The 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place from 11 June to 19 July 2026. Here is everything you need to know about the expanded tournament.
When and where is the World Cup being held?
The tournament’s 23rd edition will be the biggest and most ambitious yet, featuring 48 nations from six confederations. There will be 104 matches, an increase on the 64 games that were played by the 32 teams at the last edition in Qatar in 2022.
The matches will be played across 16 cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States, making this the first World Cup to be jointly hosted by three different countries.
Which countries have qualified for the World Cup?
Including the US, Canada and Mexico, all of whom qualify automatically as host nations, 42 of the 48 participating countries are now confirmed. Between them, they represent six different regional confederations - AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North America, Central America, Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oceania) and UEFA (Europe).
Co-hosts: Canada, Mexico, United States
AFC: Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan
CAF: Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
CONCACAF: Curacao, Haiti, Panama
CONMEBOL: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
OFC: New Zealand
UEFA: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland
What are the playoff fixtures?
The remaining six places at next summer's World Cup will be awarded to the winners of four playoff paths in Europe and two playoffs involving the other confederations.
The playoff fixtures, which will be one leg only and played in the March 2026 international break, were decided at a FIFA draw on Thursday 20 November.
European playoffs
Path A semi-finals
Italy v Northern Ireland
Wales v Bosnia-Herzegovina*
Path B semi-finals
Ukraine v Sweden*
Poland v Albania
Path C semi-finals
Turkey v Romania
Slovakia v Kosovo*
Path D semi-finals
Denmark v North Macedonia
Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland*
*The winners of the asterisked semi-finals on 26 March will be at home in the final on 31 March.
European playoff paths
Inter-continental playoffs
DR Congo and Iraq were given byes as the two playoff teams with the highest FIFA rankings. The two winners of their respective finals will qualify for the World Cup. All of the inter-continental fixtures below will be played in Mexico.
Semi-final: New Caledonia v Jamaica
Final: DR Congo v winners of above semi-final
Semi-final: Bolivia v Suriname
Final: Iraq v winners of above semi-final
Which Premier League players will take part in the World Cup?
Of the 42 countries who are already guaranteed a place at the World Cup, 35 have players who are registered with clubs in the 2025/26 Premier League.
The overseas countries who have the most players registered with Premier League clubs are France (40 players), the Netherlands (36) and Brazil (31), who have a league-high seven players at Nottingham Forest.
For a full list of Premier League players who could feature in the 2026 World Cup, see our separate article.
When does the World Cup draw take place?
The draw will be made on 5 December in Washington D.C.
This is when the 48 participating countries will be placed in 12 groups from A to L, and teams and fans alike will get a clearer picture of their route to the final.
The winners and runners-up of each group will be joined in a knockout round of 32 by the eight best third-placed teams. The competition will then continue through its usual format of a round of 16, followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
Every match from the quarter-finals onwards will be played in the US, culminating in the final at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday 19 July.
The tournament’s full schedule is as follows:
Group stages: 11-27 June
Round of 32: 28 June-3 July
Round of 16: 4-7 July
Quarter-finals: 9-11 July
Semi-finals: 14-15 July
Third-place playoff: 18 July
Final: 19 July
Find out more at FIFA.com.