What time is the 2026 World Cup draw? Date, confirmed pots, new format and how to follow as England discover fate

The 2026 World Cup is getting closer each day and the nations involved are set to find out their group stage opponents this week.

The draw for the greatest football tournament on earth is set to be held as excitement for next summer ramps up.

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This is set to be the biggest World Cup in history with 48 teams competing in North America, meaning we are going to see plenty of new nations with 12 groups of four rather than eight.

It is also the first time three nations will host, with the United States joined by Canada and Mexico in staging matches.

And there is a change to the draw format as well as in the tournament.

World Cup 2026 draw: Date and how to follow

The group stage draw will take place on Friday, December 5.

It is being held at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington DC, and is scheduled to start at 5pm UK time.

talkSPORT is in the USA all week to bring you the proceedings live, while there is also a dedicated World Cup draw blog on talkSPORT.com.

We’ll be live from 4pm with Adrian Durham, Stuart Pearce, Danny Murphy and Charlie Mulgrew reacting as England, Scotland and the rest of the world learn their fate.

Then stick with us for the World Cup After Party, as Andy Goldstein and Darren Bent bring you more reaction live from Washington.

To tune in to talkSPORT through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

Listen via the talkSPORT app here, or on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

Visit talkSPORT BET for all the latest odds and bet boosts.

The draw will be streamed on FIFA’s official website and YouTube channel.

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World Cup 2026 draw: Format

Rather than eight groups of four needing to be filled, there will be 12 in this week’s draw.

Before the draw starts, each team will be placed inside a plastic ball and placed in pots one to four.

Once a side is drawn, a computer places them into a random group taking into account any geographical restrictions.

The restrictions are that no countries from the same confederation can be drawn in a group, bar UEFA, which has a limit of two per group.

By the end of the draw, each country will know their group stage opponents and their knockout stage path.

The three hosts will also be in pot one with Mexico in Group A, Canada in Group B and the USA in Group D.

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World Cup 2026 draw: Confirmed pots

Pot 1

• Canada
• Mexico
• USA
• Spain
• Argentina
• France
• England
• Brazil
• Portugal
• Netherlands
• Belgium
• Germany

Pot 2

• Croatia
• Morocco
• Colombia
• Uruguay
• Switzerland
• Japan
• Senegal
• Iran
• Korea Republic
• Ecuador
• Austria
• Australia

Pot 3

• Norway
• Panama
• Egypt
• Algeria
• Scotland
• Paraguay
• Tunisia
• Cote d’Ivoire
• Uzbekistan
• Qatar
• Saudi Arabia
• South Africa

Pot 4

• Jordan
• Cape Verde
• Ghana
• Curacao
• Haiti
• New Zealand
• UEFA play-off Path A winner
• UEFA play-off Path B winner
• UEFA play-off Path C winner
• UEFA play-off Path D winner
• IC play-off Pathway 1 winner
• IC play-off Pathway 2 winner