The race for the qualification for the FIFA World Cup 2026 is heating up with several teams in with a chance to seal their berths in the October international window.
As it stands, 20 teams have booked their slots in the expanded 48-team World Cup scheduled in USA, Mexico and Canada next year.
During the ongoing international break, two African teams, Egypt and Algeria, confirmed their qualification through the CAF qualifiers.
Here are the permutations for teams to qualify for the World Cup in the current international break:
UEFA (Europe)
England
Thomas Tuchel’s England can qualify for the World Cup if it manages to beat Latvia and Serbia drops points against Albania. The Three Lions will qualify if Serbia fails to win both its qualifiers this week.
Spain
The 2024 Euro champion will all but seal qualification if it beats Georgia and Bulgaria and if Turkey fails to win both its matches this week (vs Bulgaria and Georgia).
Norway
Group I topper Norway can seal its first World Cup berth since 1938 if it beats Israel and second-placed Italy drops points in its matches against Estonia and Israel.
Portugal
Group F’s Portugal can qualify if it wins both matches against the Republic of Ireland and Hungary this week and Armenia picks no more than two points in its two fixtures.
Switzerland
Switzerland can qualify from Group B with a win over Slovenia and Kosovo drops points against Sweden.
France
Group D’s France can qualify if it beats Iceland and Ukraine loses to Azerbaijan.
Croatia
Group H’s Croatia will all but seal qualification thanks to a better goal difference if its beats Gibraltar and Czechia loses to Faroe Islands.
CAF (Africa)
Ghana
Group I’s Ghana can seal qualification if it avoid defeat against Comoros irrespective of Madagascar’s result against Mali.
Cape Verde/ Cameroon
A win over Estawani will take Cape Verde to its maiden World Cup finals. A draw will suffice if Cameroon drops points to Angola at home. Cameroon can qualify with a win only if Cape Verde loses its final group game.
Senegal
Senegal can qualify for its third successive World Cup if it picks up a point against Mauritania thanks to its superior goal difference. Congo will need to beat Sudan and hope Senegal loses its final game.
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast will qualify if it beats Kenya in its final match. A draw will suffice if Gabon fails to win versus Burundi.
South Africa/ Benin/ Nigeria
Group C of the CAF World Cup qualifiers have three teams still in contention for qualification. Nigeria will have to beat Benin by a two-goal margin and hope South Africa drop points against Rwanda. Bafana Bafana will need a win and a Benin loss against the Super Eagles. Benin, currently top of the group, can qualify with a point if South Africa fails to win by a two-goal margin.
CONCACAF (North America)
As things stand, no team can seal qualification to the World Cup through this month’s qualifiers. Both Honduras and Haiti are locked on five points each in Group C and could move closer to a World Cup berth on October 13 in their straight shoot-out game. Similarly, the winner of the Jamaica vs Curacao game in Group B will have an advantage going into the final two games next month.
AFC
Saudi Arabia can seal its place in next year’s showpiece with a win over Iraq in Round 4 of the AFC qualifiers. Qatar can qualify if it beats UAE in its sole remaining contest provided Oman drop points in its game against the Emiratis.
Published on Oct 11, 2025
