Which teams have confirmed their qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
Which major teams have been eliminated from qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
Which teams can still qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
When will all teams for the 2026 FIFA World Cup be confirmed?
When is the 2026 FIFA World Cup scheduled?
With a goal from star forward Vinicius Jr., five-time champions Brazil defeated Paraguay 1-0 in front of a boisterous home crowd in São Paulo, securing their spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
To the delight of the 46,000 spectators at the Corinthians Arena on Tuesday, the Selecao took the lead just before halftime when the Real Madrid star found the net. This was their first game under new head coach Carlo Ancelotti.
In other significant World Cup qualifying results, Oman tied the score against war-torn Palestine in their Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifying match in Amman, Jordan, with a penalty kick deep into stoppage time, leaving them devastated.
Palestine’s international matches have been held in neutral locations such as Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan. The athletes are unable to travel and play at their home stadium, the Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium in ar-Ram, a town northeast of occupied Jerusalem, as a result of Israel’s war on Gaza, its control over, and destruction of sporting venues and facilities in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Palestine, who needed a victory to advance to the AFC qualifiers’ fourth round, took the lead thanks to a goal from Oday Kharoub at the end of the first half.
Essam al-Subhi’s penalty kick in the 97th minute ended the game in a draw, shattering the Palestinians’ hopes of having another chance at qualifying by moving on to the fourth round. The Al-Fidai appeared to have done enough until they gave up a penalty in the closing seconds of the game.
That position is now occupied by Oman.
For the FIFA World Cup in 2026, which teams have confirmed their qualification?
The confirmed candidates from each of the six regions are listed below, following the most recent round of qualifying matches.
Africa: Since the qualifying matches’ first round doesn’t end until October 16, none of the 54 participating countries have been able to confirm their spots.
Asia: Australia, Japan, South Korea, Jordan, Iran, and Uzbekistan.
Europe: Not at all. Since their first-round matches don’t end until November 18, none of the 54 European teams competing for 16 qualifying spots have confirmed their spots, much like Africa.
North America, Central America, and the Caribbean: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Only three spots remain to be determined on November 18, as the World Cup host countries have already claimed three of them.
Oceania: New Zealand. With 11 countries vying for a single spot, New Zealand’s victory in the third-round playoff final against New Caledonia on March 24 secured the spot.
Argentina, Brazil, and Ecuador are in South America.
Which major teams are no longer eligible to compete in the FIFA World Cup in 2026?
The biggest names confirmed to miss the next World Cup are Chile, who finished third in 1962.
Although China is not regarded as one of Asia’s football superpowers, on June 5 the country’s ambitions to develop the sport domestically and send a team to the World Cup for the first time since 2002 were dashed.
Who are the remaining teams eligible to play in the FIFA World Cup in 2026?
The following teams are still in the running for a World Cup spot, in addition to the nine African and sixteen European spots that are still completely up for grabs.
Asia: Competing for two direct World Cup qualifying spots and one intercontinental playoff spot are Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Iraq, and Oman.
South America: Peru can only go to the intercontinental playoffs, while Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Venezuela, and Bolivia will compete for the three remaining World Cup spots.
The following nations have advanced to the third round of the North, Central American, and Caribbean tournaments: Honduras, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, Curacao, Haiti, Panama, Nicaragua, Jamaica, Guatemala, Suriname, and El Salvador. Three of these nations will advance directly to the World Cup. Following that, the three second-place teams from each group will compete for a spot in the intercontinental playoffs.
Oceania: New Caledonia has earned a spot in the intercontinental playoffs.
When are the FIFA World Cup 2026 teams going to be announced?
Until March 31, 2026, even. With the intercontinental playoff final and the European qualifying rounds both taking place in March, we won’t know the World Cup’s final 48 teams until less than three months before the competition.
When is the FIFA World Cup in 2026?
The competition starts in Mexico City on June 11 and concludes on July 19 with the final in New Jersey.
