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World Cup European Qualifying Draw: Date, time, pots, format and more

UEFA nations will learn of their opponents in the European qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A total of 16 European nations will qualify for the expanded 48-team tournament, which is set to be staged across Canada, Mexico and the United States.

World Cup 2026

When is the World Cup qualifying draw?

The draw for the European phase of World Cup qualifying will take place in Zurich on Friday 13th December 2024.

An official start time is yet to be decided.

How does the World Cup qualifying draw work?

UEFA nations will be split into 12 groups of four or five teams.

Each nation will be assigned to a pot, with the leading European nations in Pot 1. This ensures that the best-ranked teams cannot face each other in qualifying.

Pot 1 will consist of the top eight countries from League A of the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League, plus the top four countries according to the FIFA World Ranking.

World Cup qualifying format

Sticking with the traditional concept of each nation playing every team in their group home and away, the 12 group winners will automatically qualify for the World Cup.

The 12 nations that finished runner-up in each group will contest a play-off round. They will be joined by the four highest-ranked UEFA Nations League teams from the 2024/25 season who did not finish inside the top two of their qualifying group.

Those 16 teams will then be divided into four paths. Each nation will play a single-legged knockout match, with the winners progressing to a final and the victors from those four fixtures will qualify for the World Cup.

When does World Cup qualifying start?

Teams drawn in groups of five will begin their qualifying campaigns in March 2025, while the nations drawn in groups of four will commence their qualifying campaigns in September 2025.

All groups will conclude in November 2025. The play-off match dates are scheduled between 26-31 March 2026.

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