Which teams will participate in the 2026 World Cup?

The 2026 World Cup will bring together 48 teams from 6 continents, divided into 12 groups, with many major changes in format and the number of participating teams.

The 2026 World Cup will take place from June 12th to July 20th (Vietnam time) and will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States. This year marks the biggest turning point in the tournament's history, as the number of participating teams has increased from 32 to 48 for the first time. With this expanded format, the 48 teams participating in the 2026 World Cup will be divided into 12 groups, with each group consisting of 4 teams.

Which teams will participate in the 2026 World Cup?

Host nations USA, Canada, and Mexico are automatically qualified without having to play in the qualifying rounds. The remaining teams must compete in the qualifying rounds (taking place from September 2023 to March 2026). Finally, the list of 48 teams participating in the 2026 World Cup is as follows:

Asia (9): Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq.

Africa (10): Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Senegal, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

North & Central America (6): Canada, Mexico, USA, Panama, Haiti, Curacao.

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

Oceania (1): New Zealand.

Europe (16): England, France, Croatia, Portugal, Norway, Spain, Scotland, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Turkey, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Czech Republic.

List of teams participating in the 2026 World Cup. (Source: FIFA)

Which team has won the most World Cups?

Brazil holds the record for most World Cup titles in the tournament's history, with a total of five wins. They also hold the record for most World Cup appearances, with 22 tournaments. They have never missed a World Cup since the inaugural tournament in 1930.

Brazil first won the tournament in 1958, a competition that marked the debut of Pele at the age of 17. The legend scored a brace in the final, playing a major role in leading the Selecao to victory.

In 1962, Brazil successfully defended their title, becoming the first team to win the World Cup twice in a row. Their subsequent victory in 1970 earned them permanent ownership of the Jules Rimet Trophy.

After a 24-year wait, Brazil won their fourth world championship in the 1994 World Cup final in the United States. It was also the first World Cup final in history to be decided by a penalty shootout.

The last time the Selecao won the World Cup was in 2002.

Pele and the Brazilian players celebrate after winning the 1970 World Cup. (Source: AP)

In second place are Germany and Italy with 4 titles each. Germany is considered a symbol of consistency, holding the record for reaching the final 8 times, winning in 1954, 1974, 1990, and 2014. Germany's 7-1 victory over Brazil in the 2014 semi-final is considered one of the most memorable matches in World Cup history. However, Germany failed to advance beyond the group stage in the last two World Cups.

The reigning World Cup champions are Argentina, after their victory over France in the 2022 World Cup final. This also marks the third time in history that the Tango team has lifted the World Cup trophy.

Four teams making their first appearance at the World Cup.

The 2026 World Cup marks the first-time participation of Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan in the world's most prestigious football event.

Cape Verde, an island nation of only about 525,000 people off the coast of Senegal (Africa), impresses with its disciplined style of play and strong fighting spirit, featuring prominent names like Garry Rodrigues and Ryan Mendes.

Curacao is the smallest country in the world to ever qualify for the World Cup, carrying a "big dream" under the leadership of veteran coach Dick Advocaat and the talented Tahith Chong.

Jordan is making its debut in the tournament hoping to spring a surprise like Morocco did in 2022, placing its hopes on star player Musa Al-Taamari. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan is realizing a dream after more than 30 years of waiting, acquiring the promising young center-back Abdukodir Khusanov from Manchester City.

Argentina are the reigning World Cup champions. (Source: AP)

Results of the 2026 World Cup group stage draw.

Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Czech Republic.

Group B: Canada, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Qatar, Switzerland.

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland.

Group D: USA, Paraguay, Australia, Türkiye.

Group E: Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador.

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Tunisia.

Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand.

Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay.

Group I: France, Senegal, Iraq, Norway.

Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan.

Group K: Portugal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uzbekistan, Colombia.

Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama.

The format of the 2026 World Cup

The 2026 World Cup will feature 48 teams divided into 12 groups, playing a round-robin format to determine rankings. A win earns 3 points, a draw 1 point, and a loss 0 points.

The top two teams from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams (a total of 32 teams), qualify for the knockout round. Thus, after the group stage, only 16 teams are eliminated (a ratio of 1/3, lower than the 50% of the previous 32-team format).

The knockout rounds begin with 32 teams (round of 16), 16 teams (round of 8), quarter-finals, and semi-finals. Teams that lose in the semi-finals play each other in the third-place match. The two winning teams from the semi-finals advance to the final to compete for the 2026 World Cup title.

Khanh Ly

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/world-cup-2026-co-doi-nao-tham-du-ar1020017.html