Watch all 104 games of the FIFA World Cup 26™ LIVE, FREE and EXCLUSIVE on SBS, SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand.
- How has FIFA World Cup Finals qualification altered?
- Who qualified automatically for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- Who are the qualified nations from Asia for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- Who are the qualified nations from Africa for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- Who are the qualified nations from South America for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- Who are the qualified nations from Europe for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- Who are the qualified nations from Oceania for the FIFA World Cup 26™?
- How will the Inter-conference play-off tournament work?
The changes to FIFA World Cup qualification
The FIFA World Cup 26™ is on the horizon and the tournament - set to be held in the United States of America, Canada and Mexico - will bring a host of firsts, with SBS again the exclusive Australian broadcaster for the world's biggest sporting event.
An expansion to 48 nations for the FIFA World Cup 26™ from the current structure of 32 teams will see growth beyond the normal countries seen at the tournament.
Take a look at the nations that have already booked their ticket to Canada, Mexico and the USA - including some statistics and trivia from past appearances.
The increase to the number of teams has meant each region has seen an increase in their quota of nations that qualify for the FIFA World Cup™.
- Asia: 8 (+4 compared to 2022)
- Africa: 9 (+4)
- North, Central America and Caribbean: 6 (+3)
- Europe: 16 (+3)
- South America: 6 (+2)
- Oceania: 1 (+1)
Automatic Qualification
Co-hosts
These countries qualified automatically as hosts of the tournament, though unlike previous FIFA World Cups - their qualification allotment was deducted from the CONCACAF qualification quota.
Canada
KANSAS CITY, KANSAS - SEPTEMBER 7: Alphonso Davies in action for Canada against the United States Credit: Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images
How qualified: Host nation
Best World Cup Finals performance: Group stage (1982, 2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1982, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Alphonso Davies is the only Canadian to score a goal at a FIFA World Cup, opening the scoring in their fifth-ever World Cup fixture, a 4-1 loss against Croatia in 2022.
Canada hadn't scored in the previous four matches, and their only other goal was an own goal by Morocco's Nayef Aguerd.
Mexico
LUSAIL CITY, QATAR - NOVEMBER 30: Hirving Lozano of Mexico during their only win of the 2022 World Cup, a 2-1 victory over Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Harry Langer/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) Credit: DeFodi Images/DeFodi Images via Getty Images
How qualified: Host nation
Best World Cup Finals performance: Quarter-finals (1970, 1986)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1978, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Mexico will become the first country to host three editions of the FIFA World Cup, having previously hosted the 1970 and 1986 tournaments, the latter coming after Colombia pulled out from hosting duties.
USA
ARLINGTON, TX - MARCH 24: Christian Pulisic and the United States Mens National team with the CONCACAF Nations League Finals Winner's Trophy (Getty Images) Credit: Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images
How qualified: Host nation
Best World Cup Finals performance: 3rd place (1930)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1934, 1950, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: USA's Bert Patenaude was the first hat-trick scorer at the FIFA World Cup, completing the feat in a 3-0 victory against Paraguay on July 17, 1930.
Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualification
These countries qualified via a series of group formats, with eight direct spots and one play-off tournament place assigned to the AFC.
Australia
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 21: Harry Souttar, Kusini Yengi and Jackson Irvine of Australia are defended by Lebanon's Bassel Jradi during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers (Photo by Steve Christo - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images) Credit: Steve Christo - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images
How qualified: Australia finished second in their group, clinching qualification in June after a comeback 2-1 win against Saudi Arabia.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Round of 16 (2006, 2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1974, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: The qualification for the FIFA World Cup 26™ was the first time Australia has secured direct qualification since their 2014 campaign.
On both occasions the Socceroos reached the World Cup Round of 16, they were eliminated by the eventual champions (Italy in 2006 and Argentina in 2022).
IR Iran
DOHA, QATAR - NOVEMBER 25: Iran prior to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group B match between Wales and IR Iran. (Photo by Matteo Ciambelli/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) Credit: DeFodi Images/DeFodi Images via Getty Images
How qualified: Iran won an impressive seven from ten matches in their qualifying group, their only loss 1-0 away to Qatar when going down to 10-men. Their 2-2 draw with group rivals Uzbekistan on March 25 confirmed their qualification.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Group stage
World Cup Appearances: 1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Mehdi Taremi scored the latest goal in regulation time at a FIFA World Cup, a 90+13th minute goal in a loss against England that made the result 6-2.
Uzbekistan
PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 24: Eldor Shomurodov of Team Uzbekistan celebrates scoring during the Olympic Games Paris 2024 (Photo by Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) Credit: DeFodi Images/Getty Images
How qualified: A 0-0 draw against the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi was enough for Uzbekistan to take the second automatic qualification spot behind Iran in their group with a game to spare.
