World Cup 2026 Draw: An Overview of the Four Groups and the Group of Death
The draw for the 2026 World Cup group stage took place in Washington DC on December 5th. 48 teams were divided into four seeded groups; a "group of death" scenario could include Argentina, Morocco, Norway, and Italy if the European team makes it through the play-offs.
Argentina, Morocco, Norway, and Italy in the same group: that's the most talked-about scenario ahead of the 2026 World Cup group stage draw in Washington DC on December 5th. With 48 teams, the FIFA ranking system creates highly competitive seeded groups, and the possibility of extremely difficult groups is entirely real.
Time, format, and ranking criteria
48 teams will be divided into four seeded groups (12 teams each) based on the FIFA rankings published in November/December 2025; the latest rankings were updated last Wednesday. From these four groups, the organizers will draw lots to create 12 groups. Six remaining spots will be decided through play-off matches in March of next year.
Based on the current rankings, the groupings have been outlined and there will be no further ranking updates until December 23rd, after the draw takes place. FIFA has not yet confirmed the grouping for the play-off winners; the current assumption is that these spots fall into Group 4.
4 seed groups according to current ranking
Group 1
- USA
- Mexico
- Canada
- Spain
- Hero
- France
- Older brother
- Brazil
- Portugal
- Netherlands
- Belgium
- Virtue
Group 2
- Croatia
- Morocco
- Colombia
- Uruguay
- Switzerland
- Japan
- Senegal
- Iran
- Korea
- Ecuador
- Shirt
- Australia
Group 3
- Norway
- Panama
- Egypt
- Algeria
- Scotland
- Paraguay
- Tunisia
- Ivory Coast
- Uzbekistan
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- South Africa
Group 4
- Jordan
- Cape Verde
- Ghana
- Curacao
- Haiti
- New Zealand
- 4 teams that won the UEFA regional play-offs
- The two teams that won the intercontinental play-offs.
The scenario of a "group of death" has been mentioned.
A typical scenario: Argentina (Group 1), Morocco (Group 2), Norway (Group 3), and Italy (if they qualify through the play-offs, Group 4). The professional weight of this hypothetical group comes from a series of proven foundations:
- Argentina, the reigning world champions, topped the CONMEBOL qualifying round with 12 wins out of 18 matches. Lionel Messi became the region's top scorer with 8 goals and 3 assists in just 12 games.
- Morocco rewrote World Cup history in 2022 by topping a group that included Croatia and Belgium, then defeating Spain and Portugal before being eliminated in the semi-finals by France. Achraf Hakimi was the standout leader.
- Norway boasts Erling Haaland, who leads the UEFA qualifying scoring charts with 16 goals in 8 matches.
- Italy is a four-time world champion team and always a formidable opponent whenever they participate.
Other scenarios and their impact on candidates
In Group 2, Japan previously finished above Spain and Germany in the 2022 World Cup group stage. Group 3 includes Mohamed Salah's Egypt and AFCON champions Ivory Coast, while Group 4 recognizes Ghana – a quarter-finalist from 2010 – as a potential threat.
For seeded teams, the favorable scenario is usually facing newcomers: Uzbekistan (Group 3), Jordan, Cape Verde, Curacao, or Haiti (Group 4). Conversely, the worst-case scenario for USMNT is being drawn into one of the aforementioned "groups of death." England cannot be in that group due to the rule limiting the group to a maximum of two European teams, but a difficult scenario for them could be facing Japan (Group 2), Egypt or Ivory Coast (Group 3), and Italy (Group 4).
With the draw scheduled for December 5th and FIFA rankings only updated again on December 23rd, the seeding groups are essentially "frozen" for the ceremony. What remains to be seen are the play-off results in March of next year and how FIFA determines the groups for the teams that qualify through the play-offs.
