2026 World Cup Draw: Who Will Messi and Ronaldo Face

The draw ceremony for the 2026 World Cup final stage will take place on Friday, December 5. The event will be held at the “Kennedy Center” in Washington, United States, and will begin at 10:00 PM Tashkent time.

The draw will be broadcast live via text on the LiveResult platform. This year’s championship will make history as the first to feature 48 national teams.

The national teams of the United States, Canada, and Mexico have secured automatic qualification as tournament hosts. So far, 39 teams have secured their spots through the qualification rounds.

The remaining six spots will be decided through intercontinental playoffs and UEFA zone matches set to take place in March. Teams have been divided into four pots for the draw.

The first pot includes the host nations—the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The remaining teams have been placed according to FIFA rankings as of November 2025.

Half of the fourth pot is composed of teams that have yet to confirm their places. The fourth pot includes the following: - UEFA Path A Winner (Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina – Italy or Northern Ireland); - UEFA Path B Winner (Ukraine or Sweden – Poland or Albania); - UEFA Path C Winner (Slovakia or Kosovo – Turkey or Romania); - UEFA Path D Winner (Denmark or North Macedonia – Czech Republic or Ireland); - Intercontinental Path 1 Winner (New Caledonia or Jamaica – DR Congo); - Intercontinental Path 2 Winner (Bolivia or Suriname – Iraq).

The groups for the tournament will be organized during the draw. The hosts’ group placements have already been determined: Mexico in Group A, Canada in Group B, and the United States in Group D.

Teams will be drawn sequentially from the pots and placed into groups. FIFA will follow the established rules for forming the championship groups: 1) No group may feature more than one team from the same confederation (except UEFA); 2) Each group must contain at least one and no more than two teams from UEFA; 3) The top two ranked teams in the FIFA rankings, Spain and Argentina, will be placed into different sections of the tournament bracket, as will the third and fourth-ranked teams, France and England.

The draw has garnered significant interest, especially regarding Argentina, the defending world champion, and their potential opponents.

Additionally, attention will be focused on the Portuguese team and Cristiano Ronaldo, who will likely participate in his last World Cup at the age of 41. The German team, which failed to progress from the group stage in the last two World Cups, aims to make a strong comeback this time and advance to the playoffs.

The ceremony will be hosted by former England national team footballer Rio Ferdinand. He will be joined by renowned presenter Samantha Johnson and sports stars Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Aaron Judge, and Shaquille O’Neal. Special guest Eli Manning is also expected to attend.

The matches of the 2026 World Cup will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026. The final match will be held at the "MetLife" Stadium in the United States.

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