012 and includes winning the 2018 World Cup and making the final in 2022. The 2026 World Cup would be his last chance to win another major trophy with Les Bleus under his management, with one of the most talented rosters around the world. Portugal are also expected to be part of the World Cup with Cristiano Ronaldo likely playing his last major tournament, while the Netherlands are also one of the most talented teams in Europe to be part of the competition with former FC Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman leading the national team after losing to England in the semifinals of the 2024 Euros.
Switzerland, might not be the caliber of the other teams expected to cruise to qualification, but will be playing in Group B against Sweden, Slovenia and Kosovo and if things go the right way will be playing the World Cup as they are the best team of this qualification group. Last, but not least, Italy have to be part of the most important soccer tournament in the world, after missing out the last two World Cups for the first time in their history. After winning the 2020 Euros, Luciano Spalletti’s mission is to bring the Azzurri back where they belong after such a big disappointment. Italy’s last appearance in a knockout game of the World Cup was in 2006, when they won their last World Cup after beating France at the penalties.
Who are Europe’s bubble teams?
While we already mentioned the eight teams that are expected to be there, and it will be a big disappointment if one of them does not make it to the 2026 World Cup, there are some others that will have to fight much more to get one of the 16 spots available for the UEFA national teams. After a disappointing UEFA 2024 Euro, Croatia will be called to react and qualify for the World Cup, same as Denmark who lost to Germany in the Round of 16 in that tournament.
There will be a lot of expectations on both Austria and Belgium as two teams that were eliminated in the Round of 16 of the last Euros and need to react already in qualification. Belgium, in particular, decided to part ways with former coach Domenico Tedesco and appointed Rudi Garcia to start a new cycle,but he has to deliver in a short time.
Erling Haaland’s Norway are also a team to watch, but they have good chance as they are in the qualification group of Israel, Estonia, Moldavia and one between Italy and Germany, while Group E will see one big exclusion between Turkey and Georgia, as they were seeded in the same group of Spain or Netherlands (depending on the current UEFA Nations League). Poland are also expected to qualify through the play-offs while Serbia and Hungary will also fight for a spot in the World Cup.
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