Finalizing seed groups, determining the time of the 2026 World Cup draw

(Dan Tri) - The 2026 World Cup group stage draw will take place on December 5 in Washington (USA). The seed groups will also be determined.

The draw for the 2026 World Cup group stage has finally been confirmed. The event will take place on December 5 at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC (USA) at 12:00 (local time).

The 2026 World Cup group stage draw took place on December 5 (Photo: TNT).

This is the biggest tournament ever with 48 teams participating. The three countries hosting this event are the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Up to this point, 42 teams have been identified including:

CONCACAF (6 teams): USA, Mexico, Canada (host), Haiti, Curacao, Panama.

Asia (8 teams): Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar.

South America (6 teams): Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay.

Europe (12 teams): England, France, Croatia, Norway, Portugal, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Scotland, Spain, Austria, Belgium.

Oceania (1 team): New Zealand.

Africa (9 teams): Egypt, Senegal, South Africa, Cape Verde, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Algeria, Tunisia, Ghana.

In addition, the remaining 6 places will be determined through the play-off round taking place in March next year. Specifically, 16 European teams will participate in the play-off round to choose 4 places. Including 12 second-placed teams: Slovakia, Kosovo, Denmark, Ukraine, Turkey, Republic of Ireland, Poland, Bosnia, Italy, Wales, Albania and Czech Republic. In addition, there are 4 teams participating through the UEFA Nations League: North Macedonia, Sweden, Romania and Northern Ireland.

The remaining 6 teams are Iraq (Asia), Democratic Republic of Congo (Africa), Jamaica, Suriname (CONCACAF), Bolivia (South America), New Caledonia (Oceania) will compete to determine 2 spots to attend the 2026 World Cup.

FIFA has announced the seeding pots for the 2026 World Cup group stage draw. Pot 1 will consist of the three host teams and the nine teams with the best results on the FIFA rankings. Pots 2, 3 and 4 will be determined based on the remaining FIFA rankings.

Seed groups in the 2026 World Cup group stage draw (Photo: Wiki).

The 48 teams are divided into 12 groups of four teams each. As usual, two teams from the same association cannot be drawn in the same group, except in UEFA, where a maximum of two European teams are allowed in each group. This rule is intended to ensure continental diversity in each group, while maintaining competitiveness and balance between teams.

Mexico is placed in Group A and will play the opening match of the 2026 World Cup at Azteca Stadium on June 11, 2026. Canada is placed in Group B, while the US is in Group D.

Based on FIFA's calculation, the seed groups in the 2026 World Cup draw are determined as follows:

Group 1: Canada, USA, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, France, UK, Portugal, Netherlands, Brazil, Belgium, Germany

Group 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia.

Group 3 : Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa.

Group 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curacao, Haiti, New Zealand and 6 teams participating through the play-off round.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/chot-xong-nhom-hat-giong-xac-dinh-thoi-diem-boc-tham-world-cup-2026-20251120175619187.htm