How will the 2026 World Cup actually work?

After the excitement of the 2026 World Cup host cities being announced, the next question has been this: how will this all work?

Don’t worry, we’ve got you.

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With the tournament expanded to 48 teams for the first time in history for the 2026 World Cup, the current group stage format and knockout stage format will change. With 11 cities in the U.S., three in Mexico and two in Canada hosting games, there are plenty of logistics to figure out between now and June 2026 when it all kicks off.

Below is everything you need to know on the World Cup format, qualification and how it will all work.

Okay, here is how it will all work as the men’s World Cup shifts from being a 32-team tournament to a 48-team competition.

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It is widely expected that as host nations the USA, Canada and Mexico will all automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup. But that has not been confirmed.

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FIFA have confirmed how the new qualification process will work, as the following formula was voted in at their 67th FIFA congress:

UEFA = 16 teams will qualify CAF = 9.5 (.5 represents one playoff team) AFC = 8.5 CONMBEOL = 6.5 CONCACAF = 6.5 OFC = 1.5

A playoff tournament involving six teams will be held in the U.S., Mexico and Canada to decide the final two teams who reach the World Cup. The two playoff teams with the highest FIFA world ranking will be seeded, while the other four will play a semifinal round to decide who reaches the final to play the two seeded teams.

One playoff team will come from each of the confederations (except UEFA) and there will be an extra team from