The group stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers is now complete across all conferences, and we have the list of teams that have qualified directly for the competition's group stage.
While there haven’t been any major surprises, some teams that played in Qatar in 2022 won’t be in the Americas next year, while others managed to sign their countries’ names on the participants list for the first time.
The 2026 World Cup will be the first to feature 48 teams, some of them qualifying through their respective groups in the conference qualifiers, others through the playoffs.
The European playoffs will give us another four teams that qualify for the main tournament, and the rest of the world two more, to complete the list of participants.
Who’s in the Playoffs?
At this point, we know all the participants in the 2026 World Cup playoffs, which will be played in March 2026.
The inter-confederation draw has only six participants, out of which two (Congo and Iraq) have already qualified for the finals of their respective playoff paths. Here’s what the draw looks like:
Playoffs Group A:
- Semi-final: New Caledonia vs Jamaica
- Final: New Caledonia or Jamaica vs Congo
Playoffs Group B:
- Semi-final: Bolivia vs Suriname
- Final: Bolivia or Suriname vs Iraq
There were two ways for European teams to qualify for the playoffs: by finishing the group stage as runner-ups or through the Nations League. Here’s who made it to the playoffs in the European qualifiers:
- By finishing second in the group: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Türkiye, Ukraine, Wales
- Through the Nations League: Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, North Macedonia
And here’s what the draw looks like for the European playoffs:
Group A semi-finals:
- Italy vs Northern Ireland
- Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina
The final match will be hosted by the winner of the Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina game.
Group B semi-finals:
- Ukraine vs Sweden
- Poland vs Albania
The final will be hosted by either Ukraine or Sweden.
Group C semi-finals:
- Türkiye vs Romania
- Slovakia vs Kosovo
The final match of the group will be hosted by the winner of the Slovakia vs Kosovo match.
Group D semi-finals:
- Denmark vs North Macedonia
- Czech Republic vs Ireland
The Czech Republic or the Republic of Ireland will host the final match for the Group D playoffs.
Who Is Through So Far?
The playoffs will give us the remaining six teams that will compete in the 2026 World Cup, which means that 42 teams have already secured their spots in the main draw.
Let’s look at those teams by the conferences:
- Europe (UEFA): Austria, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland
Spain is considered the no. 1 favourite to win the competition at the moment, with the outright odds of 5.5 at the Winnerz sportsbook. England has odds of 7.0 to win the trophy, and France has 7.5.
- South America (CONMEBOL): Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
Brazil and Argentina are also considered to be among the top favourites to win the tournament, with the odds of 9.20 at Campeonbet sportsbook.
- North and Central America (CONCACAF): Curaçao, Haiti and Panama, plus the three host nations: Canada, Mexico and the USA.
- Africa (CAF): Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
- Asia (AFC): Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan
- Oceania: New Zealand
The list of participating countries will be complete after the two playoff tournaments that will be played during the March 2026 international window.
