Idman.biz
The European qualifying stage for the 2026 World Cup is nearing its end, but there are still four vacant spots.
According to Idman.Biz, these spots will be determined in the play-off stage involving 16 teams - 12 teams that finished second in their qualifying groups and four participants who qualified for the play-offs based on the results of the 2024/2025 Nations League (Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, and North Macedonia).
Who is participating in the play-offs and when will the draw take place?
The full list of teams is as follows:
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine, Wales, Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, and North Macedonia.
The draw for the play-off matches will take place on Thursday, November 20th this year at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland. The start is scheduled for 16:00 Baku time. This ceremony will determine the four play-off paths and semi-final pairings.
Format: four paths, four teams
The format of the play-offs is as simple as possible:
16 teams are divided into four paths (A, B, C, D), each containing four national teams. Each path includes two semi-finals and one final. All matches consist of a single leg; there are no return matches.
As a result, the four winners of the finals will secure the last European World Cup spots. The semi-final matches of the play-off paths will take place on March 26, 2026, and the final matches will be held on March 31.
How are the teams divided into pots?
Before the draw, the national teams are ranked according to the FIFA ranking:
The first 12 places are taken by the teams that finished second in the qualifying stage, while the last four places are taken by the teams from the Nations League. After that, they are divided into four pots:
Pot 1 – the four best runners-up from the qualifying groups,
Pot 2 – the next four teams,
Pot 3 – the remaining runners-up,
Pot 4 – the four teams from the Nations League.
How are the pairings formed?
The draw is conducted according to a clear principle:
First, teams are drawn from Pot 1 – they become the home team in the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th semi-finals. Then, teams are drawn from Pot 2 – they become the home team in the 2nd, 4th, 6th, and 8th semi-finals.
After that, the teams from Pot 3 are added as guests to the pairings from Pot 2, and the teams from Pot 4 become opponents for the teams from Pot 1. Thus, two semi-final pairings are formed in each path.
A mini-draw is also held for each path to determine the home team for the final match.
Thus, four mini-tournaments are formed, and in each of them, the winning team will secure a place in the World Cup.
Teymur Tushiyev
