Breaking down everything to know about the 2026 World Cup draw
Donald Trump, Kevin Hart and Aaron Judge walk into a concert hall.No, really, Donald Trump, Kevin Hart and Aaron Judge will walk into a concert hall.All three are among the influx of celebrities, star athletes and heads of state who will be in attendance Friday at the Kennedy Center for the World Cup draw, which will officially start the countdown clock to June 11, when the tournament itself kicks off in Mexico City.The list of recognizable names who will be at the draw includes three heads of state (Trump, Canadian PM Mark Carney, Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum), Shaquille O’Neal, Tom Brady, Judge, the Village People and Andrea Bocelli.There is, also, a crucial sporting component to the whole thing.
The Post explains everything you need to know about the draw (Noon, Fox).Think of it as similar to Selection Sunday.After the draw, we’ll know the group stage matchups for the World Cup, plus the potential pathways through the knockout stage for each team, depending where they finish in the group.So, to make up an example, if England, Morocco, Algeria and Haiti are together in Group B, you’ll know that England is playing those three teams and that if it wins Group B, it will face a third-place team from Groups E, F, G, I or J in the Round of 32.There are four pots.
Each of the 12 groups being drawn Friday will be made up of one team from each pot.The makeup of the pots is as follows:Pot 1: USA, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, GermanyPot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, AustraliaPot 3: Norway, Panama, Egypt, Algeria, Scotland, Paraguay, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South AfricaPot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, European Playoff A, European Playoff B, European Playoff C, European Playoff D, FIFA Playoff 1, FIFA Playoff 2Each team plays the other three teams in its group in a...