Zurich, Dec 13 (SocialNews.XYZ) The road to the FIFA World Cup 2026 has been mapped out for Europe’s 54 hopefuls at the UEFA preliminary draw in Zurich. A record-high number of 16 places are up for grabs for UEFA representatives at the historic 48-team showpiece in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
Eight of the 12 groups will only have a confirmed Pot 1 team after March’s UEFA Nations League quarter-finals as the winners and losers of the matchups will be placed in different groups. Enthralling encounters are already guaranteed, with England-Serbia, Switzerland-Sweden and Belgium-Wales just a few of the mouth-watering matches in store.
The UEFA qualifying group stage will begin in March 2025 and conclude in November 2025. It will follow a familiar format, with 12 groups of four or five teams, and the group winners securing a place at the FIFA World Cup 2026.
The four remaining places will then be decided in March 2026 in a 16-team UEFA play-off involving the 12 group-stage runners-up and the four best-ranked UEFA Nations League 2024-25 group winners that have neither qualified directly for the FIFA World Cup as group winners nor entered the play-offs already as group runners-up.
FIFA World Cup 2026: UEFA preliminary draw results
Group A: Winner of Italy vs Germany (QF4), Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg
Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo
Group C: Loser of Denmark vs Portugal (QF3), Greece, Scotland, Belarus
Group D: Winner of Croatia vs France (QF2), Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan
Group E: Winner of Netherlands vs Spain (QF1), Turkiye, Georgia, Bulgaria
Group F: Winner of Denmark vs Portugal (QF3), Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Armenia
Group G: Loser of Netherlands vs Spain ( QF1), Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta
Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino
Group I: Loser of Italy vs Germany (QF4), Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova
Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra
Group L: Loser of Croatia vs France (QF2), Czechia, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar
Source: IANS
About Gopi
Gopi Adusumilli is a Programmer. He is the editor of SocialNews.XYZ and President of AGK Fire Inc.
He enjoys designing websites, developing mobile applications and publishing news articles on current events from various authenticated news sources.
When it comes to writing he likes to write about current world politics and Indian Movies. His future plans include developing SocialNews.XYZ into a News website that has no bias or judgment towards any.
He can be reached at gopi@socialnews.xyz