The Oceanian section of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification process is expected to take place from September 2024 to March 2025. The 2026 tournament is the 16th edition of Oceanian qualifiers and marks the first time OFC has a direct qualification slot into the FIFA World Cup.[1]
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 2 September 2024 – March 2025 |
| Teams | 11 (from 1 confederation) |
Format edit
All eleven nations are expected to enter qualification.
The qualification structure is as follows:
- First round: The four lowest-ranked teams in the FIFA Men's World Rankings will play a three-match knockout round in September 2024. The winner will advance to the second round.
- Second round: The winning team from the first round will join the seven highest-ranked teams in two four-team groups in October and November 2024. The top two teams from each group will advance to the third round.
- Third round: The four teams advancing from the second round will play a three-match knockout round in March 2025 with the winner qualifying for the 2026 World Cup and the runner-up advancing to the inter-confederation play-offs
Entrants edit
All 11 OFC members affiliated with FIFA are expected to enter qualification.
Schedule edit
The schedule of the competition is as follows.
| Round | Matchday | Date | Venue(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| First round | Matchday 1 | 2–10 September 2024 |  Samoa |
| Matchday 2 | |||
| Second round | Matchday 1 | 7–15 October 2024 |  New Zealand and  Vanuatu |
| Matchday 2 | 11–19 November 2024 | New Zealand and  Papua New Guinea | |
| Matchday 3 | |||
| Third round | Semi-finals | March 2025 | |
| Final | March 2025 |
The inter-confederation play-offs will be scheduled to be played in March 2026.
First round edit
The draw for the first round will occur in July 2024 and matches will be played 2–10 September 2024 in Samoa.[2] The four lowest-ranked teams will compete in a knockout series, and the winner will advance to join the seven highest-ranked teams in the second round.[3]
Bracket edit
| Matchday 1 | Matchday 2 | |||||
| September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
| Team 1 | ||||||
| September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
| Team 2 | ||||||
| Winner Match 1 | ||||||
| September 2024 – Apia | ||||||
| Winner Match 2 | ||||||
| Team 3 | ||||||
| Team 4 | ||||||
Matchday 1 edit
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
Matchday 2 edit
The winner advances to the second round.
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
Second round edit
The second round will take place from 7 October to 19 November 2024 with two groups of four teams playing in a league format.[3] Matches will be played in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Vanuatu.[2]
Group A edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | A1 | A2 | A3 | A4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to the third round | — | ||||
| 2 | A2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |||||
| 3 | A3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |||||
| 4 | A4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Group B edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | B1 | B2 | B3 | B4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to the third round | — | ||||
| 2 | B2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |||||
| 3 | B3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |||||
| 4 | B4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Third round edit
The third round is expected to take place March 2025. The winner will qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the runner-up will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs.[1]
Bracket edit
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| March 2025 | ||||||
| Team 1 | ||||||
| March 2025 | ||||||
| Team 2 | ||||||
| Winner Semi-final 1 | ||||||
| March 2025 | ||||||
| Winner Semi-final 2 | ||||||
| Team 3 | ||||||
| Team 4 | ||||||
Semi-finals edit
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
Final edit
The winner qualifies for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The runner-up advances to the inter-confederation play-offs.
| v | ||
|---|---|---|
Inter-confederation play-offs edit
The runner up team will join one team each from AFC, CAF, and CONMEBOL and two from CONCACAF in the inter-confederation play-offs. The teams will be ranked according to the FIFA Men's World Ranking, with the four lowest-ranked teams playing in two single-elimination matches. The winners will meet the two highest-ranked teams in another set of single-elimination matches, with the winners of these matches qualifying for the World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.[4]
References edit
- ^ a b "Road to the FIFA World Cup 26 set to begin". FIFA. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
- ^ a b "OFC Competition Calendars Confirmed for 2024". Oceania Football Confederation. December 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
- ^ a b "Journey to historic FIFA World Cup 2026 kicks off in South America". FIFA. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
- ^ "Bureau of the Council recommends slot allocation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup". FIFA. 30 March 2017. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2023.