FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers: India drawn in Group A alongside Qatar and Kuwait

The India men’s football team were on Thursday placed in Group A of the AFC qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 that will be jointly hosted by United States of America, Canada and Mexico. Group A consists of India, 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar and Kuwait. The winner of the qualification first round match between Afghanistan and Mongolia will join the three teams in Group A. The draw was announced at the AFC house in Kuala Lumpur.

A total of 36 teams will participate in the AFC second round qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. Teams have been divided into nine groups of four, and will play in a home and away format. The top two teams will qualify for the AFC qualifiers third round as well as the AFC Asian Cup 2027, while the remaining teams will advance to the third round of the Asian Cup qualification. India had made it to the Pot 2 of AFC qualification following successful outings at the SAFF Championship, Intercontinental Cup and the tri-nation football tournament. This comes after both the India men’s and women’s football teams were granted permission to take part in the Asian Games scheduled to take place in Hangzhou, China.

The draws for the Asian Games were also revealed on Thursday. While the Indian men have been drawn in Group A with China, Bangladesh and Myanmar, the women have been drawn alongside Chinese Taipei and Thailand in Group B.