FIFA World Cup 2026 Draw: The official pots, seeding and restrictions explained

FIFA World Cup 2026 Draw: The official explanation

The news story explains the FIFA draw process for the expanded 48-team 2026 World Cup, detailing how teams are sorted into pots and groups with regional restrictions.

As FIFA’s expanded 48-team 2026 World Cup approaches, the organization’s complex tournament draw is once again raising questions from fans trying to understand how teams are placed into groups. 

While the process may seem complicated, the basic structure is far simpler than it appears.

FIFA Pots 1-3

How It Works:

FIFA divides qualifying teams into four tiers, known as "pots," largely based on world rankings. 

Pot 1 includes the strongest teams and the host nations: Canada, Mexico, the United States, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. 

Pot 2 includes additional top-ranked countries: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Japan and Switzerland. 

Pot 3 represents mid-tier nations, while Pot 4 includes lower-ranked teams and nations that have not yet qualified through playoff tournaments.

From there, FIFA creates 12 World Cup groups, labeled A through L, with four teams in each. 

Group selections 

Dig deeper:

The host nations receive special placement and are assigned to predetermined groups rather than being drawn at random. Once the hosts are slotted, the draw begins. 

One team from Pot 1 is placed into each of the 12 groups, followed by one team from Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4. By the end of the process, each group contains exactly one team from each pot.

However, regional restrictions add another layer. 

Regional rules

What we know:

FIFA rules prevent teams from the same region from landing in the same group. A group that already includes a South American team, for example, cannot take a second one. The exception is Europe, which has the largest number of qualifying nations and allows up to two teams in the same group.

Once all 48 teams are drawn, the group stage match-ups are set.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - OCTOBER 02: FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Match Ball at the Home of FIFA on October 02, 2025 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo by Marcio Machado/FIFA)

Advancing to the Knockout Rounds

What's next:

After group play concludes, the top two teams from each group and the eight best third-place finishers will advance to a round of 32 teams. FIFA then uses another structured bracket to ensure the highest-ranked teams do not face each other in the early knockout rounds.