Tournament details | |
---|---|
Dates | 21 March 2025 – 31 March 2026 |
Teams | 54 (from 1 confederation) |
← 2022 2030→ |
UEFA European Qualifiers |
---|
The European section of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification competition will act as qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, to be held in Canada, Mexico and the United States, for national teams that are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). A total of 16 slots in the final tournament are available for UEFA teams.
A revised qualification format was confirmed by the UEFA Executive Committee during their meeting in Nyon, Switzerland, on 25 January 2023. As the number of final tournament slots for UEFA has increased from 13 to 16, [1] the qualification format was modified from the previous cycle. The qualifying group stage will feature twelve groups of four or five teams. The winner of each group will qualify for the World Cup, while the second-placed teams will advance to the play-offs, along with the four best-ranked group winners from the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League that finished outside the top two of their World Cup qualifying group. [2] On 28 June 2023, the UEFA Executive Committee formally recommended the qualification format to FIFA, [3] which was later approved. [4] [5]
Below is the schedule of the European qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. [6] Groups of five teams (Groups G–L) will begin in March 2025, while groups of four teams (Groups A–F) will begin in September 2025. [2] [7]
Round | Matchday | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Groups A–F | Groups G–L | ||
First round (group stage) | — | Matchday 1 | 21–22 March 2025 |
Matchday 2 | 24–25 March 2025 | ||
Matchday 3 | 6–7 June 2025 | ||
Matchday 4 | 9–10 June 2025 | ||
Matchday 1 | Matchday 5 | 4–6 September 2025 | |
Matchday 2 | Matchday 6 | 7–9 September 2025 | |
Matchday 3 | Matchday 7 | 9–11 October 2025 | |
Matchday 4 | Matchday 8 | 12–14 October 2025 | |
Matchday 5 | Matchday 9 | 13–15 November 2025 | |
Matchday 6 | Matchday 10 | 16–18 November 2025 | |
Second round (play-offs) | Semi-finals | 26 March 2026 | |
Finals | 31 March 2026 |
The draw for the first round (group stage) will be held on 13 December 2024, 12:00 CET, at the FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland. [8] [9] [10] [11] Of UEFA's 55 member associations, 54 men's national teams submitted a valid entry to the competition, while Russia's entry was not accepted due to suspension from UEFA and FIFA competitions following their country's invasion of Ukraine. [12] [13]
The teams will be seeded into five pots: Pots 1 to 4 will each contain twelve teams, and Pot 5 will contain six teams. FIFA, in consultation with UEFA, announced the allocation of teams to the five pots following the completion of the league phase of the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League. The teams will be drawn into twelve groups: six groups of four teams (Groups A–F) and six groups of five teams (Groups G–L). [14]
Following changes to the UEFA qualifying format, the competition will feature staggered starting dates. Five-team groups will begin in March 2025, while four-team groups will start in September 2025. As 24 teams will be competing in the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League in March 2025 (8 in the League A quarter-finals and 16 in the League A/B or B/C promotion/relegation play-offs), significant changes were made to the seeding and draw procedures to accommodate all teams within the schedule.
Five-team groups can only contain one team participating in Nations League matches in March 2025, allowing these teams to have two free matchdays in World Cup qualifying to be scheduled during March. The remaining four teams in their group will play among themselves during this window. Additionally, as the four quarter-final winners will compete in the 2025 UEFA Nations League Finals in June, they cannot begin World Cup qualifying until September and must therefore be drawn into four-team groups. [14]
Given these conditions, Pot 1 will contain the eight Nations League quarter-finalists, regardless of their position in the FIFA Men's World Ranking of November 2024. The quarter-finalists will be represented by placeholders in the draw, denoting the winners and losers of each quarter-final pairing. [note 1] The four remaining teams in Pot 1 will be the next best-ranked teams in the World Ranking that November. The remaining teams were allocated to Pots 2 to 5 based on the World Ranking. This seeding method differs from previous cycles, as all World Cup qualifying group draws since 2010 have been seeded based solely on the World Ranking.
