The FIFA World Cup draw on Friday, Dec. 5 will reveal the groups and bracket for the 2026 tournament in North America, with some new procedures in place as the field expands to 48 teams.
The 12 groups will be drawn from four pots based on the world rankings with the USA, Mexico and Canada placed in the first group as the tournament’s co-hosts, theoretically clearing an easier path out of the group stage.
Additionally, the top four teams – Spain, Argentina, France and England – will be separated so that they cannot meet until the semifinals.
The World Cup kicks off on June 11 with the final set for July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Here’s what to expect from Friday’s draw:
How does World Cup draw work? Format explained
Entering the draw, the 48 teams – 42 already clinched – are placed into four pots of 12 based on the November FIFA world rankings. The final six countries are in the fourth pot by default, no matter who ends up qualifying.
As the co-hosts, the USA, Canada and Mexico were placed into the first pot by default with the tournament’s nine highest-ranked teams.
Other than Europe (16 places), no continental federation may have more than one team in each group.
FIFA modified the draw for 2026 to create separate pathways to the semifinals for the four-highest ranked teams: Spain, Argentina, France and England. That means if Spain and Argentina win their groups, the world’s Nos. 1 and 2 teams can not meet prior to the final.
World Cup draw pots
- Pot 1: Canada, Mexico, USA, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany
- Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia
- Pot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
- Pot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, UEFA playoff A, B, C and D, FIFA playoff tournament 1 and 2
