How many third-placed teams qualify for the World Cup Round of 32?

The 2026 World Cup is upon us and for the first time ever we will see 48 nations featuring.

There's been a gradual increase in teams competing at the World Cup since 1950, with 13 becoming 16, 16 becoming 24, 24 becoming 32 and, now, 32 becoming 48.

Brazil are the only team to have played in all 23 World Cup tournaments, and the change in format at the 2026 edition will see Cape Verde, Curaao, Jordan and Uzbekistan make their debut at the competition.

The format alteration will see the introduction of the Round of 32 for the first time in World Cup history, and we take a look at what implications this will have for nations who finish third in their group.

How many third-placed teams qualify for the World Cup Round of 32?

Eight third-placed teams will qualify for the World Cup Round of 32.

Instead of 16 teams advancing to the first knockout round, 32 nations will now make it out of the group. In eight of the 12 groups, three teams will book their spot in the Round of 32, while in four groups just the winners and runners-up will book their place in the knockouts.

How are third-placed teams ranked at the World Cup?

With an increase in teams, and therefore groups, at the 2026 World Cup, it's likely that a number of teams will end up tied on points at the end of the group stage.

Similarly, there's a strong chance that nations in the 12-team third-placed standings will finish on the same points.

The 12 third-placed teams will be ranked by the following criteria:

1. Most points
2. Highest goal difference
3. Most goals scored
4. Team conduct score
5. FIFA world ranking

What is team conduct score?

Every nation's team conduct score starts at zero, with the following deductions applied to both players and team officials throughout the group stage:

• Yellow card - minus one point
• Indirect red card (resulting from a second yellow card) - minus three points
• Direct red card - minus four points
• Yellow card and direct red card - minus five points

The team with the highest remaining score, meaning the fewest deductions, would win the tiebreaker and finish higher if the standings if their points, goal difference and goals scored were the same.