The list of countries heading to the 2026 World Cup has grown sharply, with at least 42 teams now guaranteed a place at the tournament that will be staged across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Tuesday night’s qualifying games wrapped up another crucial round. Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, Scotland, Panama, Haiti and Curacao all secured their spots.
Spain had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Turkey, a result that worked in their favour in the end. Scotland put four goals past 10-man Denmark in a lively 4-2 win that lifted the mood in Glasgow. Austria’s 1-1 draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina was less dramatic, but it was still enough to push them over the line.
Those results leave only six places unclaimed for next year’s expanded World Cup.
A full list of countries already qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is as follows:
Host nations: Canada, Mexico, United States
Asia: Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan
Africa: Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia
Concacaf: Curaçao, Haiti, Panama
Europe: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland
Oceania: New Zealand
South America: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
Meanwhile, the UEFA playoff pots have now been confirmed after the final round of group matches, and the draw sets up several intriguing routes.
The pots stand as follows:
Pot 1: Italy, Ukraine, Turkey, Denmark
Pot 2: Wales, Slovakia, Poland, Czech Republic
Pot 3: Kosovo, Republic of Ireland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania
Pot 4: Romania, Northern Ireland, Sweden, North Macedonia
The semi-finals will be played in a single-match format, hosted by the higher-ranked side. Pairings are set as Pot 1 against Pot 4, and Pot 2 against Pot 3. The winners of each pairing will then meet in a final to decide who joins the rest of the world in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
