L-R: Lionel Messi, Take Kubo, Jonathan David, Cristian Pulisic
Seven countries have qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with 41 slots still up for grabs in the next rounds of matches.
The seven nations include the three co-hosts of the tournament—USA, Canada, and Mexico—along with reigning champions Argentina, Asian sides, Iran and Japan, and Oceania champions New Zealand.
Japan was the first country outside the host nations to book their ticket after a 2-0 victory over Bahrain on Thursday, March 20, 2025.
The Asian giants secured the win on matchday seven of the qualifiers, extending their lead at the top of Group C with two games to spare.
New Zealand followed suit after emerging as champions of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) Men’s Nations Cup. They secured their spot by defeating New Caledonia 3-0 in the final.
Iran joined the list after their 2-2 draw against Uzbekistan on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. The stalemate took their tally to 20 points, three points ahead of second-place Uzbekistan and seven points above third-place United Arab Emirates (UAE) with two matches remaining.
Defending champions Argentina became the seventh team to qualify after Bolivia shared the spoils with Uruguay, a result that made the Albiceleste’s remaining fixtures a formality. They lead the CONMEBOL table with 31 points after 14 games, with four matches remaining.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will introduce a new, expanded format, featuring 48 teams.
The teams will be divided into 12 groups of four, with the top two from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, advancing to the round of 32.
The prestigious tournament is scheduled to take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026.
7/48 🇨🇦🇲🇽🇺🇸🇯🇵🇳🇿🇮🇷🇦🇷
These teams have qualified for #FIFAWorldCup 26. 👇
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) March 25, 2025
EE/EK
Meanwhile, watch as Ghanaians applaud Black Stars for excellent performances against Chad, Madagascar
