Europe, the home of football, is allowed to have 16 teams in the group stages of the FIFA World Cup 2026. The new format of the World Cup features 48 teams, of which 16 will be from Europe. This week, we saw 12 teams that qualified from the initial group stages, which included the likes of the big powerhouses like England, Germany, France, etc.
The rest of the teams(16) have to fight for the remaining 4 spots left for the tournament in North America in 2026. The teams include 12 group runner-ups from the main round of UEFA qualifying, with the last four – Romania, Sweden, North Macedonia and Northern Ireland – advancing based on their standings in the 2024-25 UEFA Nations League.
When is the Draw?
The draw for UEFA’s World Cup qualification playoffs is set for today, i.e., Thursday, Nov. 20, at 5:30 pm.
When are the UEFA World Cup qualifying playoffs?
UEFA’s World Cup qualifying playoffs will be contested on March 26 (semifinals) and March 31 (finals).
What teams are in the UEFA playoffs?
- Pot 1
- Italy
- Denmark
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- Pot 2
- Poland
- Wales
- Czech Republic
- Slovakia
- Pot 3
- Ireland
- Albania
- Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Kosovo
- Pot 4
- Romania
- Sweden
- North Macedonia
- Northern Ireland
How Will The Draw Work?
The European Qualifiers have three separate paths & each path has four different teams that will participate in a single-round knockout game.
Pot 1 will play against Pot 4 ( eg, Italy will face Sweden)
Pot 2 will play against Pot 3 ( eg, Wales will face Ireland)
This comprises the Semifinal, after which another draw will take place to decide which SF winner will play at home.
Then, in the Final, the two semi-final winners will meet each other in a one-off final.
What UEFA teams are qualified for the World Cup?
Twelve European countries have already clinched a spot in the 2026 World Cup:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Croatia
- England
- France
- Germany
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Portugal
- Scotland
- Spain
- Switzerland
