World Cup Expands to 48 Teams With New Group Format

The 2026 World Cup will field its largest roster ever — 48 nations across Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The format scraps the traditional eight groups of four teams in favor of 16 groups of three. The top two finishers from each group advance, joined by the eight best third-place teams, creating a 32-team knockout round. This is the first structural change to the men's tournament since 1998, when the field expanded from 24 to 32 teams.