What Teams Have Qualified For The 2026 World Cup, What Is Italy’s Route To The Finals And When Is The Draw?

With the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw just over six weeks away, Italy will want to make sure they don’t miss out again. 

The Azzurri famously crashed out in the play-offs for the 2018 and 2022 editions. The latter was a shock defeat to North Macedonia and the former a more digestible loss to Sweden.

However, both defeats had huge ramifications on Italian soccer and highlighted the underlying issues the nazionale faced. Bad management, poor players and a lack of passion all contributed to Italy’s downfall.

For a third successive qualifying campaign, it appears the four-time winners will face a nail biting conclusion to confirm their place in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

With that said, what teams have already progressed, what is the Azzurri’s most likely route and when will the draw be made for the greatest soccer show on earth?

💚🤍❤️ pic.twitter.com/x9khBjR1sM

— Italy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@Azzurri_En) October 11, 2025

Have Italy Qualified For The 2026 FIFA World Cup?

As it stands, Italy has not yet qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Azzurri can technically still top Group I but they’ll need a minor miracle to do so.

Norway leads the way having won all six of their qualifiers so far. Something that sits in the Scandinavians favor is their huge goal difference.

It currently stands at +26 compared to Italy’s +10. The latter’s figure increased slightly with victory over Israel on MD6. However, even beating the Norwegians next month will surely not be enough to top the group.

Therefore, a dreaded and third consecutive play-off is the most likely avenue for Gennaro Gattuso. Should he fail to progress, the next Italy manager odds have already installed Roberto Mancini as the favorite to replace Gattuso.

What Nations Have Qualified For The 2026 FIFA World Cup?

With Italy not likely to find out their potential inclusion until March 2026, a total of 28 nations have already booked their spot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The USMNT, Mexico and Canada qualify as co-hosts. Their is also room for debutants Cape Verde, Jordan and Fabio Cannavaro’s Uzbekistan.

Australia, Iran, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Tunisia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, England, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa, Ivory Coast and Uruguay will also be heading to the land of opportunity. And of course, Lionel Messi’s and current holders Argentina.

• 🇩🇿 Algeria
• 🇦🇷 Argentina
• 🇦🇺 Australia
• 🇧🇷 Brazil
• 🇨🇦 Canada (co-hosts)
• 🇨🇻 Cape Verde
• 🇨🇴 Colombia
• 🇪🇨 Ecuador
• 🇪🇬 Egypt
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England
• 🇬🇭 Ghana
• 🇮🇷 Iran
• 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast
• 🇯🇵 Japan
• 🇯🇴 Jordan
• 🇲🇽 Mexico (co-hosts)
• 🇲🇦 Morocco
• 🇳🇿 New Zealand
• 🇵🇾 Paraguay
• 🇶🇦 Qatar
• 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
• 🇸🇳 Senegal
• 🇿🇦 South Africa
• 🇰🇷 South Korea
• 🇹🇳 Tunisia
• 🇺🇾 Uruguay
• 🇺🇸 USA (co-hosts)
• 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

When Is the 2026 FIFA World Cup Draw?

The 2026 FIFA World Cup draw will take place at midday (ET) on Friday, December 5 at the Kennedy Center — Washington, D.C. US President Trump is expected to be in attendance.

Soccer supporters can tune in via FIFA’s official YouTube channel. The opening game of the tournament on June 11 will be played at Mexico City’s iconic Azteca Stadium.

That was the destination of Brazil’s legendary 1970 World Cup win inspired by the late Pele. 16 years later, Argentina’s Maradona would follow in his footsteps and lead La Albiceleste to glory in a thrilling 3-2 final victory against West Germany.

On July 19, the 2026 finale will be determined at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. For the 1994 tournament – which the USA hosted – Italy lost out to Brazil on penalties at the Rose Bowl, Calafornia.

How Will The Expanded FIFA World Cup Work?

For the first time in FIFA World Cup history, the tournament will be played with 48 participants. This is an increase of 16 nations from the typical 32.

Originally, the 2026 edition was mooted to be played with 16 groups of three teams. However, FIFA opted to stick with four nations in each group – whereby they’ll be 12 instead of eight – to protect players and maintain sporting integrity.

In terms of qualification to the knockouts, the top two nations from each group will automatically progress. Then the eight best third placed teams will also go through.

Instead of the usual round of 16, a round of 32 will be introduced and it will eventually whittle down to the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final. As normal, the two losing semi-finalists will contest the third-placed play-off.

2026 FIFA World Cup Venues

For the first time in FIFA World Cup history, three nations will jointly co-host the greatest soccer show on earth. The USA will host the bulk of the matches – 78 in total.

Canada and Mexico will host 13 each throughout the tournament. The most notable stadia include the MetLife Stadium, the Azteca Stadium, and the AT&T Stadium.

In total, 16 different venues have been selected. Scroll down for the full list of stadiums complete with location and capacity.

• 🇨🇦 Toronto – BMO Field – 28,180 (expandable to 45,736)
• 🇨🇦 Vancouver – BC Place – 54,500
• 🇲🇽 Guadalajara – Estadio Akron – 49,813
• 🇲🇽 Mexico Stadium – Azteca – 87,523
• 🇲🇽 Monterrey – Estadio BBVA – 53,500
• 🇺🇸 Atlanta – Mercedes-Benz Stadium – 71,000 (expandable to 83,000)
• 🇺🇸 Boston – Gillette Stadium – 64,628
• 🇺🇸 Dallas – AT&T Stadium – 80,000 (expandable to 105,000)
• 🇺🇸 Houston – NRG Stadium – 72,220 (expandable to 80,000)
• 🇺🇸 Kansas City – Arrowhead Stadium – 76,416
• 🇺🇸 Los Angeles – SoFi Stadium – 70,240
• 🇺🇸 Miami – Hard Rock Stadium – 64,767
• 🇺🇸 New York/New Jersey – MetLife Stadium – 82,500
• 🇺🇸 Philadelphia – Lincoln Financial Field – 67,594
• 🇺🇸 San Francisco Bay Area – Levi’s Stadium – 68,500
• 🇺🇸 Seattle – Lumen Field – 68,740 (expandable to 72,000)