Jesse Marsch will lead Canada at the 2026 World Cup that will be played on their home soil. A lot will depend on who will qualify in the last spot of the group. If Italy do, things will be much more difficult for Canada.

The FIFA World Cup 2026 draw will feature a lineup of former and current star athletes assisting with the event.

The draw for the 2026 World Cup creates some easy and some difficult groups for contenders. We ranked all 12 from toughest to easiest.

Sports officials from a dozen United States cities went to the heart of the Olympic family this week to show their country wants to host more world championships and top events. Coast to coast member cities in the Sports Events & Tourism Association came to the Olympic home city of Lausanne to meet most governing bodies of Summer Games and Winter Games sports,

Here is a ranking of the 2026 World Cup groups from easiest to toughest based on average FIFA World Rankings. Countries: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Intercontinental Playoff 1 Average FIFA ranking: 40.2 Highest-ranked team: Portugal (6)

President Donald Trump delivers his speech after receiving the FIFA Peace Prize during the draw for the 2026 FIFA Football World Cup taking place in the US, Canada and Mexico, at the Kennedy Center, in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2025.

The United States will face Paraguay in its opening match in Group D, and Mexico will play South Africa in the tournament’s first game.

France enters with Kylian Mbappé as the star player, with the 26-year-old just five goals shy of passing Miroslav Klose (16) for the most career goals at the World Cup. France has made 16 previous World Cup appearances and won the title twice, in 1998 and 2018.

The United States men’s national team will soon learn how difficult its path to the 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout stage will be.

The United States will face Australia, Paraguay and a European playoff winner in group stage play when the tournament opens next summer.

Follow the World Cup draw with live updates and find out who the USMNT and soccer's best will be facing during the 2026 tournament. The expanded 2026 World Cup will be the biggest in history featuring 48 countries – up from 32 – battling for soccer's ultimate prize in North America.