The first World Cup where the draw itself remains incomplete
En Washington D.C., el 5 de diciembre, el fútbol mundial dará un paso sin precedentes cuando la FIFA revele los 12 grupos que darán forma al primer Mundial de 48 selecciones de la historia. Lo que ocurra en el Kennedy Center ese mediodía no es solo un sorteo administrativo: es el momento en que la promesa de una competencia más amplia e inclusiva se convierte en destino concreto para decenas de naciones. La expansión del torneo refleja una tensión antigua en el deporte global —entre la tradición de las potencias consolidadas y el deseo de abrir la puerta a nuevas historias.
- Por primera vez en la historia, 48 selecciones disputarán una Copa del Mundo, casi el doble que en ediciones anteriores, lo que transforma radicalmente la escala del torneo más visto del planeta.
- El sorteo del 5 de diciembre en el Kennedy Center definirá 12 grupos, garantizando que cada uno tenga al menos una potencia reconocida como cabeza de serie.
- Seis plazas del Bombo 4 permanecen vacías hasta marzo de 2026, cuando los repechajes europeos e intercontinentales determinen a los últimos clasificados, manteniendo viva la incertidumbre.
- El nuevo formato de grupos de cuatro equipos reduce la presión del todo o nada, pero también puede concentrar rivales fuertes en un mismo grupo, alterando los cálculos de clasificación.
- La transmisión en Telemundo, NBC Sports y FIFA+ asegura que el sorteo llegue a millones de espectadores en múltiples idiomas, reflejando la dimensión global del evento.
El 5 de diciembre, a las 12:00 del mediodía hora del Este, la FIFA celebrará en el Kennedy Center de Washington D.C. el sorteo que dará forma al Mundial 2026 —el primero en la historia del fútbol con 48 selecciones participantes. Los bombos ya están definidos según el ranking FIFA de noviembre, y su contenido revela tanto el peso de la tradición como los nuevos equilibrios del fútbol mundial.
El Bombo 1 reúne a los doce cabezas de grupo: Estados Unidos, México, Canadá, Argentina, Brasil, Inglaterra, Francia, Portugal, Países Bajos, Alemania, Bélgica y España. Estas naciones anclarán cada uno de los 12 grupos, asegurando que ninguno comience sin una potencia reconocida. El Bombo 2 incluye selecciones de sólida trayectoria reciente —Croacia, Marruecos, Colombia, Uruguay, Japón, entre otras—, mientras el Bombo 3 agrupa a naciones con fuerte presencia regional. El Bombo 4 mezcla clasificados directos con seis plazas aún vacías, reservadas para los ganadores de los repechajes europeo e intercontinental que se resolverán en marzo de 2026.
La expansión a 48 equipos en 12 grupos de cuatro no es solo un cambio numérico: altera la lógica misma de la competencia. Los equipos disponen de más margen para recuperarse de un tropiezo, pero la concentración de rivales poderosos en un mismo grupo puede ser igualmente determinante. Con 36 partidos garantizados solo en la fase de grupos, el torneo adquiere una dimensión inédita.
El sorteo podrá seguirse en Telemundo en español, NBC Sports en inglés, y de forma gratuita a través de FIFA+ en todo el mundo. Será una ceremonia breve, pero el momento en que los grupos queden formados marcará el inicio real de una Copa del Mundo que ya es histórica antes de haber comenzado.
On December 5, FIFA will conduct the draw that shapes the 2026 World Cup—the first edition of soccer's largest tournament ever staged. The ceremony takes place at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. at noon Eastern time, and it arrives with the pots already locked in place, their contents determined by FIFA's November ranking update.
This expansion to 48 nations, divided across 12 groups instead of the traditional eight, represents a fundamental shift in how the world's most-watched sporting event will unfold. The draw itself is straightforward in structure: four pots, each containing twelve teams, with the seeding reflecting both historical dominance and recent performance. The first pot holds the tournament's heavyweights—the United States, Mexico, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Portugal, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and Spain. These twelve nations will serve as group anchors, guaranteeing that each of the twelve groups begins with at least one established power.
The second pot reads like a roster of teams that have either won major tournaments recently or maintained consistent excellence: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Senegal, Switzerland, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, and Australia. The third pot includes nations with strong regional standing or recent World Cup qualification success—Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa. The fourth pot contains the remaining direct qualifiers and, crucially, six slots reserved for teams that must win playoff matches: four European repechage spots and two intercontinental repechage berths.
What makes this draw historic is not merely the expanded field but the mechanism by which it will function. With 48 teams spread across twelve groups of four, the tournament structure itself changes the calculus of advancement. Teams no longer face the binary pressure of a three-team group where one slip can prove fatal. Instead, the format allows for more flexibility in how results compound, though it also means that some groups will inevitably contain multiple strong sides while others may offer clearer paths forward.
The seeding system reflects FIFA's attempt to balance competitive integrity with geographic and historical representation. The top twelve seeds ensure that no group begins without a recognized favorite, while the lower pots mix established nations with emerging ones and teams still fighting for their spot. The repechage teams—those six slots in the fourth pot awaiting their playoff winners—introduce an element of uncertainty that will persist until March 2026, when the final qualifying matches conclude.
In the United States, viewers can watch the draw on Telemundo in Spanish or NBC Sports in English, with FIFA+ offering free streaming access globally. The ceremony itself will be brief compared to the weeks of speculation that will follow, but it marks the moment when the tournament's shape becomes real. Twelve groups will form. Thirty-six matches will be guaranteed in the group stage alone. And for the first time in World Cup history, the draw will determine the fate of a field nearly twice the size of tournaments from just eight years prior.
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does the seeding matter so much if there are forty-eight teams instead of thirty-two?
Because even with more teams, you still want to avoid having all the strongest sides clustered in a few groups. Seeding spreads them out. It's about fairness—or at least the appearance of it.
So the twelve group heads are basically guaranteed to advance?
Not guaranteed, but favored. A group head can still lose to two other strong teams. But yes, the structure gives them an advantage that the unseeded teams don't have.
What changes for a team like Scotland or Panama, who are in Pot 3?
They're hoping to avoid too many Pot 1 teams in their group. If they draw the United States and Brazil, they're probably going home. If they draw the US and a Pot 3 team, they have a real chance.
And those repechage teams in Pot 4—they don't even know if they're going yet?
Exactly. Six slots in the fourth pot are just placeholders. Those teams are still playing qualification matches. The draw happens in December, but some groups won't be complete until March.
Does that create an unfair advantage for teams that know their group early?
Potentially. A team that qualifies in October has months to study their opponents and prepare. A team that qualifies in March has weeks. It's a wrinkle nobody really talks about.