Best World Cup Finals performance: N/A
World Cup Appearances: N/A
FIFA World Cup trivia: Eldor Shomurodov is Uzbekistan's top scorer of all-time, recording 42 goals in just 82 games, at 30 years of age with plenty more time to add to his tally. Shomurodov has been a Roma player since 2021, currently on loan in Turkey with İstanbul Başakşehir.
Jordan
(Muscat, Oman, June 5, 2025) Jordan's Musa Al-Taamari takes on Oman's goalkeeper Faiyz Al-Rusheidi and defender Khalid Al-Braiki during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers (Photo by Ameen Ahmed/NurPhoto via Getty Images) Source: NurPhoto / NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images
How qualified: An Ali Olwan hat-trick against Oman saw Jordan advance after favourable results elsewhere helped them qualify from their group with a game in hand, finishing behind Korea Republic.
Best World Cup Finals performance: N/A
World Cup Appearances: N/A
FIFA World Cup trivia: Jordan were managed briefly by former Premier League coach Harry Redknapp during qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, his two-game stint a very high-scoring one with a 8-0 win over Bangladesh followed by a 5-1 loss to Australia.
Korea Republic
HARRISON, NJ - SEPTEMBER 06: Son Heungmin #7 of Korea Republic during the game against the United States of America (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Credit: Icon Sportswire/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
How qualified: Korea Republic did not lose any games in their 16-match qualification, and qualified with a game in hand with a 2-0 win over Iraq.
Best World Cup Finals performance: 4th (2002)
World Cup Appearances: 1954, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022.
FIFA World Cup trivia: Korea have the unwanted record of conceding the fastest World Cup goal in history, when Hakan Şükür scored after just 11 seconds for Türkiye in the 2002 third-placed play-off.
Japan
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 06: Takefusa Kubo of Japan in action during a friendly against Mexico. (Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images) Credit: Koji Watanabe/Getty Images
How qualified: Japan were the first nation to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, finishing comfortably top of their group ahead of Australia, with a 2-0 win over Bahrain securing qualification.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Round of 16 (2002, 2010, 2018, 2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Yūto Nagatomo could enter a select group of players to participate in five men's World Cup tournaments. Currently, just six players ever have managed the feat - Lionel Messi (Argentina), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Lothar Matthaus (Germany), Andrés Guardado, Rafael Márquez and Antonio Carbajal (all Mexico).
Confederation of African Football (CAF)
Nine countries qualified as the winners of groups with direct spots, with the four best second-place finishers headed to a second round play-off for the one Play-Off Tournament spot for CAF.
Morocco
DOHA, QATAR - DECEMBER 17: Achraf Dari of Morocco celebrates with teammates after scoring the team's first goal during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 3rd Place match between Croatia and Morocco (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) Credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
How qualified: Morocco easily topped their group, winning all their matches and sealing qualification with two matches in hand after a 5-0 win over Niger.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Fourth (2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1970, 1986, 1994, 1998, 2018, 2022, 2026
FIFA World Cup trivia: The 1986 Morocco team were the first African team to win their group and reach the knockout stage, and the 2022 side were the first African team to reach the semi-finals.
Tunisia
TUNIS, TUNISIA - JUIN 05: Tunisia team celebrates its first goal during the football match of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers, between Tunisia and Equatorial Guinea (Photo by Hasan Mrad/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) Credit: DeFodi Images/DeFodi Images via Getty Images
How qualified: Tunisia qualified top of their group, officially going through after defeating Equatorial Guinea 1-0 with a stoppage-time winner from Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Group Stage (1978, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1978, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Tunisia is one of the teams credited with putting African football on the map, their spirited 1978 World Cup showing the precursor to the increase in the number of direct qualifiers from Africa.
Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) qualification
Argentina
Lionel Messi celebrates a goal with his Argentina teammates
How qualified: Argentina qualified comfortably atop the CONMEBOL standings, nine points clear of second-placed Ecuador with Lionel Messi the top scorer in the region with eight goals.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Champions (1978, 1986, 2022)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1934, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Lionel Messi has captained the team in 19 matches, and his total of 26 matches played is the most ever at the FIFA World Cup.
Brazil
LUSAIL CITY, QATAR - NOVEMBER 24: Richarlison of Brazil scored one of the goals of the FIFA World Cup 2022 tournament in Qatar (Photo by Alex Livesey - Danehouse/Getty Images) Credit: Alex Livesey - Danehouse/Getty Images
How qualified: Brazil were one of four teams that qualified with 28 points in South American qualification, officially fifth in the standings after a stop-start campaign that saw head coach Carlo Ancelotti take over after Dorival was sacked following a 4-1 loss to Argentina in March.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Champions (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1934, 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Five Brazilians have won the World Cup Golden Boot Award as the top scorer at a FIFA World Cup tournament - Leônidas with 7 goals in 1938, Ademir with 9 goals in 1950, Garrincha and Vavá with 4 goals each in 1962, and Ronaldo with 8 goals in 2002.
