Sports
FIFA alters WC draw so top sides won’t meet early
The 2026 World Cup draw on Dec. 5 will reward the four highest-ranked teams — Spain, Argentina, France and England — which will be placed in separate sections of a new tennis-style seeded tournament bracket.
FIFA said Tuesday the top four teams in the latest men’s rankings will, if they finish top of their respective round-robin groups, avoid each other until the semifinals of the June 11-July 19 tournament being co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Defending champion Argentina with Lionel Messi and top-ranked European champion Spain with Lamine Yamal therefore can ensure they do not meet until the final at MetLife Stadium near New York.
At previous World Cups, the path for teams into and through the knockout phase was decided by which group they were drawn into.
The draw, to be held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., will see 48 teams placed into four pots from which they will be drawn into 12 groups of four teams. An updated match schedule, assigning each match to a stadium with its respective kickoff time, will be released on Saturday, Dec. 6. The draw is scheduled to take about 45 minutes during a show lasting about an hour and a half, FIFA said.
The three host countries have been placed into Pot 1 along with the nine highest-ranked countries based on FIFA’s rankings. These include Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
The 42 teams that already qualified include Iran and Haiti, which FIFA expects will play exactly where they are drawn regardless of complicated politics those countries have with the U.S. The 16 host venues for the 104 games include 11 cities with NFL stadiums in the U.S., three in Mexico and two in Canada.
The other six entries will be decided in March when European and global playoffs brackets are scheduled, and those teams all will come out of the draw pot of lowest-ranked teams.
That means four-time champion Italy could be a dangerous option in the draw on Friday of next week that will set the match schedule by placing teams in 12 round-robin groups of four teams each.
For Pot 1, Canada, Mexico and the United States, as the host countries, will be identified by different colored balls and, when drawn, will be assigned to position A1 for Mexico (green ball), B1 for Canada (red ball) and D1 for the USA (blue ball).
The remaining nine top-ranked teams in Pot 1 will be identified by nine balls of the same color and automatically allocated to Position 1 of the group into which they are drawn.
The next 12 highest-ranked teams will go into Pot 2.
These include Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria and Australia.
The next 12 highest teams will go into Pot 3, and will be comprised of Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa.
The remaining teams will go in Pot 4 along with the six winners of the intercontinental playoffs. This pot includes Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curacao, Haiti and New Zealand.
The four intercontinental playoff winners will include four teams from UEFA and two teams from elsewhere.
The draw will take place in a manner by which teams from the same confederation cannot be placed in the same group. The exception to this is Europe due to the fact that there are more European teams (16) than there are groups (12).
This will result in four groups having two European teams with the remainder having one team from Europe.
To ensure competitive balance, top-ranked Spain and second-ranked Argentina will be randomly drawn and placed in groups in opposite pathways. The same will apply to the third- and fourth-highest-ranked teams (France and England). This ensures that should they each win their group, the two highest ranked teams cannot meet before the final.
The U.S., which had previously been placed in Group D, will face a team from Pot 3 in its opening game on June 12 in Inglewood, Calif. That will be followed by a match against a team from Pot 2 on June 19 at Lumen field in Seattle, with its group stage finale taking place against a team from Pot 4 back in Inglewood. For the USMNT, the most difficult game will likely be the second match with a team from Pot 2.
Along similar lines, Mexico, which has been placed in Group A, will open the tournament on June 11 against a team from Pot 3 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, followed by matches against a team from Pot 2 on June 18 at the Estadio Akron outside Guadalajara, and their final group stage match six days later against team from Pot 4 back in Mexico City
Canada will have a slightly different schedule. It will open the tournament on June 12 at BMO Field in Toronto against a team from Pot 4. Its second match will be in Vancouver six days later against a team from Pot 3, with the group stage finale against a team from Pot 2 also in Vancouver.
World Cup draw pots
Pot 1: Canada, Mexico, USA, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany
Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, IR Iran, Korea Republic, Ecuador, Austria, Australia
Pot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Côte d’Ivoire, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
Pot 4: Jordan, Cabo Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, European Playoff A, B, C and D, FIFA Playoff Tournament 1 and 2
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday Washington had no objections to Iranian players participating in the 2026 Fifa World Cup but he added the players will not be allowed to bring with them people with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
“Nothing from the US has told them they can’t come,” Rubio told reporters.
President Donald Trump also said his administration “would not want to affect the athletes” in comments he made at the White House.
