- Trump, Sheinbaum, Carney join Infantino for extended WC launch.
- Star-studded event features Bocelli, Klum, Hart, more sports icons.
- 6 places undecided ahead of the March playoffs; full schedule until Saturday.
The 48 nations taking part in the biggest FIFA World Cup ever, next summer in North America, were placed in 12 groups on Friday.
The signing ceremony took place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, where US President Donald J. Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney joined FIFA President Gianni Infantino to represent the three countries hosting the expanded global soccer tournament.
“This will be the biggest FIFA World Cup ever. The biggest event humanity will ever experience,” Infantino said before the draw.
“I want to put it in terms that the American audience will understand,” he added. “The World Cup is like 104 Super Bowls in one month.”
Friday’s festivities were hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum and actor/comedian Kevin Hart and kicked off with a performance by legendary Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. Robbie Williams and Nicole Scherzinger sang the official FIFA anthem “Desire”, followed by the presentation of the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize to Trump. Wayne Gretzky, Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal and Aaron Judge participated in the draw.
Forty-two nations have qualified. The other six participants are still to be decided through the UEFA and confederation playoffs, which will be held in March.
In 188 days, Mexico will play the first match of the tournament on June 11 against South Africa at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
The complete World Cup schedule, including venues and kickoff times, will be confirmed at noon ET on Saturday.
The USA is in Group D along with Australia, Paraguay and a yet-to-be-determined European playoff team (Turkey, Romania, Slovakia or Kosovo).
Team USA will play Paraguay on June 12 (Inglewood, Calif.), Australia on June 19 (Seattle) and the third group member on June 25 (Inglewood, Calif.).
Mexico is in Group A with South Korea, South Africa and a yet to be determined European playoff team (Denmark, North Macedonia, Czech Republic or Ireland).
Joining Canada in Group B are Switzerland, Qatar and a yet-to-be-determined European playoff team (Italy, Northern Ireland, Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina).
The top two from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, advance to the last 32 for the knockout stage.
The championship game will take place on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.
Matches will take place in 16 cities in North America, including two in Canada (Toronto, Vancouver) and three in Mexico (Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara).
Locations throughout the United States are Atlanta, Boston (Foxborough, Mass.), Dallas (Arlington, Texas), Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles (Inglewood, Calif.), Miami (Miami Gardens, Fla.), New York/New Jersey (East Rutherford, NJ), Philadelphia, San Francisco (Santa Clara, Calif.), and Seattle.
According to DraftKings, the pre-tournament favorites are Spain (+450), England (+600), France (+700), Brazil (+800) and Argentina (+800).
Argentina is the defending World Cup champion, with superstar Lionel Messi leading the team to a championship in the 32-team tournament in Qatar in 2022.
The rest of the 2026 FIFA World Cup groups:
Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti
Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curacao
Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, TBD (Ukraine, Sweden, Poland or Albania)
Group G: Belgium, Iran, Egypt, New Zealand
Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cabo Verde
Group I: France, Senegal, Norway, TBD (Bolivia, Suriname or Iraq)
Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan
Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, TBD (New Caledonia, Jamaica or DR Congo)
Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana
