2026 FIFA World Cup information, format, lighting and more

With England Completion of the latest campaign of the Nations Championship in November – a stamp of promotion back to league A in the process – their next game will see them take the World Cup journey under the guidance of New Boss Thomas Tuchel.

Thoughts will now turn to the qualifiers for the 2026 tournament, which is to begin in March 2025. It is now less than 18 months before the next issue of the square tournament, but some confidences are already in the middle of their qualifications process.

Following the December qualifying tie, teams can start navigating a path to watch the North American World Cup since 1994.

Related

10 England players who can shine under Thomas Tuchel

The German will design the 2026 World Cup.

Information on the UEFA World Cup qualifying draw

The teams have been drawn to 12 groups of four or five teams, playing each other and away. The teams pulled in one of the four teams of five teams will begin to qualify in March, while teams drawn in one of the six teams of four teams will begin their campaigns in September. All teams are completed in November 2025.

England has been taken to Group K, with Thomas Tuchel’s first missions, as the English leader is clashing with Albania and Latvia.

The 12 winners of the teams will secure a part in the 2026 World Cup, with the four remaining points of UEFA claiming the players of the 12 runners-up play-offs.

UEFA World Cup Qualifiers Play-Offs

The runners-up of each of the 12 qualifying teams will secure a point in the play-offs, along with the four best winners of the 2024/25 Nations League group who did not end neither the first or second in their qualifying team.

These 16 teams will be pulled on four trails, with four groups on each route. The semifinals will be played over one leg, followed by a final of a foot during the same international window in March 2026, a few months before the start of the World Cup.

World Cup Qualifiers Dates UEFA

The group stages of the qualifiers will last between March and November 2025.

World Cup 2026 format

After seven consecutive tournaments with 32 participants, from 2026 onwards, there will be a total of 48 countries competing to get the World Cup trophy at home.

This means that each Confederation takes more parts of the final tournament. UEFA now gets 16 points, the CAF now gets nine points (out of five) and the AFC nations get eight points and not the 4.5 previously enjoyed.

Elsewhere, the Concacaf teams will have six points, with three going to the hosts USA, Canada and Mexico. Conmebol now has six points, (from 4.5), while of the RUP now has a guaranteed point, not the 0.5 previously offered.

With an extensive contest comes a slight change in form. 48 groups will be divided into 12 groups of four groups.

The first two in each team will qualify for the knockout stages, as well as the eight best third teams, creating a round 32.

Beyond that, there will be a straight knockout tournament to see who the winner will be crowned at the Metlife Stadium, which is located west of New York.

THE Complete list of spaces and their ability It can be found in the table below, with the tournament returning to North America for the first time since 1994.

The 1994 World Cup in the United States was the latest World Cup that included 24 teams, and the next in the US will be the debut of a 48 team competition.

Before all, however, UEFA qualifiers will see who from Europe will do it throughout the lake in 18 months.

Related

What could England team look like in the 2026 World Cup

The England team is still young enough to compete well in the next World Cup.