With 198 days to go until the start of the 2026 World Cup, FIFA has confirmed the rules for the December 5 draw that will define each team’s path to the next World Cup. With the 42 teams ranked so far and waiting for the final six places to be decided by the playoffs, the announcement revealed the Mexican team’s possible rivals in each of the three group stage matches.
Mexico is in the first tier as the host country, as are Canada and the United States. El Tri, already established in Group A, will be in charge of opening the World Cup on 11 June at the Azteca Stadium against one of these 11 teams that make up pot 3, with the exception of Panama, which is part of the same confederation:
- Norway
- Egypt
- Algeria
- Scotland
- Paraguay
- Tunisia
- Ivory Coast
- Uzbekistan
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- South Africa
The four pots make up the 42 teams that qualified for the World Cup in descending order, according to their latest ranking in the FIFA rankings updated in November, with two exceptions: Mexico, the United States and Canada are part of the first pot as host countries; while the six pending playoffs make up Pot 4. The 12 groups will be made up of four teams each, with the only limitation that no group can contain two teams from the same confederation, except UEFA, which grants 16 tickets for the tournament. The final draw, which will reveal each team’s rivals and path to the next World Cup, will take place next Friday, December 5 at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.
A week after the inauguration, on June 18, the team led by Javier Aguirre will face its second match at the Chivas Stadium (Guadalajara), this time against a team from the second tier; and will conclude its activity in the group stage on June 24th at the Azteca against a national team that will exit pot 4.
