When is the 2026 World Cup raffle? Date, format and groups

The Colombian midfielder #10, James Rodríguez, celebrates the first goal of his team during the match of the South American Qualifiers to the 2026 World Cup between Colombia and Bolivia at the Roberto Meléndez Metropolitan Stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia, on September 4, 2025.

Photo: AFP – Luis Acosta

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Colombia Live a party after sealing its classification to 2026. With 3-0 over Bolivia in the Metropolitan of Barranquillathe tricolor reached 25 points and secured her presence at the World Cup event that will be played between the June 11 and July 19, 2026 In the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Now, attention focuses on 2026 World Cup raffle that will be held on Friday, December 5, 2025in the prestigious Kennedy Center the Washington DC At 11:00 am (Colombian time). There the Initial phase groupswith the participation of 48 selections.

According to FIFA, the event will bring together representatives of teams, ambassadors, fans of the headquarters and international media. Will be broadcast live worldwide and will mark the countdown to the World Cup.

“We are very excited to celebrate the most anticipated raffle in the history of the FIFA World Cup at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC,” he said Gianni Infantinopresident of FIFA.

How will the groups be made up of?

In the draw, the groups of the group stage will be defined. Host countries already have an insured position:

Mexico (A1)
Canada (B1)
United States (D1)

In December they will be confirmed 42 teamswhile the last six quotas will be defined by repechages:

Two intercontinental places (Five Confederations will compete in March 2026).
Four European places in a repechage organized by UEFA.

The selections already classified

In addition to the three hosts, they are already classified:

CONMEBOL: Argentina (current champion), Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay, Colombia, Paraguay.
AFC (Asia): Japan, Iran, Uzbekistan (debutante), South Korea, Jordan (debutante), Australia.
OFC (Oceania): New Zealand.

A historic World Cup: format and figures

The Twenty -third edition of the World Cup will have 48 teams16 more than in previous editions. The new format includes:

12 groups of four teams each.
The finalists will play Eight gamesthen now the sixteenth final will be played.
They will be played 104 meetings40 more than in Qatar 2022.