In this way, the 16 representatives of Europe will reach the final of the 2026 World Cup

The 2022 World Cup took place in Asia for the first time and went down in history as one of the most exciting of all times as it was the first to be held in the middle of winter instead of in the middle of summer.

However, a very big change awaits us compared to what we are used to and the next great celebration of world football that has to do with the number of national teams, with FIFA deciding to open the doors to more countries and thus the final phase is to take place in 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico and will not house 32 but 48 teams.

In practice, this means a 50% increase in the number of participants, with all confederations having the opportunity to give their representatives more places and UEFA gaining three places by sending them to Qatar stadiums instead of the 13 teams from the old continent received these places will send 16 to the other side of the Atlantic in three years.

The growth of European national teams was well known and as of Wednesday (28/06) with the UEFA Executive Committee meeting in Nyon, Switzerland (at which the OPAP Arena was announced as ) we grew wiser about the format from which these 16 teams will emerge the venue of the Champions League final 2024) and the corresponding procedure.

• In essence, Europe’s path to qualifying for the World Cup is divided into two phases: the groups and the play-offs.
• The group stage consists of the traditional home and away format, with 12 groups of 4 or 5 teams being played from March to November 2025.
• The top 12 in each group will receive a direct ticket to the final stages of the 2026 World Cup.
• The 12 runners-up will take part in the playoffs in March 2026 with 16 teams. In addition to the 12 runners-up from the Europe qualifying groups, the top four from the 2024-25 Nations League groups who did not finish the European group stage in first or second place also take part.
• The playoffs will feature individual semi-finals followed by individual finals within the same international window. The 16 teams that advance to the playoffs will be divided into four playoff paths, each containing four teams.