When the World Cup Draw takes place on December 5th in Washington, DC, 42 teams will definitely hear their names called as they are drawn into groups for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. There are still six spots
that have yet to be filled to complete the full field of 48 teams, and those will be determined in March 2026 with the inter-confederation playoff and the UEFA World Cup playoffs. This morning, the draw took place for both playoffs at FIFA’s headquarters in Zürich, Switzerland.
Six teams from the Caribbean, South America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania will compete for two spots via the inter-confederation playoff, while 16 teams from Europe will compete in their own playoff for the final four UEFA spots in the tournament. The inter-confederation playoff draw took place first, followed by the UEFA playoff draw.
Inter-confederation Playoff
Six teams still have a chance to qualify for the World Cup via the inter-confederation playoff (November FIFA world rankings in parentheses): DR Congo (56), Iraq (58), Jamaica (70), Bolivia (76), Suriname (123), and New Caledonia (149). The matches will be played in Monterrey and Guadalajara in March. The teams were split into two paths, with the two highest ranked teams (DR Congo and Iraq) getting a bye to the final of those paths. The other four teams were drawn into semifinal pairings.
The inter-confederation playoff brackets:
Path 1 – New Caledonia (149) vs. Jamaica (70) (winner plays DR Congo (56) in final)
Path 2 – Bolivia (76) vs. Suriname (123) (winner plays Iraq (58) in final)
The winner of each path will book their ticket to the 2026 World Cup. The paths will be drawn into groups at the World Cup Draw, so each team will know their potential opponents before the playoff takes place.
UEFA Playoffs
The UEFA Playoffs see 16 teams with a chance to claim one of four remaining UEFA spots in the World Cup. The 12 teams who finished second in their qualifying group were put in the playoff and allocated in Pots 1, 2, and 3 based on the November FIFA world rankings. The remaining four playoff spots were filled by the four best-ranked UEFA Nations League group winners that finished outside the top two of their qualifying group. Those teams were placed in Pot 4.
The Pots for the UEFA Playoff draw:
Pot 1 – Italy (12), Denmark (21), Turkey (25), Ukraine (28)
Pot 2 – Poland (31), Wales (32), Czechia (44), Slovakia (45)
Pot 3 – Ireland (59), Albania (63), Bosnia & Herzegovina (71), Kosovo (80)
Pot 4 – Sweden (43-NL), Romania (47-NL), North Macedonia (65-NL), Northern Ireland (69-NL)
The teams were placed into four brackets, with the semifinals taking place on March 26th. Pot 1 teams will face Pot 4 teams in the semifinals, while Pot 2 teams will host Pot 3. There was also a draw for the playoff finals, which will take place on March 31st, to see which semifinal winner in each bracket would host the match.
The UEFA Playoffs (home teams listed first):
UEFA Playoff A
SF1 – Italy (12) vs. Northern Ireland (69-NL)
SF2 – Wales (32) vs. Bosnia & Herzegovina (71)
Final: SF2 winner vs. SF1 winner
UEFA Playoff B
SF3 – Ukraine (28) vs. Sweden (43-NL)
SF4 – Poland (31) vs. Albania (63)
Final: SF3 winner vs. SF4 winner
UEFA Playoff C
SF5 – Türkiye (25) vs. Romania (47-NL)
SF6 – Slovakia (45) vs. Kosovo (80)
Final: SF6 winner vs. SF5 winner
UEFA Playoff D
SF7 – Denmark (21) vs. North Macedonia ()
SF8 – Czechia (44) vs. Ireland (59)
Final: SF8 winner vs. SF7 winner
While much of the world will be focused on final preparations for the 2026 World Cup in March, these 22 teams still will have dreams of making the final field. The playoffs will draw a ton of attention as the world will learn who the final six teams in the 2026 World Cup field of 48 will be.
