FIFA World Cup '26: News & Analysis

Makes sense. There are already some good test events for the USA so why not have one set of playoffs in Mexico and the other in Canada.

 

Good to know they have fixed the issue. Miami and Santa Clara would be the best options then if that is the case. Miami with a slight edge in my mind though due to aforementioned factors along with their grass usually being rated as top to play on by the NFL... ..but who knows?

Mexico can host too of course. Just not very likely for many reasons. FIFA will want this to be a spectacle and I am not sure an empty/half empty massive Azteca will be desirable. (Mexico rarely draws well for random CONCACAF teams in the recent past.)

 

Canada outdoors in March???? Not likely to happen. Maybe Vancouver (Dome) but that has flight issues for most confederations and they have to lay down grass too.

 

Is a March date confirmed? It seems pretty late to me. They are normally November for a normal world cup.

 

I was thinking the same thing and assumed November earlier in the thread but it seems like it is March. Maybe because of the Gold Cup mega tournament thing? Not sure.

November would probably be worse for Canada to host the Playoffs anyway so not sure why you bring it up.

 

The CONCACAF qualifying format announcement said that it will finish with three groups of four that play six matches in the Sep/Oct/Nov windows. The next available window would be March.

 

If wikipedia has the schedule right there seems a huge break in the second round with matches played in June 24, then the next games in June 25.

 

I know CONCACAF has a full schedule but surely they can shift other things a window or two so that this phase gets completed in reasonable time, then move on to other competitions.

Seems that way but I don't know why. It makes the draw unnecessarily complicated and I think a playoff tournament with the WC draw at its conclusion would make a nice event.

 

It's FIFA that sets the deadline for when the qualification competitions need to finish. If FIFA wanted the playoff in November, then CONCACAF would have to adjust, otherwise it won't. I assume the big gap between June 2024 and June 2025 will be filled with another Nations League.

 

World Cup 2026: Fifa set to make decision on four-team group format this month

BBC

 

Perhaps the WC final competition draw will be held at the culmination of the playoffs in March 2026.

UEFA will now be able to arrange playoffs for its final 4 places in March 2026.

 

I doubt it. Not ideal for the teams or the fans to only know where they are going until ~10 weeks before the tournament starts. Especially for a WC that spans an entire continent.

 

I assume they won't add new stadiums too. But you never know.
The Chicago Bears are allegedly moving out to a new stadium in the suburbs and the new team President said he would like to bring World Cup games there but that can all be just rhetoric and a pipe dream because the stadium likely won't be built in time plus other logistics and FIFA demands would have to be ironed out.

I am not sure there are any other stadiums that would have a chance to be added.

 

They could delay the draw but I don't think they will. Shortens up the planning time for teams and fans too much. You could get away with it in Qatar as wherever you stayed you were in easy reach of every ground but North America is a big continent.

 

You're both mixing up pre- and post-WC expansion.

Anyway, crap format is crap format. If it does a crap job of determining a region's 5 best teams to send to the WC, it will also do a crap job of determining a region's best 8.

 

So anybody knows when their Will be any news about qualifiers? When it Will start, how it Will be and so on.

And when the final format for the World cup Will be made

 

Depends on your confederation. CONMEBOL will keep their current format, and they will start this year (likely in September, but the only "confirmation" we have is that they start this year)

CONCACAF Qualifiers start in June 2024 and will use a group format instead of the final 8.

 

AFC preliminaries - using a deplorable format that begins with a 22-team KO first round - will start in October while UEFA's - with the teams drawn into 12 groups of 4 or 5 teams each - will not start until March 2025.

There are reports FIFA might decide the final competition format next Wednesday.

 

Colombian media is spreading rumors that Qualifying will not start until February so who knows?

 

You mean March 2024? That makes sense. 5 FIFA windows per year ==> 10 matchdays in 2025 and 8 matchdays in 2024 (2 less since June 2024 is for Copa America). So, a March 2024 start would enable them to finish in Nov 2025.

 

Yes. I meant March.

The post in the Colombian forum said February/March but March is the actual FIFA calendar month.