England will be drawn with Croatia, Panama and Ghana for the 2026 World Cup, while Scotland will face five-time champions Brazil, Morocco and Haiti.
In a repeat of the 2018 World Cup semi-final, England will begin their Group L match against Croatia in either Dallas or Toronto on Wednesday 17 June.
Thomas Tuchel’s side will then face Ghana in either Toronto or Boston on Tuesday, June 23, before facing Panama in their final group game on Saturday, June 27. The teams also faced each other at the 2018 World Cup, winning 6-1 in the group stage.
Scotland will make a nostalgic return to the World Cup and will face Brazil and Morocco in Group C. The two teams last faced each other in the tournament in 1998.
Steve Clark’s team begins its campaign against Haiti on Saturday, June 13 in Boston or New Jersey vs. New York.
Scotland will then face 2022 semi-finalists Morocco in Boston or Philadelphia on Friday, June 19, with the final group game against Brazil in Atlanta or Miami on Wednesday, June 24.
The venue and kick-off time will be announced at 5pm UK time on Saturday 6 December, when FIFA will publish the full match schedule.
The United States, Canada and Mexico could add another home nation for next summer’s tournament, with Wales and Northern Ireland aiming to qualify for the UEFA play-offs in March.
Wales or Northern Ireland will be in Group B along with Canada, Switzerland and Qatar.
The Republic of Ireland could also qualify for the 2026 World Cup through the play-offs, with Group A potentially facing co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea.
Next year’s tournament will be the biggest World Cup in history, expanding from 32 countries to include 48 countries, 104 matches, and matches being held in 16 cities.
The tournament begins on June 11th with co-hosts Mexico and South Africa at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. The match will be a repeat of the 2010 World Cup opener, which saw then-host South Africa draw 1-1.
The 2026 World Cup final will be held on July 19th at New York/New Jersey (MetLife) Stadium.
The World Cup is a complete draw
Group A: Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, Republic of Ireland/Denmark/North Macedonia/Czech Republic
Group B: Canada, Switzerland, Qatar, Wales/Northern Ireland/Italy/Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti
Group D: USA, Australia, Paraguay, Turkey/Romania/Slovakia/Kosovo
Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curacao
Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, Poland/Ukraine/Sweden/Albania
Group G: Belgium, Iran, Egypt, New Zealand
Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cape Verde
Group I: France, Senegal, Norway, Iraq, or Bolivia/Suriname
Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan
Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, or Jamaica/New Caledonia
Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana
Tuchel warns of ‘difficult’ group
England already knew before the ball was decided that they would benefit from FIFA’s new Wimbledon-style seeding system. This means that if all four countries win their respective groups, they will be separated from Spain and Argentina in the semi-finals and away from France in the final.
If England win the group stage, they will face the third-placed team in Atlanta in the round of 32 on July 1.
But Three Lions manager Tuchel must first navigate a wary group.
“It’s a difficult group, a difficult opening game,” he told BBC Sport.
“It’s a difficult group with Croatia and Ghana, two World Cup regulars and two proud and strong countries.
“Panama, I don’t know much about Panama at the moment, but of course we will know about it before the tournament starts.
“For me, I have only ever experienced group football in the Champions League format and the way I approached it was always to have the utmost respect for the Champions League and focus on winning in the group.
“As difficult as it always seems with our group right now, we are confident and will be well prepared when we arrive.”
Croatia reached the final in 2018 by defeating England, and reached the semi-finals in Qatar 2022.
“No one should be underestimated,” Tuchel added. “Croatia are the standout, of course. They are the top-ranked team in our group in Pot 2, but listen, Ghana are always full of talent, always able to surprise and have a huge history in World Cup football.
“Panama will try to make the most of their role as underdogs. No one can be underestimated, everyone deserves the utmost respect and we can show that.”
Clark: Great group | “We didn’t want a European team”
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Scotland head coach Steve Clarke says a World Cup draw is “good” as they aim to progress from Group C.
Scotland have currently drawn most of their World Cup matches (5 out of 9) with Brazil.
Clarke’s side also face a tough test in 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, who last faced Scotland in a World Cup final. A 3-0 victory for the North African team ended Scotland’s 1998 campaign at Saint-Etienne.
However, Scotland will be the favorites to defeat the Caribbean nation of Haiti in their first match as both teams will be meeting for the first time.
“It’s a good draw,” Clark told STV. “I didn’t want a European team, I wanted teams from different continents, and we got that.
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Scotland fans assess World Cup chances after draws with Brazil, Morocco and Haiti
“We’ll be playing against three great teams and we’re looking forward to next summer.
“Seeing how the draws were going, teams kept getting pushed and I thought we would finish in that section.
“It’s a great group. Brazil always play well and I’m happy to win. But Morocco is also a tough opponent and these are the two teams that beat us in the last World Cup, so I hope we can do a little better against them this time.”
Opta Facts: Breaking down the England-Scotland draw
England have won just two of their last nine World Cup group stage games against fellow European opponents (D4 L3), most recently defeating Wales 3-0 in 2022. The only previous meeting between England and Ghana was in some way a friendly in March 2011, when Asamoah Gyan’s 90th-minute equalizer canceled out Andy Carroll’s opener. England have yet to lose to an African team in a World Cup (W5). D3), won their last two matches against Tunisia in 2018 (2-1) and against Senegal in 2022 (3-0). Thomas Tuchel’s England’s only defeat in their last 10 games (W9) was to an African nation, where they lost 3-1 to Senegal in a friendly in June. England are unbeaten in six World Cup matches against CONCACAF countries since losing to the USA in 1950 (W3) D3). Scotland are without a win in their last eight World Cup encounters against South American opponents (D2 L6). This is the record for the most matches played against opponents from the same federation without winning once. Brazil are the only country Scotland have faced more than three times in their entire history without ever winning, and are the only country in all competitions (D2) where they have lost eight out of ten times. Scotland’s only previous World Cup match against a CONCACAF nation was in 1990, when they lost. They defeated Costa Rica 1-0 in their first group match. Scotland have not won any of their last six meetings against CONCACAF nations (D3 L3).
world cup match schedule
FIFA will publish the match schedule at 5pm UK time on Saturday 6 December, when kick-off time and location will be announced, but key dates for the tournament have already been confirmed.
Group Stage: June 11th-27th
Round of 32: June 28th to July 3rd
Round 16: July 4-7
Quarterfinals: July 9th-11th
Semi-finals: July 14th-15th
3rd place match (“Bronze Final”): July 18th
Last day: July 19th
