World Cup
Road to the FIFA World Cup 2026 begins next week Thursday
The very first ball on the road to World Cup 2026 will be kicked next week Thursday, 7 September when Paraguay host Peru. Later that same day, Argentina begin their title defence when they host Ecuador.
That is just 263 after they lifted the World Cup at Qatar 2022. Preliminary competitions for Africa and Asia will also get under way before the end of the year as nations battle it out for coveted spots at the global finals.
In Asia which is the most populous confederation, eight teams are set for direct qualification and a further berth possible via the Play-off Tournament.
The first round of the FIFA World Cup 26 Asia Football Confederation (AFC) qualification competition will take place in October. Twenty teams will contest 10 two-legged home-and-away ties, with the winners joining 26 other nations in the second round.
There are five qualifying rounds in total to determine the eight direct slots Asia has been awarded at the FIFA World Cup 26, with one additional nation progressing to the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
Africa’s preliminary tournament begins on 13 November 2023.
The 54 CAF nations will compete in nine groups of six, with each of the group winners qualifying automatically for the FIFA World Cup 26.
The four best group runners-up will advance to a play-off stage to determine the Mother Continent’s sole representative at the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
Co-hosts Canada, Mexico and USA all receive automatic berths, leaving three direct slots and a possible further two via the Play-off Tournament up for grabs in Concacaf.
The qualification tournament will begin in March 2024. The region’s four lowest-ranked teams will be split into two match-ups and will contest home-and-away ties. The winners will advance to the second round.
In the second round, a total of 30 Concacaf sides will compete in six groups of five teams. The nations will play the other teams in their groups once. Each country will play two home matches and two away games. The group winners and runners-up (12 teams in total) will progress to the final round.
The 12 nations in the final round will be split into three groups of four teams. Within each group, teams will play each other home and away. The three group winners will qualify directly for the World Cup, joining hosts Canada, Mexico and USA. The two best second-place finishers will qualify for the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
CONMEBOL qualifying will begin on 7 September 2023 and end in September 2025.
Ten teams will compete in a single league format and play each other home and away. The top six teams will qualify automatically for the World Cup, with the seventh-placed side entering the FIFA Play-Off Tournament.
For the very first time, Oceania will have a guaranteed qualification spot for the World Cup, as well as a second second slot via the Play-off Tournament.
The first of three preliminary rounds, which will involve the continent’s four lowest-ranked nations, is due to take place in September 2024. A second stage, entailing two four-team groups, will then be played out over the next two months, before a decisive third round in March 2025 brings together four teams for semi-finals and finals that will determine OFC’s World Cup and Play-off Tournament representatives.
Europe’s qualifying competition is scheduled to begin in March 2025 and conclude in March 2026.
The first round will follow a familiar format, with 12 groups of four or five teams, and the section winners securing World Cup slots. The continent’s four remaining berths will then be settled in a 16-team UEFA play-off competition involving the 12 group runners-up and four best-ranked UEFA Nations League section winners.
The FIFA Play-off Tournament will see six sides fight it out for the final two places at the 23rd FIFA World Cup.
It will involve two teams from Concacaf and one team apiece from the AFC, CAF, CONMEBOL and OFC. The four lowest-ranked nations will meet in bracket semi-finals. The two highest-ranked teams will go directly into the finals. The winners of the two bracket finals will reach the FIFA World Cup 26.
World Cup
Uruguay’s Suarez bids farewell in goalless draw with Paraguay
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Paraguay held Uruguay to a goalless draw in their South American World Cup qualifier on Friday, with striker Luis Suarez bringing his 17-year international career to an end at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo.
The 37-year-old forward reached 143 appearances for his country, finishing as their all-time leading scorer with 69 goals.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side, who finished third in the Copa America, played without five players from their starting line-up, including Darwin Nunez, who were suspended for their involvement in clashes with fans following the defeat to Colombia in the continental showpiece in July.
Uruguay wasted several chances, most notably a first-half right-footed volley from Suarez that struck the post after Facundo Pellistri’s cross.
Paraguay also created clear-cut opportunities, with Miguel Almiron coming closest only to be denied by goalkeeper Sergio Rochet, but neither side managed to capitalise.
Uruguay remain second in the World Cup qualifying standings on 14 points, four behind leaders Argentina. They face Venezuela on Tuesday, while Paraguay take on Brazil.
-Reuters
World Cup
Brazil return to winning ways with dreary win over Ecuador
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Brazil got back to winning ways in the South American World Cup qualifiers with a drab 1-0 victory over Ecuador on Friday thanks to first-half goal by Real Madrid forward Rodrygo.
After its first streak of losses in three successive qualifiers, Brazil did just enough to earn the win that lifted the struggling five-time World Cup champions to fourth in the standings with 10 points.
They are eight points behind leaders Argentina and only two points over Ecuador in sixth, the last spot guaranteed a berth at the 2026 finals.
Playing their first match after a disappointing Copa America defeat to Uruguay in the quarter-final, Brazil had another lacklustre performance, dominating possession but failing to create clear chances throughout the match.
Brazil misplaced too many passes and struggled to connect up front, out of ideas on how to beat Ecuador’s rock solid defensive block.
Ecuador were relentless while applying a physically aggressive pressure high with three hardworking forwards, making the locals uncomfortable when putting the ball in play. They Brazil almost no room to get inside their box either, forcing them to roam the ball horizontally around their penalty area and resort to strikes from long range.
Brazil’s only two shots on target on the first half were made by Rodrygo, who, after stinging the goalkeeper’s hands from a free kick early, were lucky to break the deadlock in the 29th minute. His effort fired from the edge of the box deflected off a defender and arched around the wrong-footed goalkeeper before hitting the right post and finding the back of the net.
Ecuador almost levelled in a counterattack right before the break, but defender Gabriel Magalhaes denied Moises Caicedo’s effort with a last-minute goal-line clearance.
Brazil came back even worse in the second half, with an uninspired Vinicius Jr creating their only shot on target in an absolutely morose 45 minutes, with boos greeting the final whistle.
“We needed this win, doesn’t matter if it was ugly or not. I’m happy with the victory and to have scored, and I hope it helps us getting better and progressing to the level that we want to reach moving forward,” Rodrygo told Brazilian TV Globo. Brazil will face Paraguay at Asuncion on Tuesday while Ecuador is set to host Peru in Quito on Monday.
-Reuters
World Cup
Home grounds of Barcelona, Real Madrid among 11 proposed World Cup 2030 venues
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Spain’s soccer federation (RFEF) has proposed 11 stadiums as candidates to host matches during the 2030 World Cup, including the home arenas of LaLiga clubs Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
Spain, who will co-host the tournament with Portugal and Morocco as well as centenary hosts Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, will also have 45 additional grounds as team bases, the RFEF said on Friday.
Other LaLiga clubs whose home arenas have made the list include Sevilla, Malaga, Real Sociedad, Athletic Bilbao, Las Palmas and promoted Espanyol.
Valencia’s Mestalla Stadium, despite being the fifth-largest stadium in LaLiga with a capacity of 49,430, was not included in the list of potential venues.
“In order to define the venues, all the possibilities have been analysed, including the option of expanding to 13, an option that must be taken unanimously by the three federations,” the RFEF said in a statement.
The tournament will have a maximum of 20 venues, the RFEF added.
Co-hosts Morocco last year announced plans to build a stadium near Casablanca and upgrade six others before the World Cup.
-Reuters
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