The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, commonly referred to as The Kennedy Center, rests alongside the Potomac River, just a short walk from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Opened in 1971, the venue plays host to performances across the cultural spectrum, from classical music to theater, and is the home of both the National Symphony Orchestra and the Washington National Opera.
Friday, however, the Kennedy Center will host something different.
The draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
So far 42 of the 48 spots in next year’s World Cup have been claimed, and those 42 teams will learn what group they will play in during the opening matches of the 2026 World Cup. While the other six spots in the World Cup will be determined via playoffs set for next March, the 22 teams vying for those last six spots will also know where they would be slotted, should they qualify for the World Cup.
Here is a look at how the draw will work, who the United States could be paired with in their group, and more
How the 2026 World Cup draw works
For the first time, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will have 48 teams in the field, an increase of 16 teams from the previous seven World Cups.
That means the 48-team field will be broken down into 12 groups of four teams each for the group stage.
Prior to the draw, the 42 teams currently in the field (along with the six play-off spots) have been divided into four pots of 12 teams each. Here are the four pots:
POT 1 |
POT 2 |
POT 3 |
POT 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | Croatia | Norway | Jordan |
| Mexico | Morocco | Panama | Cabo Verde |
| United States | Colombia | Egypt | Ghana |
| Spain | Uruguay | Algeria | Curaçao |
| Argentina | Switzerland | Scotland | Haiti |
| France | Japan | Paraguay | New Zealand |
| England | Senegal | Tunisia | UEFA Play-Off A |
| Brazil | IR Iran | Côte d’Ivoire | UEFA Play-Off B |
| Portugal | Korea Republic | Uzbekistan | UEFA Play-Off C |
| Netherlands | Ecuador | Qatar | UEFA Play-Off D |
| Belgium | Austria | Saudi Arabia | FIFA Play-Off 1 |
| Germany | Australia | South Africa | FIFA Play-Off 2 |
Before we dive into the mechanics of the four pots, let’s look specifically at Pot 4, and the six play-off spots. Four of those spots have been reserved for the four winners of the UEFA Play-Offs, while the other two have been reserved for the winners of the two FIFA Play-Offs.
UEFA Play-Off A has these four teams: Italy, Northern Ireland, Wales, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Italy will play Northern Ireland, and Wales will play Bosnia and Herzegovina on March 26 in the semi-finals, and the winners will square off on March 31. The winner of UEFA Play-Off A slides into this spot.
UEFA Play-Off B has these four teams: Ukraine, Sweden, Poland, and Albania. Ukraine plays Sweden while Poland plays Albania on March 26, with the winners squaring off on March 31. The winner of UEFA Play-Off B slides into the above spot in Pot 4.
UEFA Play-Off C has these four teams: Turkey, Romania, Slovakia, and Kosovo. Turkey plays Romania and Slovakia plays Kosovo, with those matches also on March 26, and the winners face each other on March 31 to determine the winner of UEFA Play-Off C.
UEFA Play-Off D has these four teams: Denmark, North Macedonia, Czech Republic, and the Republic of Ireland. Denmark plays North Macedonia while the Czech Republic takes on the Republic of Ireland (semi-final matches on March 26), with the winners squaring off on March 31 to determine the winner of UEFA Play-Off D.
As for the two FIFA Play-Off spots, the six remaining teams were divided into two three-team brackets. The four lowest-ranked teams (Bolivia, Jamaica, New Caledonia, and Suriname) were unseeded while the two highest-ranked teams (Congo DR and Iraq) were seeded and go directly into their respective finals.
For Play-Off 1, New Caledonia will play Jamaica in the semi-final on March 26, with the winner to take on Congo DR on March 31 for a spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and Pot 4. These matches will be played in Guadalajara.
For Play-Off 2, Bolivia will play Suriname in the other semi-final on March 26, with the winner to play Iraq on March 31 for a spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and Pot 4. These matches will be played in Monterrey.
Returning to Friday’s draw, Pot 1 contains the three host nations: Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Then the nine highest-ranked teams in the November 19, 2025 FIFA rankings are placed. Pot 2 has the next 12 highest-ranked teams, Pot 3 has the next 12 highest-ranked teams, and Pot 4 has the next six highest-ranked teams, plus the six play-off spots as described above.
The draw will begin with the three host nations first. Mexico (with a green ball) will be drawn into Group A as Team 1, Canada (with a red ball) will be drawn into Group B as Team 1, and the United States (with a blue ball) will be drawn into Group D as Team 1.
