Only six spots remain for the FIFA World Cup 2026. With hopes high but stakes higher, the FIFA Play-Off Tournament and European play-offs are underway — the last chance for teams to join the world's biggest stage.
Early this morning for Australian viewers, European hopefuls Wales, Republic of Ireland and North Macedonia were all knocked out in close penalty shoot-outs, with the dream also over for Ukraine, Slovakia, Romania, Northern Ireland and Albania.
The dream remains alive for former winners Italy, as well as a handful of teams outside Europe including former entrants seeking a return, Iraq and Bolivia.
The Socceroos were drawn against host nation the US, as well as Paraguay in Group D, but their final opponent will be determined this weekend.
In 2017, the decision-making body for FIFA known as the FIFA Council, agreed to increasing the number of teams that could qualify for the World Cup from the usual 32 to 48, meaning more competition and more knock-outs.
The 2026 World Cup, held across Canada, the US and Mexico in June and July, will be the first time the tournament is so large, increasing the chances for weaker teams.
As of today, 42 out of those 48 spots have been filled, leaving only six to compete for: two spots from the FIFA Play-Off Tournament, and four from the European play-offs.
Here is a guide to the remaining teams and how they could secure a spot.
FIFA Play-Off Tournament
The play-off tournament kicked off on the 26th of March local time, giving two almost-qualifiers one more shot at making it to the World Cup Tournament.
The six teams come from five of the six different confederations of FIFA, that compete against each other, as inter-confederation matches.
- Asian Football Confederation (AFC): Iraq
- Confederation of African Football (CAF): Congo DR
- Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF): Jamaica and Suriname
- Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL): Bolivia
- Oceania Football Confederation (OFC): New Caledonia
These matches kicked off with Bolivia facing Suriname, seeing South America’s smallest country lose to Bolivia 2-1, while New Caledonia went down 0-1 to Jamaica.
With Iraq and Congo DR being the strongest teams in the FIFA Play-Offs, they will face the winners of these matches in the tournament’s final.
The winners of that final will be placed in Group K, joining Portugal, Uzbekistan and Colombia, and Group I – joining France, Senegal and Norway, named this year’s Group of Death with the highest FIFA ratings.
Play-offs for the sixth confederation, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) are underway in a separate series of matches called the European Play-Offs.
European Play-Offs
Sixteen teams have been in the fight for the four spots up for grabs for UEFA teams, with this morning's losing teams knocked out.
While the top 12 teams in UEFA were given qualifying spots in the World Cup, 12 runner-up teams proceed to play-offs for another chance to qualify:
- Albania
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Czechia
- Denmark
- Italy
- Kosovo
- Poland
- Republic of Ireland
- Slovakia
- Türkiye
- Ukraine
- Wales
Another four teams that missed qualifying directly but performed well in the UEFA Nations League (UEFA’s own confederation tournament) also joined the European Play-Offs for one more chance:
- North Macedonia
- Northern Ireland
- Romania
- Sweden
The European Play-Off so far
The semi-finals wrapped up with the following winners securing a spot in the European Play-Off finals:
- Türkiye, who beat Romania 1-0
- Sweden, who beat Ukraine 3-1
- Poland, who beat Albania 2-1
- Czechia, who beat the Republic of Ireland 4-3 after penalties
- Italy, who beat Northern Ireland, 2-0
- Denmark, who beat North Macedonia, 4-0
- Kosovo, who beat Slovakia, 4-3
- Bosnia and Herzegovina, who beat Wales 4-2 on penalties after their game finished 1-1
The final matches to determine which teams will score a chance to play at the FIFA World Cup take place from the 31st of March, local time.
- Bosnia and Herzegovina will face Italy
- Sweden will face Poland
- Czechia will face Denmark
- Kosovo will face Türkiye
The winners of these matches will be placed in Groups A, B, D and F, with Group F closely being the second strongest group after the Group of Death, featuring Netherlands, Japan and Tunisia.
Where to watch the matches and what to watch out for
Fans can watch all the play-off matches live on Stan Sport in Australia.
If Italy makes it through the European Play-Offs, it will qualify for the first time since 2014, despite four World Cup trophies under its belt.
Kosovo could also be one game away from its first World Cup. Facing Türkiye, the winner will join Group D with Australia’s Socceroos. Türkiye last qualified for the World Cup in 2002, making this game especially important for both teams.
Iraq’s game will have a familiar face for Socceroos fans in coach Graham Arnold, who took the Australian team to the Round of 16 in 2022, but quit three years later. If Iraq lose the play-off match, there may be one more chance at qualifying for the World Cup if Iran pulls out of the tournament, placing it in Group G.
The inaugural Round of 32: What’s next?
After those 48 teams (divided into 12 groups with 4 teams each) are confirmed, the FIFA World Cup 2026 will kick off on 11 June local time, with all 104 games streaming on SBS, SBS Viceland and SBS On Demand.
Teams will play three games competing against their groups, and the top two teams from each group (a total of 24) will make it to the Round of 32, leaving eight open spots.
Third place teams will be then ranked by points, and the top eight will complete the 32 to begin the round on the 28 June.
The winners will then proceed to the Round of 16, kicking off on 4 July.
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
