Thomas Tuchel’s side have dominated Group K, earning five wins from five games without conceding a goal, and now Serbia’s defeat to Albania mean England are just a win away from sealing their spot in North America.
England head to Latvia on Tuesday October 14 and can qualify for next summer’s tournament with a win. A draw won’t be enough for the Three Lions to qualify yet.
Scotland have taken 10 points from their first four matches in a tight Group C after beating Belarus, and they are now guaranteed a play-off place after Denmark beat Greece.
With the final qualifiers against Greece and Denmark to come next month, Scotland, who are second in Group C on goal difference, know two wins from their final two games will take them to next summer’s World Cup. However, they are now on a collision course with the Danes for top spot, with the possibility of a mouth-watering winner-takes-all game at Hampden on November 18.
Qualification from Group J is set to go down to the wire with leaders North Macedonia a point above Belgium and two clear of Wales, who face Belgium on Monday. Both Belgium and Wales have played a game less than North Macedonia. Wales’ final game is against North Macedonia in November, when they’ll also play Liechtenstein.
Northern Ireland are still in contention to qualify from Group A, and their 2-0 win over Slovakia on Friday sets up a mouth-watering clash with Germany – all three nations are level on six points after three games – at Windsor Park on Monday night.
Republic of Ireland have it all to do after losing 1-0 to Portugal late on in Lisbon. They are bottom of Group F, three points off second-placed Hungary, and need to beat Armenia on Tuesday to stand any chance of a play-off spot.
Scroll down for the full fixture list for European qualifying, as well as all you need to know about how qualification works.
World Cup 2026 European qualifiers schedule
Group-stage match dates: October 9-14 and November 13-18, 2025
Play-off match dates: March 26-31 2026
Final tournament dates: June 11 to July 19 2026
2026 World Cup qualifying groups
Group A: Germany, Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg
Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo
Group C: Denmark, Greece, Scotland, Belarus
Group D: France, Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan
Group E: Spain, Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria
Group F: Portugal, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Armenia
Group G: Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta
Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino
Group I: Italy, Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova
Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra
Group L: Croatia, Czech Republic, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar
How does European World Cup qualifying work?
A total of 16 European nations will compete at the 48-team FIFA men’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
European qualifiers begin in March 2025, with the play-offs in March 2026.
Teams were drawn into 12 groups of four and five teams, with the groups involving teams in UEFA Nations League quarter-final action finalised after those ties in March, with the four winners placed in groups of four.
Qualifying begins in March, with teams drawn in groups of four starting their campaigns in September. They will play traditional home-and-away matches and “all play all” principles retained. All groups conclude in November 2025.
How many European teams qualify for the 2026 World Cup?
In total, 16 UEFA nations will qualify for the 2026 World Cup. The 12 group winners qualify directly for the World Cup; the four remaining berths are determined by play-offs involving the 12 group runners-up.
How do play-offs for the 2026 World Cup work?
The 12 group runners-up will participate in the play-offs, along with the four best-ranked group winners of the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League that did not finish their European Qualifiers group stage in first or second place.
The 16 teams who enter the play-offs will be drawn into four play-off paths, with four teams in each. Play-off matches will be played in single-leg semi-finals followed by single-leg finals within the same international window in March 2026.
When and where is the 2026 World Cup?
The 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup takes place from June 11 to July 19, 2026.
The tournament will take place across 16 cities in three North American countries: the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is the first time a World Cup has been hosted by three nations.
The last time North America hosted the tournament was in 1994, when Brazil triumphed after beating Italy on penalties.
An expanded World Cup will feature 48 teams – 16 more than in Qatar 2022 – and take place across three host nations for the first time.
World Cup 2026 schedule
Group stage: June 11-27
Round of 32: June 28 to July 3
Round of 16: July 4-7
Quarter-finals: July 9-11
Semi-finals: July 14-15
Third-place play-off (‘Bronze final’): July 18
Final: July 19
2026 World Cup venues – host cities and stadiums
USA
Dallas Stadium – Arlington, Texas (capacity 94,000)
New York New Jersey Stadium – East Rutherford, New Jersey (capacity 82,500)
Atlanta Stadium – Atlanta, Georgia (capacity 75,000)
Kansas City Stadium – Kansas City, Missouri (73,000)
Houston Stadium – Houston, Texas (capacity 72,000)
San Francisco Bay Area Stadium – Santa Clara, California (71,000)
Los Angeles Stadium – Inglewood, California (70,000)
Philadelphia Stadium – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (69,000)
Seattle Stadium – Seattle, Washington (capacity 69,000)
Boston Stadium – Foxborough, Massachusetts (65,000)
Miami Stadium – Miami Gardens, Florida (capacity 65,000)
Canada
Toronto Stadium – Toronto (capacity: 45,000)
BC Place Vancouver – Vancouver (capacity 54,000)
Mexico
Estadio Azteca Mexico City – Mexico City (capacity 83,000) Estadio Monterrey – Guadalupe (capacity 53,500) Estadio Guadalajara – Zapopan (capacity 48,000)
