Complete Overview of UEFA Qualifying Groups for World Cup 2026

The 2026 World Cup is on the horizon, with UEFA qualifying groups finalized on Friday, December 13, 2024. An unfortunate day for some, naturally.

This tournament is set to unfold across North America, marking the first World Cup ever hosted by three distinct nations: Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Mexico will make history as the first country to host the tournament three times, while the US will commemorate 32 years since their last hosting in ’94; it’s a debut for Canada.

In yet another first for this grand event, the World Cup will expand to include an impressive 48 teams from around the world. This provides a greater opportunity for home nations to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, right?

Here’s how the qualification process will work: the group stage will consist of twelve groups featuring four or five teams each, with the group winners automatically qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

Teams finishing second will move on to the play-offs, alongside the four highest-ranked group winners from the 2024/25 Nations League who did not finish in the top two of their qualifying groups. This setup aims to provide teams like San Marino a shot.

Sixteen nations from the UEFA confederation will participate in the World Cup in North America – a third of the total participants – offering a fantastic opportunity for all home nations. England finds themselves in a group with Serbia, Albania, Latvia, and Andorra, presenting Thomas Tuchel with his first challenges as manager of the Three Lions.

Wales has drawn Belgium once again, having famously defeated the Red Devils at Euro 2016 in the quarter-finals, alongside North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, and Liechtenstein to complete their group. Scotland will face the team that loses in the Nations League quarter-final between Portugal and Denmark, in addition to Greece and Belarus.

Across the Irish Sea, both Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland face tough opponents. Northern Ireland will compete against the winner of Germany and Italy’s Nations League quarter-final, as well as Slovakia and Luxembourg, while the Republic of Ireland takes on the winner of Portugal and Denmark, along with Hungary and Armenia.

World Cup qualifying kicks off on March 21, 2025, coinciding with the next international break. However, we won’t know the complete line-up for the 2026 tournament until March 31, 2026.

The UEFA qualifying groups for World Cup 2026

World Cup 2026: The UEFA qualifying groups

Group A

• Germany/Italy (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Slovakia
• Northern Ireland
• Luxembourg

Group B

• Switzerland
• Sweden
• Slovenia
• Kosovo

Group C

• Portugal/Denmark (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Greece
• Scotland
• Belarus

Group D

• France/Croatia (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Ukraine
• Iceland
• Azerbaijan

Group E

• Spain/Netherlands (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Turkey
• Georgia
• Bulgaria

Group F

• Portugal/Denmark (winning team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Hungary
• Republic of Ireland
• Armenia

Group G

• Spain/Netherlands (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Poland
• Finland
• Lithuania
• Malta

Group H

• Austria
• Romania
• Bosnia & Herzegovina
• Cyprus
• San Marino

Group I

• Germany/Italy (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Norway
• Israel
• Estonia
• Moldova

Group J

• Belgium
• Wales
• North Macedonia
• Kazakhstan
• Liechtenstein

Group K

• England
• Serbia
• Albania
• Latvia
• Andorra

Group L

• France/Croatia (defeated team from Nations League quarter-final)
• Czech Republic
• Montenegro
• Faroe Islands
• Gibraltar

Pots

Pot 1

1. Spain
2. Netherlands
3. France
4. Croatia
5. Portugal
6. Denmark
7. Italy
8. Germany
9. England
10. Belgium
11. Switzerland
12. Austria

Pot 2

13. Ukraine
14. Sweden
15. Turkey
16. Wales
17. Hungary
18. Serbia
19. Poland
20. Romania
21. Greece
22. Slovakia
23. Czech Republic
24. Norway

Pot 3

25. Scotland
26. Slovenia
27. Republic of Ireland
28. Albania
29. North Macedonia
30. Georgia
31. Finland
32. Iceland
33. Northern Ireland
34. Montenegro
35. Bosnia and Herzegovina
36. Israel

Pot 4

37. Bulgaria
38. Luxembourg
39. Belarus
40. Kosovo
41. Armenia
42. Kazakhstan
43. Azerbaijan
44. Estonia
45. Cyprus
46. Faroe Islands
47. Latvia
48. Lithuania

Pot 5

49. Moldova
50. Malta
51. Andorra
52. Gibraltar
53. Liechtenstein
54. San Marino

Banned from entering

Schedule