Washington, USA – The draw for the 2026 World Cup, which took place today, Friday, at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., resulted in the Arab teams being placed in tough groups.
The draw for the 2026 World Cup took place today at 7:00 PM Cairo time. FIFA President Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump were in attendance.
The next edition of the 2026 World Cup is set to feature 48 teams for the first time in the tournament’s history.
This is also the first time the tournament has been held in three different countries: the United States of America, Mexico and Canada.
The draw placed Morocco in a tough group with Brazil, while Egypt was placed in a relatively balanced group with Belgium.
Meanwhile, the Saudi national team was placed in a tough group that includes Spain, and Algeria was placed in a group that includes Argentina.
The full results of the World Cup draw are as follows:
Group 1: Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, European Play-off Trail 4 (Denmark, North Macedonia, Czech Republic, Republic of Ireland).
Second: Canada, Switzerland, Qatar, the first route of the European extension (Italy, Wales, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina).
Third: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti.
Fourth: United States of America, Australia, Paraguay, Third Route of the European Annex (Türkiye, Romania, Slovakia, Kosovo).
Fifth: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curaçao.
Sixth: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, the second route of the European annex (Ukraine, Sweden, Poland, Albania).
Seventh: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand.
Eighth: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cape Verde.
Ninth: France, Senegal, Norway, the runner-up from World Play-off 2 (Iraq, Bolivia, Suriname).
Tenth: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan
Eleventh: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, the runner-up from World Play-off 1 (Jamaica, Democratic Republic of Congo, New Caledonia).
Twelfth: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana.
42 teams have secured their qualification for the 2026 World Cup, while 6 places remain vacant. Four teams will qualify from the European play-offs, compared to two teams from the global play-offs, which will be held from March 23 to 31 in Mexico.
