Newsletters
Türkiye will host Romania in a single-elimination playoff semifinal on March 26 after FIFA conducted the group stage draw Thursday for the 2026 World Cup, revealing the national team's route to the expanded 48-nation tournament across the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Victory against Romania would send Türkiye to an away final on March 31 against the winner of the Slovakia-Kosovo semifinal. The European Playoff C pathway represents Türkiye's final opportunity to reach the tournament scheduled for June 11 to July 19, 2026. Should the team advance through both playoff rounds, Türkiye would enter the World Cup from Pot 4, the lowest seeding tier in the draw conducted in the U.S. capital.
The playoff structure uses single-match elimination rather than the traditional home-and-away format, raising the stakes for Türkiye's home fixture against Romania. Three other European playoff pathways will simultaneously determine the continent's final four World Cup berths, with Italy facing Northern Ireland or Wales meeting Bosnia and Herzegovina in Playoff A, Ukraine opposing Sweden or Poland taking on Albania in Playoff B, and Denmark meeting North Macedonia or Czech Republic facing Republic of Ireland in Playoff D.
Türkiye's placement in Pot 4 means the team would face top-seeded opposition including host nations or traditional powers should qualification succeed. The draw ceremony allocated teams into 12 groups labeled A through L, with hosts Mexico, Canada and the United States joined in Pot 1 by Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
Pot 4 contains Jordan, Cape Verde Islands, Ghana, Curacao, Haiti, New Zealand and six playoff position holders, including Türkiye's potential slot. Teams from this pot join groups already containing a top seed, a Pot 2 nation ranked between ninth and twentieth globally, and a Pot 3 team. FIFA's seeding system based on world rankings places qualified Türkiye opponents in challenging territory regardless of which group receives the European Playoff C winner.
The confederation balance rules ensure each group contains at least one but no more than two UEFA teams, given Europe's 16 total representatives in the expanded format. No other continental confederation may place multiple teams in the same group, though Europe's larger allocation necessitates the two-team maximum in some groups.
The ceremony placed Mexico in Group A alongside South Korea, South Africa and a Playoff D position. Canada anchors Group B with Switzerland, Qatar and the Playoff A winner. The United States leads Group D with Australia and Paraguay, with the Playoff C winner joining that group. This means Türkiye would face the Americans, Australians and Paraguayans should the team navigate past Romania and then Slovakia or Kosovo.
Other notable group assignments include Spain with Uruguay and Saudi Arabia in Group H, Argentina alongside Austria and Algeria in Group J, and France paired with Senegal and Norway in Group I. Brazil enters Group C with Morocco, Scotland and Haiti, while Germany lands in Group E with Ecuador, Ivory Coast and Curacao.
England and Croatia meet in Group L with Panama, while Portugal faces Colombia and Uzbekistan in Group K. Netherlands joins Japan and Tunisia in Group F, and Belgium encounters Iran and Egypt in Group G.
The 2026 edition represents FIFA's expansion from 32 to 48 teams, with organizers reporting approximately 2 million tickets sold to date. Specific match venues and kickoff times will be announced Saturday following the draw. The tournament spans 39 days across three host nations, with 42 teams having already secured qualification and six spots awaiting playoff resolution in late March.
Two additional intercontinental playoff tournaments will determine the final two World Cup berths, with New Caledonia facing Jamaica or Democratic Republic of Congo competing in one pathway, and Bolivia meeting Suriname or Iraq in the other. These matches occur on the same March schedule as the European playoffs.
FIFA organized the 39 non-host qualified nations into four pots of 12 teams based on world rankings. The seeding system prevents top-ranked Spain and second-ranked Argentina from meeting before the final, as well as third-ranked France and fourth-ranked England.
1 min read
4 min read
