Following the final six play-off matches, we now know the 48 teams that have qualified for the 2026 World Cup. The footballing extravaganza will be jointly hosted by Canada, the USA and Mexico. It starts on the 11th of June when Mexico host South Africa at the famous Aztec Stadium, with the final set to take place on the 19th of July at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The three hosts were the first nations to “qualify”, with Japan and Argentina among the early countries to confirm their spots at the 2026 World Cup through competitive football. England confirmed their place at the tournament back in mid-October 2025, becoming the first European nation to qualify and doing so with two games to spare.
However, four UEFA countries, plus two others who came through the Inter-Confederation pathway, did not earn their World Cup spot until the 31st of March. With those six nations confirmed, we now know all 48 teams that will play in North America, plus the makeup of the 12 groups.
Play-Off Results
There were four UEFA play-offs taking place, the finals of Paths A, B, C and D, following on from semis which took place a few days earlier. Wales, Ireland and Northern Ireland saw their hopes dashed at the semi-final stage, losing to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic and Italy, respectively. Two of those three nations went on to book their spot at the tournament in the summer, but perhaps not the two you might have expected (unless you have been following World Cup qualification over the past eight years or so!).
UEFA
- Path A – Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Italy 4-1 on penalties (1-1 after extra time)
- Path B – Sweden beat Poland 3-2
- Path C – Turkey beat Kosovo 1-0
- Path D – Czech Republic beat Denmark 3-1 on penalties (2-2 after extra time)
All of the matches were expected to be tight, and so it proved. Many, looking at history and pedigree alone, may have expected Italy to ease past Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, Italian football is not in a great place and having failed to qualify for the past two editions of the World Cup, they finished well behind Norway in qualification this time around.
That saw them face the play-offs, and although they beat Northern Ireland 2-0, few experts would have been too confident they had what it took to win away from home against decent opponents. Serie A saw only one of its sides scrape through to the CL last 16 (before Atalanta were then thrashed 10-2 by Bayern Munich), and this is now an unprecedented third successive failure to make the finals of the World Cup. Testing times for Italian football.
Inter-Confederation Play-Offs
On the same night we saw the four abovementioned fixtures, there were also the two inter-confederation finals. That mini-tournament had taken place in Mexico, and Jamaica beat New Caledonia to earn a place in the final against DR Congo, while Bolivia saw off Suriname to make their final with Iraq.
In the end, the two seeded teams, who did not have to face a “semi-final” game, earned their spots at the World Cup. DR Congo beat Jamaica 1-0 in extra time. Iraq saw off their South American opponents 2-1 in Guadalupe.
Now We Know All 12 Groups and All 48 Teams
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The Czech Republic complete Group A, alongside Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. Bosnia and Herzegovina are the final team in Group B with another host nation, Canada, as well as Qatar and Switzerland. Turkey enter Group D with the third host, the USA, and Paraguay and Australia, while the final UEFA nation, Sweden, complete Group F, where they face the Netherlands, Japan and Tunisia.
Iraq have been unlucky to end up in Group I, which looks like the inevitable Group of Death. France are expected to challenge strongly for the World Cup, while Norway thrashed Italy 3-0 and 4-1 in qualification and are picked by some as dark horses. The final nation in that group is Senegal, who boast some top-class players and recently won the Africa Cup of Nations (even if the powers that be subsequently stripped them of the title due to the hugely controversial final).
DR Congo, one of three nations (along with Haiti and Iraq) set to appear in just their second World Cup finals, have it a little easier in Group K. Their trio of opponents are Portugal, Colombia and Uzbekistan. The Uzbeks are set to make their tournament bow, along with Cape Verde, Curacao and Jordan. So there we have it, all 48 teams are set to go.
Or Are They?
The world can seem more uncertain than it ever has and who knows what might happen on the geopolitical stage between now and June. But what thing we can be sure of is that we can’t be sure that Iran will take their place in Group G along with Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.
Due to the ongoing American war, it is unclear whether or not Iran will opt to take part – or, given the nature of the American President, whether they will even be allowed in the country! As things stand, though, they are expected to feature, and it is safe to say the atmosphere at their games could get rather lively.