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The German national team has safely booked its ticket for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico and the field of participants is almost complete – 42 of the 48 teams for the XXL tournament have been confirmed. The remaining six nations will not be determined until March during the playoffs. The twelve preliminary round groups will still be drawn in Washington on December 5th (6 p.m./CET). How are the draw pots made up, which opponents can the DFB team now face – and where? Transfermarkt provides an overview.
When will the 2026 World Cup take place? And what changes?
Three and a half years after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a successor to the reigning defending champion Argentina is being sought. The World Cup will be the biggest final tournament in its history from June 11th to July 19th. With 48 instead of the previous 32 nations, the most participants have ever taken part in a World Cup. The number of matches increases from 64 to 104. For the first time there are also three hosts: the USA, Canada and Mexico. The game is played in twelve groups of four teams, after which the knockout system continues. The round of 16 will take place from June 28th to July 3rd, the round of 16 from July 4th to July 7th, and the quarterfinals from July 9th to July 11th, 2026. The semi-finals will take place on July 14th/15th, the final will take place on July 19th in New Jersey (USA).
When and where will the draw for the 2026 World Cup take place?
On Friday, December 5, 2025, the focus of the football world will turn to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. All group stage games will be drawn there. The US National Cultural Center welcomes millions of visitors each year to more than 2,000 events, concerts and exhibitions. The host teams are already seeded: Mexico in position A1, Canada in B1 and the USA in D1. After December 5th, not only all group opponents are known, but also the respective venues. The participating World Cup teams will be divided into four draw pots (with twelve teams each) according to their FIFA world rankings.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said: “We are pleased to host the highly anticipated FIFA World Cup draw at a venue considered the cultural and entertainment center of the United States: the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. The draw represents a key milestone in the tournament and continues the impressive journey towards the greatest sporting event of all time.”
When and where can you watch the World Cup draw exactly?
The draw begins at 12:00 p.m. local time, i.e. 6:00 p.m. Central European Time (CET). The event will be broadcast in the three host countries and worldwide via FIFA’s official media partners. More information will follow soon.
Who has definitely qualified for the World Cup finals?
Qualification is still ongoing in all six confederations. So far, 42 out of 48 nations have definitely taken part.
Co-hosts: Canada, Mexico, USA
UEFA (Europe): England, Germany, Scotland, France, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, Croatia, Switzerland, Austria
AFC (Asia): Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan
CAF (Africa): Algeria, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia, Jordan
CONMEBOL (South America): Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay, Mexico, Haiti, Panama, Curaçao
OFC (Oceania): New Zealand, Australia
At the time of the draw, only 42 of 48 teams will have qualified. The remaining six tickets will be awarded in playoff games in March 2026. Here you can find all information about the World Cup playoffs and the 16 participating teams.
What is the composition of the participants for the 2026 World Cup?
AFC (Asia): 8 direct qualifiers and 1 playoff participant
CAF (Africa): 9 direct qualifiers and 1 playoff participant
CONCACAF (North and Central America and the Caribbean): 6 direct qualifiers and 2 playoff participants
CONMEBOL (South America): 6 direct qualifiers and 1 playoff participant
OFC (Oceania): 1 direct qualifier team and 1 playoff participant
UEFA (Europe): 16 direct qualifiers*
*There are also playoffs within UEFA qualification; However, the winners are officially considered direct qualifiers because there are also cross-confederation playoffs.
Where will the World Cup take place?
Canada: Toronto, Vancouver
Mexico: Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey
USA: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle
National coach Nagelsmann and Co. will know about the DFB team’s venues after December 5th. The choice of quarters in North America depends on the group into which they are drawn. Groups A, B and D are not possible for Germany because the hosts are already seeded there.
Which draw pot is the German national team in?
After the 6-0 gala against Slovakia, Germany is in the best pot with the World Cup favorites Argentina, Spain and France as well as record champions Brazil. Duels with these teams are not possible in the preliminary round. This also applies to England, Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal as well as the three hosts USA, Mexico and Canada.
The question remains what FIFA will do with the six playoff placeholders. Until now, experts assumed that these would automatically be placed in pot four. But now there seems to be new considerations about using the best team on the playoff path and their world ranking position. This would, for example, ensure that Italy could potentially end up not in pot four, but in pot two for the World Cup draw.
What could German groups look like at the 2026 World Cup?
It is clear that a maximum of one of the three opponents can come from Europe. All other confederations can only be represented once per group. As things stand, a group with Colombia, Norway including star striker Erling Haaland and South Africa would be one of the most difficult things the DFB team could expect in the group phase. The two World Cup semi-finalists Morocco and Croatia as well as the former title holders Uruguay could also be unpleasant opponents from pot two.
A meeting with Italy is possible if the four-time world champion buys the ticket in March. If Nagelsmann and his team are lucky, it could also be a preliminary group with Iran, Panama and New Zealand. There are also numerous outsiders in draw pot four, such as Jordan, Haiti and Curaçao.