Africa to get nine World Cup slots from 2026

Africa will get nine automatic places when the World Cup expands to 48 teams in 2026, the FIFA council said during its meeting on Wednesday in Bahrain.

The continent currently has five slots.

A tenth African country will also get to take part in a six-nation playoff tournament which will decide the last two slots in the tournament.

The bureau of the FIFA council agreed on the proposed allocation in a FIFA statement on March 30.

Europe will get 16 direct slots while the Asian Football Federation will get eight direct slots.

Below is the allocation of slots for the 2026 World Cup.

Asia:

8 direct slots – increased from 4.5

Africa:

9 direct slots – increased from 5

North and Central America:

6 direct slots – increased from 3.5

South America:

6 direct slots – increased from 4.5

Oceania:

1 direct slot – increased from 0.5

Europe:

16 direct slots – increased from 13