2026 World Cup Draw: How to Watch? How Does It Work? What Are Pots?

Your country has qualified for the 2026 World Cup. You're excited about seeing your nation play with the best of the best. But the biggest question is, how will each team know their opponents?

The biggest edition ever of the world's marquee sporting event is next summer, running from June 11 through July 19, 2026.

We know that 42 of the 48 teams are in. Six more teams will qualify in March 2026. But the next phase will be dividing up all 48 spots into 12 groups of four. From there, it'll be about reaching the knockout stage with an eye on the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. 

So let's answer some questions about how today's draw will work. 

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The draw will be held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 5 at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT and will air live on FOX. The draw will be streamed on FOX One, FOXSports.com and the FOX Sports App.

The 48 participating teams (or qualifying slots) will be placed into "pots" based on criteria such as FIFA rankings and confederation constraints. We already know 42 of those 48 teams ahead of the draw. The other six teams will be known by March 2026.

Each of the four pots will have 12 teams (with placeholders for those six March teams). And each group will therefore have one team from each pot. 

The three host nations (Canada, Mexico, and the United States) are already placed into specific groups to ensure their matches occur in their home country.

Teams from the same qualification zone — except for the European confederation (UEFA) — cannot be drawn into the same group. So don't expect two South American teams (CONMEBOL), for