FIFA’s World Cup ticket limits explained
USAT’s Safid Deen breaks down how many World Cup tickets can be purchased at face value for soccer fans.
Sports Pulse
The qualifying process for the 2026 World Cup, a two-plus year saga to winnow 206 nations down to 48 entrants for next summer’s tournament, is coming down to its pressure-packed final stages.
Eighteen of those berths have been snapped up already, with South America and Oceania both completing their qualification processes. Other continents are coming to a dramatic conclusion of their own, with African qualifying a particular focus in this window.
A truly wild finish seems assured in Africa’s Group C, where an overturned result stemming from an ineligible player has left five teams alive with two games to play. Back in March, South Africa defeated Lesotho 2-0, but that match is now in the books as a forfeit after the “Bafana Bafana” fielded the suspended Teboho Mokoena.
That change — which South Africa says it will appeal — shuffled the standings in a major way. South Africa had held the group lead, but now trails Benin on goal difference. Nigeria and Rwanda each trail the top two by three points, while Lesotho is now mathematically back in the mix as well.
Qualifying continues in Europe, Concacaf (that’s North and Central America, along with the Caribbean), and Asia as well. One of the sport’s big powers, England, is closing in on qualification, while surprises like Norway, Slovakia, and North Macedonia lead their groups as the October international window kicks off.
Here’s what to know about where qualifying stands for the 2026 World Cup, including who could secure their berth next:
Who has qualified for World Cup 2026?
The 2026 World Cup will include 48 teams, a huge jump up from the 32 that participated in Qatar 2022. As October’s qualifiers play out, 18 nations have qualified.
Here is a complete list of every country to qualify for the 2026 World Cup as of Tuesday, Oct. 7:
- Host nations: Canada, Mexico, United States
- Asia: Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Uzbekistan
- Africa: Morocco, Tunisia
- Concacaf: None yet
- Europe: None yet
- Oceania: New Zealand
- South America: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
World Cup qualifying: Who could clinch a 2026 spot next?
There aren’t that many rounds of World Cup qualifying left to get through, though each confederation’s schedule and process mean each continent will wrap up at different points.
Africa’s process is furthest along, and there are currently seven teams that could claim a place at the 2026 World Cup with the right results in the coming days:
- Algeria: Group G could be settled on Thursday should Algeria win at Somalia, or if Uganda loses at Botswana. If Uganda keeps the door open, this will come down to a one-game showdown, with Algeria hosting Uganda on the final day of play.
- Cameroon: The “Indomitable Lions” were thrown a lifeline Wednesday, as Libya’s draw with Cape Verde kept Cameroon’s hopes of direct qualification alive. To get in, they’ll need to defeat Angola at home Monday, while also seeing Cape Verde fail to defeat Eswatini.
- Cape Verde: The “Blue Sharks” thought they had qualified, only for an abysmal offside call to rob them of a win on Wednesday that would have sealed their place. Still, a home win over winless Eswatini on Monday would finish the job. However, due to significantly inferior goal difference compared to Cameroon, a draw would leave the door wide open for Cape Verde to end up in the playoff round.
- Egypt: With two games left to play (including a match on Wednesday), Egypt leads Group A by five points over Burkina Faso. One more win, or two draws, or a loss by Burkina Faso would clinch qualification for “the Pharoahs.”
- Ghana: A road win against Central African Republic combined with a stumble from Madagascar at Comoros will see the “Black Stars” claim a spot at what would be the nation’s fifth men’s World Cup.
- Ivory Coast: A win over Seychelles (who have lost all eight of their qualifiers thus far, with a minus-37 goal difference) combined with a loss for Gabon in Friday’s matches would book a World Cup spot for “the Elephants.”
- Senegal: The “Lions of Teranga” could qualify from Group B as early as Friday. Senegal needs a road win over South Sudan combined with DR Congo failing to win at Togo to open an insurmountable lead.
World Cup qualifiers: How many spots for each region?
Here is a complete breakdown of how FIFA divided all 48 berths at the 2026 World Cup:
- Host nations (3): Canada, Mexico and the United States all qualified as soon as they were picked to host the tournament.
- Asia (8): Six Asian countries have qualified. The Asian Football Confederation’s fourth round (which will settle who claims the final two automatic bids) begins on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
- Africa (9): African qualifying sorted 54 countries into nine groups of six (though Eritrea withdrew from Group E before play began). Group winners all qualify, while the best four runners-up will have a pathway to the intercontinental playoff. Two berths have already been claimed.
- Concacaf (3): The region’s third round — featuring three groups of four — began on Thursday, Sept. 4. Group winners qualify directly, while the two best runners-up will enter the intercontinental playoff.
- Europe (16): UEFA qualifying features 54 teams broken up into 12 groups. Group winners qualify for the World Cup, while the second-place finishers (along with the top four teams from the UEFA Nations League who didn’t win their qualifying groups) will enter a playoff for Europe’s final four berths that is set for March 2026.
- Oceania (1): New Zealand has already claimed Oceania’s only guaranteed berth at the 2026 World Cup.
- South America (6): CONMEBOL’s marathon qualifying tournament has concluded, with six teams getting places at the World Cup. A seventh (Bolivia) claimed the region’s spot in the intercontinental playoff.
- Intercontinental playoff (2): New Caledonia and Bolivia have locked in spots in what will be a six-team tournament scheduled for March 2026.
