2026 World Cup Draw Set for Washington as FIFA Implements New Seeding Rule

Overview

• The draw takes place Friday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., assigning 48 teams into 12 groups of four using four pots based on the FIFA ranking.
• FIFA’s new constraint keeps Spain, Argentina, France and England on separate knockout paths so they cannot meet before the semifinals if they win their groups.
• Hosts are preallocated: Mexico to Group A with the opening match at Estadio Azteca on June 11, Canada to Group B, and the United States to Group D.
• The expanded format advances the top two in each group plus the eight best third-placed teams to a new round of 32, producing 104 matches overall.
• Six places remain via play-offs, with UEFA and intercontinental single-match semifinals on March 26 and finals on March 31, and the intercontinental ties staged in Mexico; FIFA will publish the full match schedule and venues on Saturday.