Balls will be drawn again in Zurich on Friday (December 13th, 12:00 p.m.) because: The draw for qualification for the 2026 World Cup is coming up. From the perspective of the German national soccer team, it is a very strange draw. sport.de accompanies the draw live in the stream.
The Football World Cup in Mexico, Canada and the USA casts its shadow ahead. The 2026 XXL edition will include 48 participants, and 45 nations will have to fight for their ticket through World Cup qualification. The three host countries qualified as usual.
But it’s not just the number of participants that is new, the draw will take place on Friday afternoon (from 12:00 p.m. in the stream here). sport.de) has a curiosity: Since the qualification for the tournament organized by FIFA clashes with the final round of the UEFA Nations League, the DFB selection ultimately has a bit of control over who they play against in the World Cup qualifiers.
The World Cup qualification actually begins in March 2025, but Germany and Italy will then be in the quarter-finals of the Nations League. This means that there will not be a “Germany” or “Italy” ticket on Friday, but rather a placeholder. The DFB selection will not start Mission 2026 until June (if they lose against Italy) or September (if they win and take part in the “Final Four” of the Nations League).
DFB selection avoids Spain, France and England
Germany, like eleven other top nations, is now in Pot 1 – thanks to winning the group in the Nations League. She is avoiding European champions Spain as well as the former world champions Italy, France and England or the Netherlands and Portugal.
What is also already certain: If Germany wins the quarter-finals against Italy, they will move into a group of four in the World Cup qualification. If you lose, you will be assigned to a group of five – and would therefore have to play additional games against teams like Malta or San Marino from pot five.
A total of 56 nations are taking part in the European World Cup qualification, and 16 places are up for grabs. The twelve group winners and the twelve runners-up are allowed to go to the World Cup in playoffs for the last four tickets. The four best-placed group winners from the Nations League who are not already qualified will also be in the playoffs – including Germany.
The draw pots for qualifying for the 2026 World Cup
Pot 1: GermanyFrance, Spain, England, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Croatia, Switzerland, Denmark, Austria
Pot 2: Ukraine, Sweden, Turkey, Wales, Hungary, Serbia, Poland, Greece, Romania, Norway, Czech Republic, Slovakia
Pot 3: Scotland, Slovenia, Ireland, Finland, Georgia, Albania, North Macedonia, Iceland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, Montenegro, Israel
Pot 4: Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Belarus, Armenia, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Faroe Islands, Lithuania
Pot 5: Moldova, Malta, Andorra, Gibraltar, Liechtenstein, San Marino