2026 World Cup European Qualifiers: Türkiye makes its debut
The first matches of the 2026 World Cup European Qualifiers in 6 groups of 4 teams will start tomorrow (Thursday, September 4, 2025).
In the qualifiers, matches in 6 groups of 5 teams started in March.
The Turkish National Football Team will compete in Group E with Spain, Bulgaria and Georgia in the 2026 World Cup European qualifiers.
Turkey faces GeorgiaThe Crescent-Stars will host Georgia in their first match tomorrow. The match, to be played at the Boris Paichadze National Stadium, will kick off at 7:00 PM Turkish time. The match will be broadcast live on TV8.
The qualifying group matches, which include 54 countries, will be completed in November.
GROUP LEADER GOES DIRECTLY TO THE WORLD CUPSixteen teams from Europe will qualify for the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted by the USA, Mexico and Canada and in which 48 teams will compete.
In the European qualifiers, which will end in November, the 12 teams that finish first in their groups will directly qualify for the World Cup.
A total of 16 teams, including the 12 group runners-up and four teams from the UEFA Nations League, will compete for the final four spots. The play-off matches will be played in March 2026.
WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION GROUPSThe groups for the 2026 World Cup European Qualifiers are as follows:
- Group A: Luxembourg, Northern Ireland, Germany, Slovakia
- Group B: Kosovo, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland
- Group C: Belarus, Greece, Denmark, Scotland
- Group D: Azerbaijan, Iceland, France, Ukraine
- Group E: Bulgaria, Georgia, Spain, TURKEY
- Group F: Armenia, Hungary, Ireland, Portugal
- Group G: Finland, Poland, Netherlands, Lithuania, Malta
- Group H: Greek Cypriot Administration, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Romania, San Marino
- Group I: Norway, Israel, Italy, Estonia, Moldova
- Group J: North Macedonia, Wales, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
- Group K: England, Latvia, Serbia, Andorra, Albania
- Group L: Montenegro, Czech Republic, Croatia, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar
In the 2026 FIFA World Cup, 48 teams will compete in 12 groups and a total of 104 matches will be played throughout the organization.
The opening match of the tournament will be played on June 11, 2026, at the 83,000-seat Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, the capital of Mexico.
The final match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held on July 19, 2026, at the 82,500-seat MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, USA.
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