Determined 4 teams to advance to World Cup 2026

Early morning of March 26 (Hanoi time), Iran drew 2-2 with Uzbekistan in the 8th match, Group A of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The West Asian team fell behind twice but brought the match back to the starting line thanks to a brace from star Mehdi Taremi. Right now, Iran has 20 points, 7 points more than the 3rd ranked team (UAE), so they are sure to advance.

In South America, Argentina defeated Brazil 4-1 at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires. Before the South American derby took place, Argentina had already secured a direct place in the 2026 World Cup. The reason was the 0-0 draw between Bolivia and Uruguay. The victory over Brazil further solidified the reigning world champions' position as number 1 in the current CONMEBOL region.

Before Iran and Argentina, the two teams that won the earliest tickets to the 2026 World Cup were Japan and New Zealand.

In Asia, South Korea and Uzbekistan are in good shape to secure the next two spots to the US, Canada and Mexico. Iraq, Jordan, Australia and Saudi Arabia are competing closely for the remaining spots in the three groups.

In South America, 10 teams will compete in a round robin to find 6 spots to qualify directly. In addition to Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador and Paraguay are present in the top 6. In Africa, the teams are still in a tense stage, with unclear opportunities to continue. Similarly, the European 2026 World Cup qualifiers have just begun.

The 2026 World Cup is the first time the world's biggest football festival has 48 participating teams. According to FIFA's allocation, Europe has the most representatives (16 teams). Asia has at least 8 teams. Africa has at least 9 teams. South America has at least 6 teams.

FIFA's decision to increase the number of teams participating in the World Cup has caused fierce controversy. Coach Joachim Low believes that the World Cup will have the same outcome as EURO 2016, when the value of the tournament is at risk of being diluted and the competitiveness is not guaranteed.

Huong Ly

Source: https://tienphong.vn/xac-dinh-4-doi-thang-tien-den-world-cup-2026-post1728257.tpo