RARE PHOTOS: How does the world cup draw work the ap explains fifa s process for dividing teams into groups | Rare Historical Photos

The draw for the 2026 World Cup takes place Friday at the Kennedy Center, for the purpose of dividing the 48-team field into 12 groups of four. Once the tournament starts, 32 teams will advance from those preliminary groups to the single-elimination knockout rounds.

The 12 round-robin World Cup groups are designated Group A, Group B ... and so on, down to Group L.