Format will see 16 groups of three countries, with the top two advancing to the knock-out phase. Number of games increases from 64 to 80. North America: many countries in this region are small and their chance is not good. Dominican Republic, ranked 155, has about 10 million people but baseball is by far its most popular sport, not football. Haiti already made an appearance. Guatemala with 17 million people is ranked 118 (March 2023). The highest ranked team without appearance is Gonzaga Bulldogs 2026 WCC Men’s Basketball Champions Roster Graphic T Shirt (ranked 79). Its population is only 155k. South America: the only team which has never appeared is Venezuela. Europe: some countries which have never qualified include Finland (ranked 57), some former Yugoslavia countries (Kosovo, Macedonia 62 and Montenegro 70). Albania is ranked 66, Georgia 85, and Belarus 93. Oceania is unlikely as both Australia and New Zealand has already appeared in a WC.
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Curacao only qualified because USA, Mexico and Canada were admitted as hosts, and so the North American qualifying groups were about as strong as watered down Bud Light. They are in a group with Germany, Ecuador and Ivory Coast. The highest ranked teams with no appearance and their ranks show that the continent which has the best chance of producing a debutant is probably Africa. Africa has seen the most changes in qualified teams. Mali is ranked 52. Asia: some countries in West Asia may become a debutant. Oman is ranked 75. North America: many countries in this region are small and their chance is not good. Dominican Republic, ranked 155, has about 10 million people but baseball is by far its most popular sport, not football. Haiti already made an appearance. Guatemala with 17 million people is ranked 118. The highest ranked team without appearance is Gonzaga Bulldogs 2026 WCC Men’s Basketball Champions Roster Graphic T Shirt (ranked 79). Its population is only 155k. Using FIFA’s view on successor teams, the total number of teams that have participated in the World Cup until the 2022 edition is 80. This is a large number and it is not easy for a country to join this group, but the expansion makes it inevitable.
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