Published On 3/12/2025
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Last update: 13:20 (Mecca time)
In a historic moment that will reshape the future of world football, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) is preparing to launch an unprecedented edition of the World Cup, with the draw taking place on Friday in Washington, DC, declaring the beginning of a new era of the largest tournament in the world.
With the expansion of the tournament, the increase in the number of teams, and the move to a three-continent organization, the 2026 World Cup is entering a stage of “organizational revolution” that will change everything we knew about the World Cup.
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A tournament in 3 countries and 48 teams
For the first time, 48 teams will participate in the World Cup, instead of 32 as was the case since 1998. This edition will also be the first to be hosted by three countries at the same time: the United States, Mexico and Canada, in a move aimed at expanding the scope of the tournament and enhancing its audience around the world.
Next Friday’s World Cup draw pots are set 🌎 pic.twitter.com/C8UCcvP5Ap
— B/R Football (@brfootball) November 25, 2025
This expansion does not only mean an increase in the number of participants, but a complete restructuring of the system, dates, and qualification rules, making the 2026 World Cup longer and more comprehensive than any previous version.
5 weeks of competition… and new groups
The tournament extends from June 11 to July 19, 2026, that is, for a full 5 weeks.
After long discussions within FIFA regarding the appropriate system, the decision was made to maintain the traditional groups of 4 teams despite the increase, bringing the number of groups to 12 groups from “A” to “L” instead of only 8 groups.
Unprecedented transit system
The winner and runner-up from each group will advance to the next round, in addition to the 8 best third-placed teams, bringing the number of qualifiers to 32 teams in the first edition that includes the round of 32.
This change imposes new competitive requirements, and for a team to become world champion, it will now need to play 8 matches instead of only 7 previously.
A new mechanism in the playoffs
FIFA introduced a new system in the transit phase, based on what is known as “preferred pairs,” which is a procedure that prevents some of the major powers from meeting early in the tournament if they top their groups among those pairs: Spain x Argentina.
If both sides of the pair top their groups, each of them will be placed in a different part of the playoff table, ensuring that they do not meet before the advanced stages.
With all these changes, it seems clear that the 2026 World Cup will not be just an expanded edition, but rather a historical turning point in the form of the game, its organization, and the level of competition in it. The expansion of the number of teams, the multiplicity of host countries, and the increase in elimination stages are all elements that will put the teams facing completely different challenges than previous editions.