| Official name | : | FIFA World Cup 26™ |
| Host country | : | |
| Mascot | : | Maple, Zayu, & Clutch |
| Edition | : | 23rd |
| Dates | : | 11 June – 19 July 2026 |
| Teams | : | 48 (from 6 confederations) |
| Total matches | : | 104 |
| Venue | : | 16 (in 16 host cities) |
| Champions | : | - |
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, marketed as FIFA World Cup 26, will be the 23rd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international men's soccer championship contested by the national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026. It will be jointly hosted by 16 cities in three North American countries: Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The tournament will be the first hosted by three nations and the first North American World Cup since 1994. Argentina is the defending champion.
This tournament will be the first to include 48 teams, expanded from 32. The United 2026 bid beat a rival bid by Morocco during a final vote at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow. It will be the first World Cup since 2002 to be hosted by more than one nation. With its past hosting of the 1970 and 1986 tournaments, Mexico will become the first country to host or co-host the men's World Cup three times. The United States last hosted the men's World Cup in 1994, whereas it will be Canada's first time hosting or co-hosting the men's tournament. The event will also return to its traditional northern summer schedule after the 2022 edition in Qatar was held in November and December.
Immediately prior to the 67th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation in a meeting in Manama, Bahrain. This includes an intercontinental play-off tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup spots.
The six teams in the play-offs will comprise one team from each confederation excluding UEFA, and one additional team from the confederation of the host countries (CONCACAF). Two of the teams will be seeded based on the World Rankings, and they will play-off against the winners of two knockout games between the four unseeded teams for the two FIFA World Cup berths. The four-game tournament is to be played in one or more of the host countries, and will also be used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup. The ratification of slot allocation also gives the OFC a guaranteed berth in the final tournament for the first time: the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament in which all six confederations have at least one guaranteed berth. This will also be the first time since the 2010 edition in which all continents have a team qualified for the World Cup finals.
No. Team Method of qualification Date of qualification Finals appearance 1 Hosts 14 2023 3rd 2 Hosts 14 2023 18th 3 Hosts 14 2023 12th 4 AFC third round Group C winners 20 2025 8th 5 OFC third round winners 24 2025 3rd 6 AFC third round Group A winners 25 2025 7th 7 CONMEBOL winners 25 2025 19th 8 AFC third round Group A runners-up 5 2025 1st 9 AFC third round Group B winners 5 2025 12th 10 AFC third round Group B runners-up 5 2025 1st 11 AFC third round Group C runners-up 10 2025 7th 12 CONMEBOL fifth place 10 2025 23rd 13 CONMEBOL runners-up 10 2025 5th 14 CONMEBOL fourth place 4 2025 15th 15 CONMEBOL third place 4 2025 7th 16 CONMEBOL sixth place 4 2025 9th 17 CAF first round Group E winners 5 2025 7th 18 CAF first round Group H winners 8 2025 7th 19 CAF first round Group A winners 8 2025 4th 20 CAF first round Group G winners 9 2025 5th 21 CAF first round Group I winners 13 2025 5th 22 CAF first round Group D winners 14 2025 1st 23 CAF first round Group C winners 14 2025 4th 24 AFC fourth round Group A winners 14 2025 2nd 25 UEFA Group K winners 14 2025 17th 26 AFC fourth round Group B winners 14 2025 7th 27 CAF first round Group F winners 14 2025 4th 28 CAF first round Group B winners 14 2025 4th 29 UEFA Group D winners 13 2025 17th 30 UEFA Group L winners 14 2025 7th 31 UEFA Group F winners 16 2025 9th 32 UEFA Group I winners 16 2025 4th 33 UEFA Group A winners 17 2025 21st 34 UEFA Group G winners 17 2025 12th 35 UEFA Group J winners 18 2025 15th 36 UEFA Group H winners 18 2025 8th 37 UEFA Group B winners 18 2025 13th 38 UEFA Group E winners 18 2025 17th 39 UEFA Group C winners 18 2025 9th 40 CONCACAF Group A winners 18 2025 2nd 41 CONCACAF Group C winners 18 2025 2nd 42 CONCACAF Group B winners 18 2025 1st 43 UEFA play-offs Path B winners 31 2026 12th 44 UEFA play-offs Path C winners 31 2026 4th 45 UEFA play-offs Path D winners 31 2026 10th 46 UEFA play-offs Path A winners 31 2026 2nd 47 Inter-confederation Pathway 1 play-off winners 31 2026 2nd 48 Inter-confederation Pathway 2 play-off winners 31 2026 3rd
This tournament will be the first to include 48 teams, expanded from 32. The United 2026 bid beat a rival bid by Morocco during a final vote at the 68th FIFA Congress in Moscow. It will be the first World Cup since 2002 to be hosted by more than one nation. With its past hosting of the 1970 and 1986 tournaments, Mexico will become the first country to host or co-host the men's World Cup three times. The United States last hosted the men's World Cup in 1994, whereas it will be Canada's first time hosting or co-hosting the men's tournament. The event will also return to its traditional northern summer schedule after the 2022 edition in Qatar was held in November and December.
Qualified teams
The United Bid personnel anticipated that all three host countries would be awarded automatic berths. On August 31, 2022, FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed that six CONCACAF teams will qualify for the World Cup, with Canada, Mexico, and the United States automatically qualifying as hosts. This was confirmed by the FIFA Council on February 14, 2023.Immediately prior to the 67th FIFA Congress, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation in a meeting in Manama, Bahrain. This includes an intercontinental play-off tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup spots.
The six teams in the play-offs will comprise one team from each confederation excluding UEFA, and one additional team from the confederation of the host countries (CONCACAF). Two of the teams will be seeded based on the World Rankings, and they will play-off against the winners of two knockout games between the four unseeded teams for the two FIFA World Cup berths. The four-game tournament is to be played in one or more of the host countries, and will also be used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup. The ratification of slot allocation also gives the OFC a guaranteed berth in the final tournament for the first time: the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament in which all six confederations have at least one guaranteed berth. This will also be the first time since the 2010 edition in which all continents have a team qualified for the World Cup finals.