By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The FIFA World Cup Draw takes place on Friday, 5 December, setting the stage for what promises to be a football carnival across three host nations: the United States, Mexico and Canada.
This edition will feature 48 teams, up from 32, making it the most expansive World Cup ever.
The tournament kicks off on 11 June 2026, with the final set for 19 July.
FIFA will announce the full fixture list on Saturday at 5PM GMT, after finalising venues and kick-off times to suit fans and broadcasters worldwide.
How does the draw work?
- 48 teams divided into four pots of 12, based on FIFA rankings.
- Pot 1 includes the three host nations (USA, Mexico, Canada) plus the nine highest-ranked teams.
- Pot 4 contains the six play-off winners, even though some may rank higher than Pot 3 teams.
- FIFA has confirmed Spain (top seed) and Argentina (second seed) will be placed in opposite halves of the draw, ensuring they can only meet in the final, same for France (3rd) and England (4th).
POT Allocation
- 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, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
- Pot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, four European playoff winners, two intercontinental playoff winners
Who’s on the Play-offs?
European Play-Offs: Wales v Bosnia, Italy v Northern Ireland, Ukraine v Sweden, Poland v Albania, Slovakia v Kosovo, Turkiyie v Romania, Czech Republic v Ireland, Denmark v North Macedonia.
Intercontinental Play-Offs: New Caledonia v Jamaica (winner faces DR Congo), Bolivia v Suriname (winner faces Iraq).