While ultimately not required, adjustments to Pots 2 to 5 could have been necessary depending on the distribution of teams competing in the Nations League promotion/relegation play-offs in March 2025. Specifically, if any draw pot contained more Nations League play-off teams than could be accommodated in the available qualifying groups, the lowest-ranked Nations League play-off team from that pot would have been swapped with the highest-ranked eligible team from the lower pot. This process would have been repeated as needed within the same pot or across different pots. [15]
The draw will start with Pot 1 and complete with Pot 5. A team will be drawn and assigned to the first available group (based on draw conditions) in alphabetical order. Each five-team group will contain one team from each of the five pots, while each four-team group will contain one team from each of the first four pots. [14]
The following restrictions will be applied with computer assistance:
The draw pots were announced on 28 November 2024, [16] based on the FIFA Men's World Ranking released on the same day. [17]
|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Team | Rank |
---|---|
Russia | 34 |
Key
The group stage schedule will be confirmed by UEFA shortly after the draw. [18]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | A1 | A2 | A3 | A4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | A1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | A2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | A3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | A4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | B1 | B2 | B3 | B4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | B1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | B2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | B3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | B4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | C1 | C2 | C3 | C4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | C1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | C2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | C3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | C4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | D1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | D2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | D3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | D4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | E1 | E2 | E3 | E4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | E1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | E2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | E3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | E4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | F1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | F2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | |
3 | F3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
4 | F4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | G1 | G2 | G3 | G4 | G5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | G1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | G2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | G3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | G4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | G5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | H1 | H2 | H3 | H4 | H5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | H1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | H2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | H3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | H4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | H5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | I1 | I2 | I3 | I4 | I5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | I1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | I2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | I3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | I4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | I5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | J1 | J2 | J3 | J4 | J5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | J1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | J2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | J3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | J4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | J5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | K1 | K2 | K3 | K4 | K5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | K1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | K2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | K3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | K4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | K5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | L1 | L2 | L3 | L4 | L5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | L1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
2 | L2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to play-offs | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
3 | L3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | TBD | ||
4 | L4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | — | TBD | ||
5 | L5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | — |
The second round (play-offs) will be contested by the twelve group runners-up and the best four Nations League group winners, based on the Nations League interim overall ranking, who finish outside the top two of their qualifying group. The sixteen teams will be split into four play-off paths, each containing four teams. Each path will feature two single-leg semi-finals and one single-leg final. In the semi-finals, the fixtures of each path will be determined by seeding pots, with the Pot 1 team hosting the Pot 4 team and the Pot 2 team hosting the Pot 3 team. The host of each path final will be decided by a draw between the two semi-final pairings. [19]
Based on the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League interim overall ranking, the best four Nations League group winners that finish outside the top two of their qualifying group will advance to the play-offs. If fewer than four Nations League group winners can be selected, the remaining spot(s) will be allocated to the best remaining team(s) in the Nations League interim overall ranking that finished outside the top two of their qualifying group. [19]
The table below shows the order in which teams will be selected based on the UEFA Nations League interim overall ranking. [note 6]
UNL | Rank | Team | Qualifying group | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Nations League group winners | ||||
A | 1 | Spain | (X) | |
2 | Germany | (X) | ||
3 | Portugal | (X) | ||
4 | France | (X) | ||
B | 17 | England | ||
18 | Norway | |||
19 | Wales | |||
20 | Czech Republic | |||
C | 33 | Romania | ||
34 | Sweden | |||
35 | North Macedonia | |||
36 | Northern Ireland | |||
D | 49 | Moldova | ||
50 | San Marino | |||
Nations League remaining teams | ||||
A | 5 | Italy | ||
6 | Netherlands | |||
7 | Denmark | |||
8 | Croatia | |||
9 | Scotland | |||
10 | Serbia | |||
11 | Hungary | |||
12 | Belgium | |||
13 | Poland | |||
14 | Israel | |||
15 | Switzerland | |||
16 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | |||
B | 21 | Greece | ||
22 | Austria |
Key
For the draw, the sixteen teams will be divided into four pots of four teams each. The twelve group runners-up will be allocated to pots 1 to 3, with seeding based on the FIFA Men's World Ranking of November 2025. The four teams qualified via the Nations League will be automatically seeded into pot 4. The play-off paths are structured as follows: [19]
The draw for the semi-finals will start with Pot 1 and complete with Pot 4. Teams will be drawn and assigned to the first available play-off semi-final (considering prohibited clashes) in numerical order, as follows:
The draw for the final hosts will take place immediately afterwards, with finals A, B, C and D each having one of their semi-finalists selected as the host team.
