2026 FIFA World Cup UEFA Qualification European Qualifiers
Table of Contents
The 2026 FIFA World Cup UEFA Qualification process has started for the European Football Teams for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America. In the 2026 FIFA World Cup UEFA Qualification, 55 UEFA Teams are playing for qualification.
All the National team members are part of the Union of European Football Association (UEFA). The FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifiers are scheduled to begin in March 2025 and end with the play-offs in March 2026.
A total of 16 slots in the final tournament are available for UEFA teams. After the qualification round, 12 teams have been qualified for the tournament’s final round. All groups conclude in November 2025. Here we are sharing the FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifiers (UEFA ) below.
2026 FIFA World Cup UEFA Qualifiers
The format of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification for the UEFA is divided into 2 different phases.
Format
The UEFA Executive Committee confirmed the qualification format during their meeting in Zurich, Switzerland on 13 Dec 2024. The qualification will depend, on the result of the 2024-25 UEFA National League. The structure will maintain UEFA’s usual group stage/playoff stage structure, with only the specific format of the playoffs amended.
- Group stage: 12 groups of 4 or 5 teams. Group winners will qualify for the World Cup and the draw for the group stage will take place in December 2024.
- Play-off stage: 16 teams ( 12 group runners-up and 4 best Nations League group winners, based on the Nations League overall ranking, The four path winners will qualify for the World Cup.
UEFA Qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 26 Draw
Here are the drawn into 12 qualifying groups for the next 2026 FIFA World Cup.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 | Pot 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | Ukraine | Scotland | Bulgaria | Moldova |
| Spain | Sweden | Slovenia | Luxembourg | Andorra |
| England | Turkiye | Republic of Ireland | Belarus | Malta |
| Portugal | Wales | Albania | Kosovo | Gibraltar |
| Netherlands | Hungary | North Macedonia | Armenia | Liechtenstein |
| Belgium | Serbia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | San Marino |
| Italy | Poland | Finland | Azerbaijan | – |
| Germany | Romania | Iceland | Estonia | – |
| Croatia | Greece | Northern Ireland | Cyprus | – |
| Switzerland | Slovakia | Montenegro | Faroe Islands | – |
| Denmark | Czechia | Bosnia & Herzegovina | Latvia | – |
| Austria | Norway | Israel | Lithuania | – |
FIFA-Affiliated European Qualifiers Teams
| Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria | Kazakhstan Kosovo Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Moldova Montenegro |
| Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark England Estonia Faroe Islands Finland France | Netherlands North Macedonia Northern Ireland Norway Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania Russia (suspended) |
| Georgia Germany Gibraltar Greece Hungary Iceland Israel Italy | San Marino Scotland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Wales |
World Cup 2026 European qualifiers
A total of 16 slots in the final tournament are available for UEFA teams.
- Group stage draw
- 13 December 2024
- Group stage match dates
- 21–22 March 2025 to 16–18 November 2025
- Play-off match dates(Semi-finals and Final)
- 26-31 March 2026
- Final tournament dates
- 11 June to 19 July 2026
2026 FIFA World Cup UEFA Qualification Groups
| Group A Winner Germany/Italy, Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg | Group B Switzerland Sweden Slovenia Kosovo |
| Group C Loser Portugal/Denmark Greece Scotland Belarus | Group D Winner France/Croatia Ukraine Iceland Azerbaijan |
| Group E Winner Spain/Netherlands Turkey Georgia Bulgaria | Group F Winner Portugal/Denmark Hungary Republic of Ireland Armenia |
| Group G Loser Spain/Netherlands Poland Finland Lithuania Malta | Group H Austria Romania Bosnia Herzegovina Cyprus San Marino |
| Group I Loser Germany/Italy Norway Israel Estonia Moldova | Group J Belgium Wales North Macedonia Kazakhstan Liechtenstein |
| Group K England Serbia Albania Latvia Andorra | Group L Loser France/Croatia Czechia Montenegro Faroe Islands Gibraltar |
What is the Schedule of the 2026 FIFA World Cup European Qualifiers?
The new schedule for the semi-final is out the dates are from 26 March 2026 and the final matches on 31 March 2026.
Groups of FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifiers ( UEFA )
16 UEFA nations will compete at the 48-team FIFA World Cup final in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The fixture list will confirmed by FIFA in Jan 2025, the day following the draw. The Group stage match will run from March to November 2025.
When will the UEFA qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup begin?
The European qualifiers begin for five-team groups in March 2025 and for four-team groups the following September.
