The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be unlike any tournament that came before it — 48 nations are set to compete this summer, the largest field in the competition's 96-year history.

Kicking off on June 11, the tournament will be jointly hosted across three North American nations: Mexico, the United States, and Canada. It marks the first time three countries have shared hosting duties at a single World Cup.

From 32 to 48: how the field expanded

Since 1998, the World Cup had operated with 32 teams spread across eight groups of four. That format itself was an expansion from the 24-team editions held between 1982 and 1994. Now, following a decision ratified by FIFA president Gianni Infantino in January 2017, the field has grown again — by 16 teams — to reach 48 participants for the first time.

Four nations will be making their World Cup debut at the 2026 tournament: Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan. That is the highest number of debutants at a single World Cup since six new nations appeared at Germany in 2006.

A new format for the group stage

The jump to 48 teams has reshaped the tournament's structure from top to bottom. The group stage now features 12 groups of four, running alphabetically from Group A through to Group L.

Qualification from the group stage has also changed. Teams must finish in the top two of their group, or rank among the best eight third-placed sides across all 12 groups, to advance. Those eight third-placed qualifiers are drawn against the group winners from Groups A, B, D, E, G, I, K, and L.

Longer path to the final

With more teams involved, the knockout rounds begin at the Round of 32 — a stage that did not exist under the previous 32-team format, which started at the Round of 16. In total, 104 matches will be played across the entire tournament.

What comes next?

Looking further ahead, CONMEBOL — South American football's governing body — has proposed expanding the 2030 World Cup, which is set to be hosted predominantly across Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, to feature as many as 64 teams. That edition would mark the competition's centenary. For now, however, the historic class of 2026 are writing a new chapter of their own.