Colombia
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - JULY 6: James Rodriguez of Colombia scoring his penalty goal , during the CONMEBOL Copa America USA 2024 4th Final Match between Colombia and Panama at State Farm Stadium on July 6, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by MB Media/Getty Images) Credit: MB Media/Getty Images
How qualified: Colombia qualified third from the South American standings, finishing with a 6-3 win over Venezuela that forced them out of the play-off qualification spot and allowed Bolivia to progress.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Quarter-Finals (2014)
World Cup Appearances: 1962, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2014, 2018
FIFA World Cup trivia: James Rodríguez is just the second player in FIFA World Cup history to score in the first five matches he played in, scoring six goals and winning the Golden Boot in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Ecuador
Ecuador's Enner Valencia on the ball during the 2026 FIFA World Cup South American qualifiers (Photo by MARCOS PIN / AFP) (Photo by MARCOS PIN/AFP via Getty Images) Source: AFP / MARCOS PIN/AFP via Getty Images
How qualified: Ecuador finished second in South American qualification, conceding just five goals across the 18 rounds of qualifying. They finished with a 1-0 win over defending world champions Argentina.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Round of 16 (2006)
World Cup Appearances: 2002, 2006, 2014, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Across the 2014 and 2022 World Cups, Enner Valencia scored six goals in a row without any other Colombian player scoring, until the streak was broken by Moises Caicedo in a 2-1 loss to Senegal.
Paraguay
ASUNCION, PARAGUAY - OCTOBER 15: Antonio Sanabria of Paraguay scores the team's first goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 South American Qualifier match between Paraguay and Venezuela (Photo by Christian Alvarenga/Getty Images) Credit: Christian Alvarenga/Getty Images
How qualified: Paraguay were sixth in South American qualifying, one of four teams together on 28 points.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Quarter-finals (2010)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1950, 1958, 1986, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010
FIFA World Cup trivia: Paraguay's last match at the FIFA World Cup, a 1-0 loss to eventual champions Spain in the quarter-finals, saw three penalty kicks result in zero goals.
Uruguay
Uruguay's Facundo Pellistri and Brazil's Abner fight for the ball during the 2026 FIFA World Cup South American qualifiers (Photo by NELSON ALMEIDA / AFP) (Photo by NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP via Getty Images) Source: AFP / NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP via Getty Images
How qualified: Uruguay were fourth in CONMEBOL qualification, one of four teams locked together on 28 points.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Champions (1930, 1950)
World Cup Appearances: 1930, 1950, 1954, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1986, 1990, 2002, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
FIFA World Cup trivia: Uruguay have won four FIFA-organised World Football Championships, though only two were recognised as official World Cups by FIFA due to the 1924 and 1928 tournaments being organised in conjunction with the Olympic Committee.
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) qualification
European qualification will see 16 nations qualify directly to the FIFA World Cup 26™, an increase of three teams from previous years.
12 nations will qualify as winners of their groups in the initial stage, with the 12 runners-up from the groups, plus the four best-ranked teams in the Nations League standings (from the remaining teams), set to compete in single play-off matches for the remaining four FIFA World Cup spots.
Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) qualification
With the expansion of teams qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 26™, the OFC got a direct qualification spot for the first time.
The qualification process saw the winner from four groups qualify to an elimination tournament, with the final winner getting the direct qualification spot, and the runner-up progressing to the Play-off Tournament.
New Zealand
WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - MARCH 21: Chris Wood of New Zealand heads the ball to score a goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 OFC Qualifier Semi Final match between New Zealand All Whites and Fiji (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images) Credit: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
How qualified: New Zealand beat New Caledonia 3-0 in the Final of Round 3 of qualification to obtain the only direct qualification in the OFC.
Best World Cup Finals performance: Group stage 1982, 2010
World Cup Appearances: 1982, 2010
FIFA World Cup trivia: New Zealand were the only team not to lose a match at the 2010 World Cup, recording three draws and not progressing out of their group.
Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF)
In a change of format from previous FIFA World Cups, there was no dedicated host country slot, with the slots of automatically qualifying host countries now taken from the quota of its confederation.
That means that just three nations will directly qualify from CONCACAF aside from the hosts, with two nations to compete in the Play-off Tournament.
Nations competed in a three-stage process with the winners and runners-up from the second-stage groups to progress to the third-stage groups, where the winners qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
Inter-confederation play-off tournament
For the intercontinental play-offs in March 2026, a total of six countries - one from each of the five confederations aside from Europe, plus an additional one from CONCACAF as host confederation, will take part.
The play-offs will feature six teams, split into two brackets of three teams, with both bracket winners qualifying for the World Cup.
Each bracket will feature two unseeded teams facing each other in a semi-final, with the winner advancing to the play-off final against a seeded team.
Teams qualified for the inter-confederation play-off tournament
Bolivia (Finished seventh in CONMEBOL qualification)
New Caledonia (Finished runner-up in OFC qualification)
Watch all 104 games of the FIFA World Cup 26™ LIVE, FREE and EXCLUSIVE on SBS, SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand.
