The 2026 FIFA World Cup group draw ceremony will be held on Friday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, starting at 6 p.m. our time, and the event will be marked by a rich cultural program and the presence of numerous sports and political figures.
Logistically so far the most demanding championship will last from June 11 to July 19 next year, and even 50 percent more teams will participate in it than in the last championship in Qatar in 2022, where, due to the short distances, it was much easier to organize accommodation, transportation and other team logistics.
Organizers have confirmed the performances of Andrea Bocelli, Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger and the Village People, while the program will be led by Heidi Klum, Kevin Hart and Danny Ramirez. US President Donald Trump, who presides over the center this year, will have one of the central roles at the event.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum were invited to the event, and among the guests will be sports legends Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky and Shaquille O’Neal, who will draw another strong group where Croatia is located.
Eleven of the 16 World Cup stadiums will be in USA, three in Mexico and two in Canada.
Among the national teams in the center of attention will be Lionel Messi and Argentina, the defending champions from Qatar, as well as European champions Spain, five-time world champions Brazil and France, Germany, England, Portugal, the Netherlands and Belgium. All three hosts will be placed in the first holder’s hat.
The lot will form 12 groupsfrom which the two first-placed national teams go directly to the round of 16, and they will be joined by the eight best third-placed teams. For the first time, the four best-ranked national teams – Spain, Argentina, France and England – be separated until the eventual semi-finals.
Six national teams are still unknown – those who will qualify through additional qualifications, and among them none of the favorites would want Italy, if they fight for placement from the demanding group of additional qualifications with Wales, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Northern Ireland.
In March, Sergej Barbarez’s team will play the first match of additional qualifications away from home against the Wales national team, and if they pass that test, they will play against the winner of the Italy-Northern Ireland match to qualify for the World Cup.
The opening of the championship will take place at the stadium Azteca in Mexicoand the final at MetLife Stadium near New York. The national teams will receive the detailed dates of their matches the day after the groups are drawn.
2026 WC Draw Hats:
Hat 1:
USA, Mexico, Canada, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany.
Hat 2:
Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia.
Hat 3:
Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa.
Hat 4:
Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, Winner of European Additional Qualifiers A (Wales/BiH – Italy/Northern Ireland), Winner of European Additional Qualifiers B (Ukraine/Sweden – Poland/Albania), Winner of European Additional Qualifiers C (Slovakia/Kosovo – Turkey/Romania), Winner of European Additional Qualifiers D (Czech Republic/Ireland – North Macedonia/Denmark), Winner of Intercontinental Additional Qualifiers A (Congo – New Caledonia/Jamaica), winner of Intercontinental Additional Qualification B (Iraq – Bolivia/Suriname).
(Fena | Photo: Marko Lukunic, PIXSELL / X)
