Next summer's event will be the first ever 48-team World Cup, with those nations being broken up into 12 groups of four. From there, 104 matches will be played at 16 venues across the U.S., Canada and Mexico to determine a World Cup champion.

Follow the World Cup draw with live updates and find out who the USMNT and soccer's best will be facing during the 2026 tournament. The expanded 2026 World Cup will be the biggest in history featuring 48 countries – up from 32 – battling for soccer's ultimate prize in North America.

The 2026 World Cup draw took place in Washington DC on Friday and we had you covered for everything as it happened.

FIFA modified the draw for 2026 to create separate pathways to the semifinals for the four-highest ranked teams: Spain, Argentina, France and England. That means if Spain and Argentina win their groups, the world's Nos. 1 and 2 teams can not meet prior to the final.

The final draw for the 2026 World Cup is set for Dec. 5, setting the groups and matchups for the tournament coming to North America -including Philly - next summer.

I t's early, 188 days early, before the 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup kicks off at Mexico City Stadium (Estadio Azteca) on June 11, 2026. However, the tournament picture is n

The US men’s soccer team will open June 12, face Australia on June 19 in Seattle and finish group play June 25 at SoFi Stadium against a team to be determined.

The FIFA World Cup draw ceremony begins at Noon ET on Friday, Dec. 5 in Washington, D.C. The 2026 World Cup draw is being held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington. The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

In group F, the Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia and (potentially) Ukraine will be closely contested, but with group L not having any uncertainty in their four qualified nations, you could argue that England’s group is — in theory — the strongest known group of the dozen.