2026 World Cup playoff: Bolivia and New Caledonia confirmed, Asia and Africa define places

The intercontinental playoff for the 2026 World Cup already has two teams confirmed, Bolivia by Conmebol and New Caledonia by OFC. The tournament will take place between March 23 and 31, 2026, in North America, with six teams divided into two groups of three. The winners of each group guarantee a place in the World Cup, which will bring together 48 teams in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Bolivia secured their place after finishing seventh in the South American qualifiers, while New Caledonia won the Oceania playoff against New Zealand.

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Another four places remain open, with disputes on this FIFA Date in November.

• Asia: a vacancy via confrontation between the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.
• Africa: a place in the semi-finals and final between Nigeria, Gabon, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• Concacaf: two places for the best runners-up from the three groups in the third phase.

Asian dispute defines sole representative

The United Arab Emirates and Iraq face each other in round-trip games for the Asian spot in the play-offs. The first leg takes place on Thursday, November 13, in Abu Dhabi, at the Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium, at 1pm (Brasília time).

The return is scheduled for Tuesday, November 18, in Basra, at the International Stadium, at the same time. The winner advances to the intercontinental playoff, where they will join the seedings based on the FIFA rankings.

The Asian qualifiers have already classified eight teams directly: Japan, Iran, Uzbekistan, South Korea, Jordan, Australia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Africa holds single-game playoffs in Morocco

Four African teams are fighting for a place in the world repechage in knockout matches based in Rabat. Nigeria faces Gabon in the semi-final on Thursday, November 13, at the El Barid Stadium, at 4pm (Brasília time).

Cameroon plays against the Democratic Republic of Congo in the other semi, on the same day and time. The final takes place on Sunday, November 16th, with the winner guaranteeing participation in the March tournament.

The FIFA rankings place Nigeria in 45th, Cameroon in 52nd, DR Congo in 60th and Gabon in 79th, which could influence the pairings in the brackets.

Africa already has nine direct qualifiers: Senegal, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Cape Verde, Ghana, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.

The single-game format aims to speed up the definition, with all matches on neutral territory.

Concacaf in the final stretch with three tight groups

The EliminationsConcacaf teams enter the decisive phase with 12 teams divided into three groups of four. The leaders of each group qualify directly, while the two best runners-up advance to the intercontinental repechage.

Suriname leads Group A with seven points, followed by Panama and El Salvador. In Group B, Jamaica has nine points, under pressure from Guatemala and Curaçao. Honduras leads Group C, with six points, ahead of Trinidad and Tobago and Costa Rica.

The final rounds take place between November 13th and 18th, defining the three direct places and the two for the playoff. Canada, the United States and Mexico are already classified as hosts.

Haiti and Nicaragua still dream of surprises, but they depend on other people’s victories and stumbles.

Intercontinental playoff format

Six teams will form two brackets of three teams each, with games at neutral venues in North America. The two best ranked by FIFA enter directly into the finals of each bracket, facing the winner of the semi-finals.

The tournament distributes two extra places for the World Cup, completing the 48 participants. Europe does not participate, as it uses its own playoff for its 16 places.

Bolivia and New Caledonia await their rivals, with expectations of balanced clashes between continents.

FIFA prioritizes neutrality in locations, with no venues yet announced.

November Calendar Boosts Rankings

The FIFA DateNovember defines 14 direct places overall, in addition to the continental repechages. Europe classifies 11 teams via groups, leaving 16 for its playoff in March.

Asia and Africa resolve their issues now, while Concacaf finalizes the third phase. The draw for the World Cup groups takes place on December 5th, in Washington, with the repechages as “Intercontinental 1 and 2”.

The World Cup starts on June 11, 2026, ending on July 19.

Currently, 28 teams are confirmed, including powerhouses such as Brazil, Argentina and Germany.