The 2030 World Cup is far away but qualification is closer than many think after Spain triumphed over Argentina in the 2026 final on American soil.
We’re still waiting to learn whether CONMEBOL’s proposal to expand the tournament to 64 teams will be accepted and enacted, and that would dramatically alter qualifying, but several confederations have already set their plans for 2030 World Cup qualification.
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As it stands, the United States men’s national team and CONCACAF will begin World Cup qualification next year, and it will be the Yanks’ first time in a new qualification structure after qualifying as tri-hosts with Mexico and Canada last time around.
So Mauricio Pochettino’s upcoming Nations League and Gold Cup matches are also further sharpening the side for what they hope is a historic run in 2030 when the tournament heads to Spain, Portugal, and Morocco (plus Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay for a few nations).
For more details on the 2030 World Cup as it stands, read on.
2030 World Cup: When and where will it be?
The 2030 World Cup will be played from June 8 to July 21 in six nations and focused in three for the centenary tournament.
Argentina, 1930 hosts Uruguay, and Paraguay will each host one game to start the tournament in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the first World Cup.
The rest of the tournament will be played in the neighboring countries of Portugal, Spain, and Morocco.
How many teams will qualify for the 2030 World Cup?
This has yet to be determined, as there is a CONMEBOL proposal on the table for a 64-team World Cup but UEFA and CONCACAF oppose the move and are planning for a 48-team cup.
The 2026 World Cup and its 48 teams was widely viewed as a success after its controversial growth from 36 to 48 entrants.
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FIFA has not yet set a timeline for a decision on the size of the 2030 tournament field.
CONMEBOL’s president is planning on a 64-team tournament...
¡El próximo se juega en casa! En 2030 se viene el Mundial de Uruguay, Argentina y Paraguay, Una gran oportunidad para el fútbol, para celebrar el Centenario de la Copa del Mundo con una competencia con 64 equipos pic.twitter.com/ocIjHYCN5f
— Alejandro Domínguez (@agdws) July 20, 2026
Will all six host nations receive automatic berths to the 2030 World Cup?
Yes, so expect CONMEBOL sides Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina to be playing in those three tournament-opening games in South America on June 8 and 9, 2030.
Portugal, Spain, and Morocco will also receive automatic berths from UEFA and CAF.
2030 World Cup qualifying time line
AFC World Cup qualifying— Asia
Asia is discussing its own Nations League for future World Cup qualification, but that won’t go into effect for this tournament.
2026 qualifying saw five rounds of qualifying, Two teams qualified from the third round, two more from the fourth, and fifth round saw two teams compete for the confederation’s playoff spot.
CAF World Cup qualifying — Africa
Africa have not announced any changes from 2026 qualifying.
There were nine groups of six teams each, with each group winner going to the final and the four-best runners-up competing in a semifinal and final for a playoff spot.
CONCACAF World Cup qualifying— North America, Central America, Caribbean
Round 1: Teams ranked 14-35 play home-and-home in the first half of the September-October 2027 international window.
Round 2: Beginning in the second half of that window, the top 13 teams including USA will be drawn into six groups of four for round-robin, home-and-away play. The top two from each group will reach the final round.
Final round: Twelve teams from Round 2 will be divided into three groups of four for round-robin, home-and-away play. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the 2030 World Cup while the two-best third-place teams will play for a spot in the inter-confederation playoffs.
CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying — South America
CONMEBOL continue to hope for a 64-team tournament and have not yet announced how they will determine their entrants outside of automatic qualifiers Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina.
If the tournament is 48 teams and holds three automatic slots and one playoff spot for South America, CONMEBOL could keep its automatic qualifying nations in its celebrated 10-team round-robin tournament and take the three other highest finishers or play a different format for the other seven teams (Venezuela, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia).
OFC World Cup qualifying — Oceania
OFC have not announced their format but they are widely-expected to stick with their 2026 format.
Round 1: Lowest-ranked nations play a mini-tournament.
Round 2: Higher-ranked team join Round 1 winners in pool play.
Round 3: Four semi-finalists play for one automatic World Cup berth with the runner-up going to the inter-confederation playoffs.
UEFA World Cup qualifying — Europe
UEFA are planning a new format for World Cup qualifying inspired by the new Champions League format.
The 36 highest-ranking countries in the 2028-29 Nations League will be divided into three groups (or ‘leagues’) of 12.
The best-ranked teams in “League 1" will qualify directly for the World Cup while results will set up a playoff system for the further spots. More information is expected late this year or early next year.
