By Enitan Abdultawab

With less than seven months until the expanded 48-team World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States, the list of qualified nations is taking shape. Spain and surprise qualifiers Curacao were among the latest to book their tickets, while Haiti secured a historic return after 52 years. Panama also sealed their place.

Several big teams, including Greece and Nigeria, officially crashed out Four-time champions Italy must now fight through the European playoffs, while Iraq advanced to the intercontinental playoff route.

Qualified teams so far

Co-hosts: Canada, Mexico, USA

Africa: Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia

Asia: Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Uzbekistan

Europe: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland

Oceania: New Zealand

Americas: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay, Curacao, Panama, Haiti

When will the full list be completed?

By March 31, 2026, after the final European and intercontinental playoff matches.

Teams in the playoffs

European playoffs (16 teams):

Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Turkiye, Ukraine, Wales, Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, North Macedonia

Intercontinental playoffs (six teams):

Bolivia, DR Congo, Iraq, Jamaica, New Caledonia, Suriname

How the playoffs work

Europe: Four playoff paths, each with two semifinals and one final, all single-leg games. Winners of each path claim the last four UEFA spots. Matches run from March 26 to 31, 2026.

Intercontinental: Six teams compete for two World Cup berths. Top seeds Iraq and DR Congo advance directly to the finals. The remaining four teams will contest two semifinals to decide their opponents. Dates are yet to be announced.

Teams that failed to qualify

There are a couple of nations that shockingly would not be making it to the World Cup. One of such is Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, which failed to beat DR Congo in the Africa’s playoffs final.

Alongside Nigeria are the likes of Cameroon, Greece, Serbia, Chile, Mali and Costa Rica.