The footballing destiny of England and Scotland for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be decided today as the highly anticipated group stage draw takes place in Washington DC. Managers Thomas Tuchel and Steve Clarke will be watching intently as the path for the biggest tournament in history – featuring a record 48 teams across 16 stadiums in Canada, Mexico, and the USA – begins to take shape.
Draw Details: When and How to Watch
The ceremony is scheduled for Friday, 5th December, beginning at 12pm local time in Washington DC, which is 5pm in the UK. For British viewers, the draw will be broadcast live on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer. Globally, it can be streamed directly via FIFA.com and FIFA's official YouTube channel.
While logistical challenges like extreme summer heat and vast travel distances across North America loom, today's focus is squarely on the draw mechanics. The 2026 edition introduces a new format with 12 groups of four and a tennis-style seeding system designed to keep the highest-ranked teams apart until the latter stages.
Pots, Seedings, and the New Format
A total of 108 matches will eventually crown the next world champion at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium next summer. Today's draw will allocate the 42 already-qualified teams, plus six placeholders for playoff winners, into their initial groups.
The 48 teams are divided into four pots based on seeding. England, as one of the top-ranked sides, are in Pot 1 alongside reigning champions Argentina, hosts Canada, Mexico, and USA, plus other European giants like Spain, France, and Germany.
Scotland, having secured qualification last month, are placed in Pot 3. The new seeding system ensures that the top two FIFA-ranked nations, Spain and Argentina, are on opposite sides of the draw, as are the third and fourth-ranked teams, France and England.
The confirmed pots for the draw are as follows:
Pot 1: Canada, Mexico, USA, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany.
Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia.
Pot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Cote d’Ivoire, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa.
Pot 4: Jordan, Cabo Verde, Ghana, Curacao, Haiti, New Zealand, along with the four European play-off winners and two inter-confederation play-off winners.
Can Home Nations Face Each Other?
England and Scotland could be drawn in the same group, given their positions in Pot 1 and Pot 3 respectively. However, FIFA's rule limiting groups to a maximum of two European nations could prevent this if England were first paired with another European side from Pot 2.
If not drawn together, both could still face one of the home nations emerging from the European play-offs. Northern Ireland, Wales, or the Republic of Ireland would enter Pot 4 if they qualify. Notably, as Wales and Northern Ireland are in the same play-off path, only one can potentially reach the finals.
The European play-off fixtures are:
- Path A: Winner of Wales/Bosnia & Herzegovina vs winner of Italy/Northern Ireland.
- Path B: Winner of Ukraine/Sweden vs winner of Poland/Albania.
- Path C: Winner of Slovakia/Kosovo vs winner of Turkiye/Romania.
- Path D: Winner of Czechia/Republic of Ireland vs winner of Denmark/North Macedonia.
The semi-finals are on 26th March 2026, with finals on 31st March.
The draw ceremony at Washington's Kennedy Center will be attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump. However, Iran are set to boycott the event after their federation president was denied a visa to enter the United States.
The tournament itself kicks off on 11th June 2026, with hosts Mexico playing the opening match at Mexico City Stadium. To minimise travel, the 16 host venues are grouped into Western, Central, and Eastern regions, with teams playing all group matches within one region. England's exact fixtures and regional base will be revealed today, setting the stage for their campaign in the expanded World Cup.
