Africa-Press – Eritrea. With the 2026 World Cup fast approaching, FIFA has officially unveiled the four pots for the December 5 draw. Forty-two nations have already booked their place for the tournament, which will take place from June 11 to July 18 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Alongside the three host nations in Pot 1, heavyweights like Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany also feature among the top seeds. FIFA has also introduced new restrictions to ensure balance: the four highest-ranked nations—Spain, Argentina, France, and England—will be distributed so they cannot meet before the final if they win their groups. Meanwhile, Morocco appears in Pot 2, Algeria in Pot 3, and all play-off winners will enter directly into Pot 4.
The second pot gathers high-level teams such as Croatia, Colombia, Uruguay, Japan, Senegal, and South Korea, while Pot 3 includes Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, and Qatar. Pot 4 is composed of Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, and the six play-off winners that will emerge from European and intercontinental qualifiers next March.
With less than 200 days remaining until the first-ever 48-team World Cup, the stakes are rising as nations await their group-stage opponents. The draw will take place in Washington, D.C., and no group may feature two teams from the same confederation—except Europe, which may have up to two.
2026 World Cup Draw Pots
Pot 1: Canada, Mexico, United States, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany
Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia
Pot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, South Africa
Pot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, winners of European Play-offs A, B, C, and D, winners of FIFA Play-off Tournaments 1 and 2.
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