For political reasons, matches between the following pairs of teams are considered prohibited clashes and cannot be drawn into the same play-off path: Armenia–Azerbaijan, Belarus–Ukraine, Gibraltar–Spain, Kosovo–Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo–Serbia. The seeding pots for the semi-final draw are as follows.
Seeded | Unseeded | ||
---|---|---|---|
Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 (UNL) |
The 2009–10 UEFA Champions League was the 55th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 18th under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played on 22 May 2010 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid, Spain, the first time the final was played on a Saturday. The final was won by Italian club Inter Milan, who beat German side Bayern Munich 2–0.
The 2011–12 UEFA Champions League was the 57th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 20th season in its current Champions League format. As part of a trial that started in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League, two extra officials – one behind each goal – were used in all matches of the competition from the play-off round.
The European zone of qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup saw 53 teams competing for 13 places in the finals in Brazil. The draw for the qualification groups was held during the World Cup Preliminary Draw at the Marina da Glória in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 30 July 2011.
The FIFA World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has been contested every four years since 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, due to the Second World War.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification will decide the 45 teams that will join hosts Canada, Mexico, and the United States at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The European qualifying competition for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was a women's football competition that determined the eight UEFA teams joining the automatically qualified hosts France in the final tournament.
The European section of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification acted as qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, to be held in Qatar, for national teams that are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). A total of 13 slots in the final tournament were available for UEFA teams.
The UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying competition was a women's football competition that determined the 15 teams joining the automatically qualified host Switzerland in the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 final tournament.
The 2023–24 UEFA Champions League was the 69th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 32nd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
The 2022–23 UEFA Champions League was the 68th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 31st season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
The 2024–25 UEFA Champions League is the 70th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 33rd season since it was rebranded from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. This will be the first season under a new format, with 36 participating teams that play eight games each against different opponents in a league phase, all the teams being ranked in a joint group. This will increase the total number of matches played in the competition from 125 to 189.
The 2023–24 UEFA Europa League was the 53rd season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 15th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League.
The 2024–25 UEFA Nations League is the fourth installment of the UEFA Nations League tournament, an international association football competition involving the men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA. The competition will be held from September to November 2024, March 2025, June 2025, and March 2026.
The 2024–25 UEFA Europa League is the 54th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 16th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. This is the first season played under a new format, which replaces the 32-team group stage with a 36-team league phase. This increases the total number of matches played in the competition from 141 to 189. The new format also does not allow teams to transfer from the Champions League league or knockout phase to the Europa League knockout phase, and thus Europa League winners can no longer defend their title as the winner of the Europa League automatically qualifies for the Champions League league phase.
The 2025 UEFA Women's Nations League will be the second season of the UEFA Women's Nations League, an international women's football competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the member associations of UEFA. The league phase of the competition will be played between February and June, with the finals tournament taking place between October and December. The results also determine the leagues for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 qualifying competition.
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is the planned 21st edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, an international club soccer competition organized by FIFA. The tournament is scheduled to be played in the United States from June 14 to July 13, 2025. It is planned to be the first under an expanded format with 32 teams, including the winners of the four previous continental championships.
League A is the top division of the 2025 UEFA Women's Nations League, the second season of the international football competition involving the women's national teams of the member associations of UEFA. League A will culminate with the Nations League Finals in October – December 2025 to determine the champions of the competition. The results will also be used to determine the leagues for the European qualifying competition for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup.
League B is the second division of the 2025 UEFA Women's Nations League, the second season of the international football competition involving the women's national teams of the member associations of UEFA. The results will also be used to determine the leagues for the European qualifying competition for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup.
League C is the third and lowest division of the 2025 UEFA Women's Nations League, the second season of the international football competition involving the women's national teams of the member associations of UEFA. The results will also be used to determine the leagues for the European qualifying competition for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup.
The UEFA second round of the qualification tournament for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, also known as the UEFA play-offs, will be contested by sixteen teams from the UEFA segment of qualifying. The play-offs will determine the final four European teams that will join the twelve group winners at the World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States. The twelve runners-up from the UEFA first round groups will participate in the play-offs, along with four teams based on the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League interim overall ranking. The teams will be divided into four paths, each containing four teams, with each play-off path featuring two single-leg semi-finals and one single-leg final. The twelve matches will take place in March 2026.