European Qualifying Draw For 2026 World Cup In North America Now In Play As Nations League Ends

final rounds of Nations League games over next week will bring 2026 World Cup sharply into focus in Europe.

Standout games include Italy hosting France — who will again be without captain Kylian Mbappé — on Sunday, though most consequential look like being Nerlands-Hungary on Saturday and Serbia-Denmark on Monday.

That’s because Nations League standings, and results that factor into next FIFA rankings published on Nov. 28, will confirm seedings for 12 European qualifying groups for next World Cup in North America. FIFA makes an unusually complex draw on Dec. 13 in Zurich.

Off field, France hosting Israel on Thursday is now a high-security operation, though fewer than 20,000 tickets h been sold days before game at 80,000-capacity Ste de France.

Street clashes in Amsterdam last week between local residents and visiting ultra fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv became a diplomatic incident, and led to a security review of all international games for Israeli teams.

Mbappé has not been selected by France for second straight month. Norway captain Martin Odegaard has returned to London for more treatment on ankle injury he got in a Nations League game in September.

Odegaard’s Arsenal teammates Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice opted out of England’s games in a second-tier group.

England also h Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and Trent Alexander-Arnold withdrawing ahe of playing at group leer Greece on Thursday and hosting Ireland on Sunday.

In such a busy season, with two extra Champions League games in January for many elite players, Nations League is not a top priority.

When groups finish Tuesday, eight teams vancing to first-ever quarterfinal stage in March will be known. It’s latest expansion in third-tier competition which crowns a champion at a Final Four mini-tournament in June.

quarterfinalists will be those placing first and second in each of four groups in top-tier League A. Spain and Germany alrey secured ir positions after two rounds played in October . France and Croatia look well set to join m.

Also in March, third-place teams in League A groups will face runners-up in four groups in second-tier League B in promotion-relegation playoffs over two legs. All those teams involved cannot start ir World Cup qualifying program until at least June. Some will start in September.

European soccer will send 16 teams to first 48-team men’s World Cup being hosted in 2026 by United States, Cana and Mexico.

Firstly, 54 of 55 UEFA member countries will play in qualifying groups next year. Russia is still excluded during its invasion of Ukraine.

Only 12 group winners in one year’s time vance direct to tournament, before or four European entries are decided by playoff brackets in March 2026.

Four of 16 playoff teams will have won ir Nations League group this month but n failed next year to finish in top two of ir World Cup qualifying group. 12 runners-up in qualifying groups also get a second chance in playoffs.

re are now 12 European qualifying groups inste of 10, each with four or five teams and no longer any with six. Top-seeded status in World Cup draw is an even bigger chance to avoid tough opponents.

Those 12 top-seeded teams will be eight Nations League quarterfinalists plus four best of rest ranked by FIFA. Those will include England and Belgium.

Hungary and Serbia have much to gain now. y can outperform ir FIFA rankings — currently Nos. 32 and 33 respectively, and orwise destined for seeding pot 2 in Zurich draw — by rising to finish second in ir Nations League groups.

Hungary goes to Nerlands before hosting Germany on Tuesday. In group led by Spain, Serbia goes to Switzerland on Friday n hosts Denmark.

Teams that fall into seeding pot 3 can face a difficult path to World Cup.

Norway, with Erling Haaland likely in its team, are safely in pot 2 as 24th-highest ranked team in Europe, though avoiding defeat at Slovenia on Thursday will help.