The 2026 soccer World Cup is set to begin on June 11 across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Paolo Zampolli, a Trump envoy who has no official connection with the World Cup, had earlier suggested that Italy should replace Iran at the tournament.
“The problem with Iran would be not their athletes. It would be some of the other people they would want to bring with them, some of whom have ties to the IRGC. We may not be able to let them in but not the athletes themselves,” Rubio said.
“They can’t bring a bunch of IRGC terrorists into our country and pretend that they are journalists and athletic trainers,” Rubio added. Washington has designated the IRGC as a “foreign terrorist organisation.”
Currently there is no suggestion Iran will withdraw or be banned from the tournament that Italy missed out on.
After the start of the Iran war, Iran requested that Fifa move the team’s three group matches from the US to Mexico, which was rejected.
The US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. Iran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states with US bases. US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions. A fragile ceasefire in the Iran war began over two weeks ago.
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Cameras showed former New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch in the team’s draft room Thursday night during the first round.
At one point, Tisch was seen standing near Giants head coach John Harbaugh. Despite no longer holding a majority stake in the NFL franchise, Tisch remains the Giants’ chairman of the board.
ESPN obtained an NFL memo last month detailing plans by Steve Tisch and his siblings to transfer their stake in the Giants to trusts for their children.
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New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch warms up before the NFL game between the Washington Redskins and New York Giants at Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 28, 2018. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)
“Prior transfers to these Trusts were completed pursuant to 2023 and 2024 Finance Committee approvals,” the memo stated. “The Sellers now propose to transfer their entire remaining interests, totaling 23.1% of the Club, to the Trusts. … Following the transactions, the Sellers will no longer own any interest in the Club.”
It was not clear if the transfer requests were in any way related to Tisch’s name appearing in the Epstein files released by the U.S. Justice Department in January. Tisch’s name came up more than 400 times in the files. Tisch at the time said he knew Epstein but denied visiting Epstein’s island.
As for draft night, the Giants made what some viewed as an unconventional pick at No. 10, selecting offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa.
Francis Mauigoa of Miami celebrates after being selected as the tenth overall pick by the New York Giants during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa., on April 23, 2026. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Before that, the Giants added another piece to their pass rush, selecting hybrid edge/off-ball linebacker Arvell Reese at No. 5.
Reese earned All-American honors at Ohio State and finished his first season as a full-time starter with 6.5 sacks.
Arvell Reese of Ohio State celebrates after being selected as the fifth overall pick by the New York Giants during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa., on April 23, 2026. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
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Reese is set to join a pass rush that includes Brian Burns, Abdul Carter and, likely, Kayvon Thibodeaux.
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One of the most intriguing stories entering the first round of the NFL Draft was where Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson might land. Well, fans got their answer sooner than they expected.
The Los Angeles Rams surprisingly selected Simpson with the No. 13 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The selection isn’t completely out of left field and is arguably the best-case scenario for Simpson. The Rams have Matthew Stafford as their starter for 2026, but Stafford has flirted with the idea of retirement each of the past two offseasons. It’s clear the clock is ticking on his NFL career.
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The Los Angeles Rams pulled a stunner and drafted Alababam QB Ty Simpson with the No. 13 pick in the NFL Draft. (CFP/Getty Images)
Now, Simpson gets to sit behind one of the NFL’s best veteran quarterbacks, learn the position while adapting to life in the NFL, and not face immediate pressure to succeed. Additionally, the Rams are one of the most well-run franchises in the league right now. Sean McVay is an elite head coach who led the team to a Super Bowl victory to cap the 2021 season and just had the team within one win of another Super Bowl berth before falling to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship.
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The most surprising aspect is the Rams looking toward the future, quite frankly. This is a team that has had no problem trading away first-round picks to make its team the best it can be each season. It seemed most likely the team would use the No. 13 pick to improve its team for next season, which could be Stafford’s last. Instead, the team decided to put itself in position for Stafford’s retirement without skipping a beat.
Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford, now 38-years-old, has flirted with retirement after each of the past two seasons. (Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
There were several surprises in the first 13 picks of the 2026 NFL Draft: the Cardinals taking Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love at No. 3, the Titans selecting Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate at No. 4, the Kansas City Chiefs trading up to take LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane at No. 6 and even the Cowboys trading up one spot to make sure they drafted Ohio State safety Caleb Downs at No. 11.
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But the Rams completely abandoning their recent strategy (usually trading away first-round picks and loading up for now) to select Stafford’s heir apparent is easily the biggest early shock of the 2026 NFL Draft.
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