The draw for the expanded 48-team 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place on Friday, 5 December, at Washington DC’s Kennedy Center at 12pm local time (5pm GMT / 4am Saturday AEST). As usual, the ceremony will feature speeches, performances and video montages before teams are finally placed into groups, giving the tournament its full schedule.

How the Draw Works

The 48 qualified teams are divided into four pots of 12, based on FIFA rankings.
Each group will contain one team from each pot, forming 12 groups in total.

Pot 1 features co-hosts USA, Mexico, Canada along with top-ranked nations including Spain, Argentina, France, England and others.
Six qualification spots are still undecided, with playoff teams placed in Pot 4, meaning strong sides like Italy could technically appear as the “weakest” team in a group.

To prevent regional clustering, no group can have more than two European teams. The world’s top four – Spain, Argentina, France, England – cannot meet until the semi-finals, provided they top their groups.

Schedule Release

The full match schedule will be published on Saturday, 6 December, as FIFA adjusts kick-off timings for audiences across North America, Europe and Asia.

Qualified Teams So Far (42)

Pot 1: Canada, Mexico, USA, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany.
Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia.
Pot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Côte d’Ivoire, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa.
Pot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, plus four European playoff winners and two intercontinental playoff winners.

Who’s in the Playoffs?

European playoffs:

  • Winner of Wales/Bosnia vs winner of Italy/Northern Ireland
  • Winner of Ukraine/Sweden vs winner of Poland/Albania
  • Winner of Slovakia/Kosovo vs winner of Turkey/Romania
  • Winner of Czech Republic/Republic of Ireland vs winner of Denmark/North Macedonia

Intercontinental playoffs (in Mexico):

  • New Caledonia vs Jamaica → winner faces DR Congo
  • Bolivia vs Suriname → winner faces Iraq

All playoff matches are single-leg.

Speculating a Group of Death?

A potential nightmare group could feature Argentina, Morocco, Italy and Norway – four top-30 FIFA teams, all capable of beating each other.

Where To Watch

The draw will stream on FIFA’s website and YouTube, while broadcasters include BBC (UK), Fox and Fubo (US), SBS (Australia) and TSN (Canada). The Guardian will also run a live blog.

The ‘Peace Prize’ Twist

FIFA will present a new “peace prize” during the ceremony. Despite the lofty messaging, strong rumours suggest the award may go to Donald Trump, a close ally of FIFA president Gianni Infantino – sparking sharp reactions given Trump’s recent inflammatory statements.

A Bigger Tournament, More Underdogs

With 48 teams, this World Cup opens doors for inspirational qualifiers such as Haiti, Curaçao, New Zealand and Cape Verde, alongside perennial contenders.