In qualifying for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico, the German national football team will either face Slovakia, Northern Ireland and Luxembourg in Group A or Norway, Israel, Estonia and Moldova in Group I.
This was the result of the draw for the European qualifying groups on Friday at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.
Which group the DFB team competes in depends on the result of the quarter-final duel in the Nations League against Italy in March.
The smaller Group A would probably be much more attractive. There, Germany would have two fewer games on the program in qualifying.
Curiosity in the qualifying draw for the World Cup
The associations have come up with a very special curiosity for the draw. This means that national coach Julian Nagelsmann and the DFB team can “choose” after the draw who they want to compete against – or who they want to avoid.
What sounds like a distortion of competition is a consequence of the creation of new competitions and their integration with old ones. Because space had to be made in the tight schedule for the quarter-finals of the Nations League, which was held for the first time, World Cup qualifying for the top teams does not begin until September. The rest has to be done in March and June, when the top teams are still playing for the crown in the Nations League.
For the DFB selection, this means: The outcome of their quarter-final duel with Italy in March will decide who they have to face in the World Cup qualifiers – and when and how many opponents they will have there.
Twelve groups were drawn from five pots, six with four and six with five nations. The game is played in a return game. The group winners qualify directly for the 2026 finals, the runners-up play in the playoffs.
The World Cup will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026 in Canada, Mexico and the USA.