With the World Cup 2026 Qualifiers beginning to wrap up, people are glued to their screens, wondering if their nations will qualify for what will likely be the most-watched sports event in human history.
A groundbreaking 1.5 billion people were recorded to have tuned in to the World Cup 2022 Final featuring high stakes matches such as Argentina versus France. About one in five people across the globe tuned in to watch this screamer of a match, which went back and forth with three goals from each team until Argentina took home the trophy on penalties with a 4-2 victory.
The World Cup 2026, taking place in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will be the largest World Cup yet, featuring a total of forty-eight teams from every continent, an expansion from thirty-two in previous years. A total of sixteen stadiums are to be used for the upcoming World Cup, eleven of which being here in the United States; in stadiums such as NRG Stadium in Houston, Lumen Field in Seattle, Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, and many more across the country. Three more of the stadiums will be in Mexico and the final two in Canada. The Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey will host the finale on July 19, 2026 for those who really want to experience the world’s biggest stage.
Of the forty-eight national teams able to qualify, eighteen have already qualified for next year’s competition. Millions of people celebrated a whole year before the tournament’s first game in the summer of 2026. With billions more at the edge of their seats as points tally up game by game, sluggishly progressing each month. So far, the nations to have qualified aside from the host nations are:
New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Iran, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ecuador, Morocco, and Tunisia. Other nations, such as Egypt, Cape Verde, and Norway are extremely close to qualifying as well. Each continent still has a lot of infighting between nations trying to squeeze a spot into immediate qualification, with even more fighting for a play-off spot to qualify through second-hand means. These matches have seen lots of drama, with red cards in many of the European qualifier matches, and games that go back and forth between teams for the 3 points to climb the standings. For example, on Monday, September 8, the Israel vs. Italy match had the score go back and forth nine times. Each side had almost equal statistics, with no yellow or red cards, seven shots on target, four corner shots, and one offside each. The match ended in a 5-4 Italian triumph, with player Sandro Tonali scoring in stoppage time, in the dying minutes of the match.
Despite the Italian victory, Norway, which is in the same group, has six more points than Italy, totaling fifteen to Italy’s current nine as of September 9. The Norwegian national team, in particular, highlights the intense tension that builds with each passing game, as evidenced by their 11-1 rout of Moldova on September 9. Erling Haaland, the current face of Norwegian football and a world-class player, scored five goals in less than eighty minutes.
These are just two games of the hundreds needed to fill the brackets of the World Cup 2026 group stage drawing. As of now, we are witnessing the qualifier spots slowly fill up with nations ready to take home the trophy, where friends and family across the globe will watch with anticipation and excitement. Billions will gather next summer to witness the most-watched event in not only the history of New York City, but the entire world.
