The competition for the 2026 North and Central American World Cup will begin in September, starting with the South American qualifiers. The number of participating countries has significantly increased from 32 to 48, and the number of matches has also increased from 64 to 104. Even countries that have never participated in competitions seem to have great potential.
According to FIFA, the opening match of the North and Central American World Cup qualifiers will take place on September 7th in the South American qualifiers between Paraguay and Peru.
On the same day, defending champions of the Qatar Cup, Argentina, will make their debut at home against Ecuador. The quota for South America will be expanded from the current 4+intercontinental playoffs to 1 6+intercontinental playoff spot.
Next, the first round of the Asian qualifiers will start in October this year, and the Japanese national team will participate in the second round starting in November.
The winner of the first round of the preliminary round between Myanmar and Macau will play at home in the first game. The number of participants in the Asian region will significantly increase from 4+1 playoff spots to 8+1 playoff spots. The African qualifiers will also start in November this year.
The number of participating countries will increase from the current 5 spots to 9+1 playoff spots. The North America, Central America, and Caribbean region qualifiers will begin in March next year. The host countries, the United States, Canada, and Mexico, have already qualified for the competition, while other countries will compete for three spots and two intercontinental playoff spots.
At present, the playoff quota is 3+1, so the number of participating countries will essentially increase by 3.5. The Oceania qualifiers will start in September next year. At present, there is only one spot in the intercontinental playoffs, but for the first time in history, they will secure a direct spot in this tournament and compete for a 1+playoff spot. The European qualifiers will be held no later than March 2025.
The number of spots will slightly increase from 13 to 16. In the intercontinental playoffs, a total of six countries will compete for two seats, including two countries from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, as well as representatives from Asia, Africa, South America, and Oceania.