From there, the nine remaining teams in Pot 1 will be drawn, filling out the nine remaining Team 1 slots in Groups C, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, and L.
What does that mean for the United States? They will not be placed into a group with any of the nine highest-ranked teams in the latest FIFA rankings. The highest-ranked team they will be paired with will come from Pot 2 which is led by Croatia, currently ranked No. 10 in the world.
The draw will then continue by drawing all the team from Pot 2 and placing them, followed by all the teams from Pot 3, and finally the teams from Pot 4 (including the six Play-Off slots).
While the nine highest-ranked teams will be placed as Team 1 in their respective groups, as teams from Pots 2, 3, and 4 are drawn they will be placed via a “predetermined pattern,” depending on which pot they come from. Courtesy of the FIFA website, this is a look at how that will unfold:
As you can see, four Pot 2 teams will become Team 2 in their respective groups, four Pot 2 teams will become Team 3, and the other four Pot 2 teams will become Team 4. That also applies for Pot 3 and Pot 4.
FIFA has also tweaked how the top four teams will be placed with an eye towards competitive balance. According to the procedures, “two separate pathways to the semi-finals have been established.” When the highest-ranked team (Spain) is drawn and placed, the second highest-ranked team (Argentina) will be drawn and placed on the opposite pathway. That will also apply to No. 3 France, and No. 4 England.
“The highest-ranked team and the second highest-ranked team will be randomly drawn into groups in opposite pathways, and the same principle will also apply to the third and fourth highest-ranked teams. This will ensure that, should they win their groups, the two highest-ranked teams would not meet before the final,“ noted FIFA.
Again, courtesy of FIFA this is a look at the pathways, with Pathway 1 on the left and Pathway 2 on the right:
Something else to note is that given the expansion of the field to 48 teams, that means some third-place finishers will advance to the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. For example, if you look to the bottom left of the above bracket and Match 81, the Winner of Group D will face a third-place team from either Group B, Group E, Group F, Group I, or Group J.
The United States, remember, is Team 1 in Group D.
Let’s close this out with a deeper dive into what might lie ahead for the United States.
Who could be in Group D with the US
Let’s talk best- and worst-case scenarios for the United States.
As noted above, the United States is slotted in as Team 1 in Group D. As per the “predetermined pattern” outlined by FIFA, Team 2 will come from Pot 3, Team 3 from Pot 2, and Team 4 from Pot 4.
After all the Pot 1 teams are drawn and placed, the draw will shift to Pot 2. These are the next 12 teams in the FIFA rankings.
The best-case scenario for the United States? There is a world where they are the highest-ranked team in Group D.
As of the November 19 FIFA rankings — which will govern Friday’s draw — the United States is ranked 14th in the world. If the United States were not one of the host nations, they would be in Pot 2 for Friday’s draw. Croatia is the highest-ranked team in Pot 2, ranked No. 10 in the world, followed by Morocco at 11, and Colombia at 13. Italy is ranked No. 12, but remember they are in UEFA Play-Off A and still need to win two matches just to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
Then there is the United States at No. 14.
So it will be key to watch how Pot 2 unfolds. If the United States avoids Croatia, Morocco, and Colombia, they might just be the top-ranked team in Group D, unless Group D is where the winner of UEFA Play-Off A lands, which could be No. 12 Italy.
Our friends at Stars and Stripes FC outlined what they believe is the best-case scenario for the United States, and that is a draw with Austria (No. 24) out of Pot 2, Uzbekistan (No. 50) out of Pot 3, and New Zealand (No. 86) out of Pot 4. That would give the United States two teams near the bottom of their respective pots (Austria and New Zealand) and a team from Uzbekistan making their World Cup debut. Those two nations last met in a friendly back in 2023, which the United States won 3-0.
However, there is also a world where the United States ends up in the Group of Death.
That would be, as our friends at Stars and Stripes FC illustrate, a world where Morocco is the team that lands in Group D out of Pot 2. Morocco is ranked No. 11 (ahead of the United States), and while Croatia is ranked higher, there can only be two UEFA teams in a given group. Then from Pot 3 drop in Norway (ranked No. 29 in the world and the highest-ranked team in Pot 3) and to add insult to injury, drop in the winner of UEFA Play-Off A, which could just be No. 12 Italy.
If you have some time on your hands, you can play around with this World Cup Draw Simulator.
Or you can wait for the real thing on Friday.
