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CONCACAF has announced the schedule for the First and Second Round matches of the CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Qualification will consist of three separate rounds and will include 32 FIFA affiliated CONCACAF Member Associations.
The draw for the competition’s Second Round, which divided 30 nations into six groups of five, was conducted with the assistance of two of the region’s legends, Paulo Wanchope Watson (Costa Rica) and Ricardo Gardner (Jamaica).
The Qualifiers do not include Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The three FIFA World Cup 2026 hosts have already secured a berth.
First Round: Four Member Associations (two match dates in March 2024)
The First Round will be disputed between CONCACAF’s four lowest-ranked Member Associations based on the FIFA World Ranking as of December 21, 2023. These four teams are, in ranking order, Turks and Caicos Islands, British Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands, and Anguilla. The first-round pairings were determined based on the teams’ ranking position and are as follows (the highest-ranked team facing the lowest-ranked team):
Play-off 1: Turks and Caicos Islands vs Anguilla
Play-off 2: British Virgin Islands vs US Virgin Islands
These home-and-away series will be played during the FIFA international match window of March 2024. The aggregate score winner in each Play-off will progress to the second round.
Second Round: 30 Member Associations (four-match dates in June 2024 and June 2025)
The Second Round of the CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will feature the two winners of the First Round and the Confederation’s remaining 28 participating Member Associations. The 30 national teams were divided into six groups of five during the Qualifiers’ draw on January 25. The groups are as follows:
Group A: Honduras, Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, Bermuda, Cayman Islands
Group B: Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Bahamas
Group C: Haiti, Curaçao, St. Lucia, Barbados, Aruba
Group D: Panama, Nicaragua, Guyana, Montserrat, Belize
Group E: Jamaica, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Dominica, Winner Play-off 2
Group F: El Salvador, Suriname, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Winner Play-off 1
The Second Round matches will be played during the FIFA international match windows of June 2024 and June 2025, with each team playing four matches (two home and two away). Following the completion of the Second Round, the group winners and runners-up (12 teams in total) will progress to the Qualifiers’ third and Final Round.
Final Round: 12 Member Associations (six match dates in September, October, and November 2025)
The Final Round of the CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will feature the Second Round group winners and runners-up (12 teams in total) divided into three groups of four teams. Each team will play every other team in their group home and away, playing a total of six matches (three at home and three away).
The Final Round matches will be played during the FIFA international match windows of September, October, and November 2025. Following the completion of the Final Round, the three group winners will qualify directly for the FIFA World Cup 2026, joining hosts Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Additionally, the two best runners-up will represent CONCACAF in the FIFA Play-off Tournament. In total, the CONCACAF region could have up to eight teams at the FIFA World Cup for the first time.
A separate draw will be conducted for the Final Round following the conclusion of the Second Round.
The schedule for the First Round matches is as follows (home team listed first):
Friday, March 22, 2024
Anguilla vs Turks and Caicos Islands
US Virgin Islands vs British Virgin Islands
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Turks and Caicos Islands vs Anguilla
British Virgin Islands vs US Virgin Islands
The schedule for the Second Round matches is as follows (home team listed first):
Wednesday, June 5, 2024
(A) Antigua and Barbuda vs Bermuda
(B) Trinidad and Tobago vs Grenada
(C) Curaçao vs Barbados
(D) Nicaragua vs Montserrat
(E) Guatemala vs Dominica
(F) Suriname vs St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Thursday, June 6, 2024
(A) Honduras vs Cuba
(B) Costa Rica vs St. Kitts and Nevis
(C) Haiti vs St. Lucia
(D) Panama vs Guyana
(E) Jamaica vs Dominican Republic
(F) El Salvador vs Puerto Rico
Saturday, June 8, 2024
(A) Cayman Islands vs Antigua and Barbuda
(B) Bahamas vs Trinidad and Tobago
(C) Aruba vs Curaçao
(D) Belize vs Nicaragua
(E) Winner Play-off 2 vs Guatemala
(F) Winner Play-off 1 vs Suriname
Sunday, June 9, 2024
(A) Bermuda vs Honduras
(B) Grenada vs Costa Rica
(C) Barbados vs Haiti
(D) Montserrat vs Panama
(E) Dominica vs Jamaica
(F) St. Vincent and the Grenadines vs El Salvador
Tuesday, June 11, 2024
(A) Cuba vs Cayman Islands
(B) St. Kitts and Nevis vs Bahamas
(C) St. Lucia vs Aruba
(D) Guyana vs Belize
(E) Dominican Republic vs Winner Play-off 2
(F) Puerto Rico vs Winner Play-off 1
Wednesday, June 4, 2025
(A) Bermuda vs Cayman Islands
(B) Grenada vs Bahamas
(C) Barbados vs Aruba
(D) Montserrat vs Belize
(E) Dominica vs Winner Play-off 2
(F) St. Vincent and the Grenadines vs Winner Play-off 1
Friday, June 6, 2025
(A) Antigua and Barbuda vs Cuba
(B) Trinidad and Tobago vs St. Kitts and Nevis
(C) Curaçao vs St. Lucia
(D) Nicaragua vs Guyana
(E) Guatemala vs Dominican Republic
(F) Suriname vs Puerto Rico
Saturday, June 7, 2025
(A) Cayman Islands vs Honduras
(B) Bahamas vs Costa Rica
(C) Aruba vs Haiti
(D) Belize vs Panama
(E) Winner Play-off 2 vs Jamaica
(F) Winner Play-off 1 vs El Salvador
Tuesday, June 10, 2025
(A) Cuba vs Bermuda
(A) Honduras vs Antigua and Barbuda
(B) St. Kitts and Nevis vs Grenada
(B) Costa Rica vs Trinidad and Tobago
(C) St. Lucia vs Barbados
(C) Haiti vs Curaçao
(D) Guyana vs Montserrat
(D) Panama vs Nicaragua
(E) Dominican Republic vs Dominica
(E) Jamaica vs Guatemala
(F) Puerto Rico vs St. Vincent and the Grenadines
(F) El Salvador vs Suriname
