Every Country Making Its First World Cup Appearance in 2026

The 2026 FIFA World Cup—hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico—is the biggest edition of the tournament in history, featuring a record 48 teams.

That expanded format not only brings together the traditional giants of world soccer—defending champions Argentina, five-time winners Brazil, along with England, Germany, Spain and others—but also opens the door for new nations to step onto the world stage for the very first time.

Here, we take a look at every country making its World Cup debut this summer.

Cape Verde

Cape Verde, which only began competing in World Cup qualifying in 1990, secured its first-ever World Cup appearance in October 2025 after topping its qualification group ahead of established African sides such as Cameroon, Libya and Angola.

The nation’s rapid rise to the global stage has been driven not only by steady improvements in domestic soccer infrastructure, but also by its successful recruitment of diaspora talent with eligibility ties to Cape Verde. This includes players such as French-born Columbus Crew captain Steven Moreira, Netherlands-born forward Garry Rodrigues and Portuguese-born midfielder Telmo Arcanjo.

With a population of around 600,000, the West African archipelago is the third-smallest country ever to qualify for a World Cup, behind Iceland in 2018 and Curaçao, which will also make its tournament debut this summer.

Curacao

curucao — Curacao are the World Cup’s smallest-ever nation. | Getty/Ricardo Makyn

Curaçao made history in November 2025 by becoming the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup, after securing a crucial draw against Jamaica to book its place at the tournament.

The Caribbean island—part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands since the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010—has a population of just over 150,000 and covers only 171 square miles.

Adding to the story, head coach Dick Advocaat will become the oldest manager in World Cup history at 78 years old, surpassing Otto Rehhagel’s previous record when he led Greece in 2010 at the age of 71.

The squad features a number of familiar names, including former Aston Villa midfielder Leandro Bacuna, ex-Huddersfield striker Jürgen Locadia and former Manchester United youngster Tahith Chong—all of whom will face an uphill task this summer after being drawn into a challenging group alongside four-time champions Germany, Ecuador and the Ivory Coast.

Jordan

Prior to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, Jordan had spent decades attempting to reach the tournament, dating back to its first qualifying campaign in 1986, but had consistently fallen short.

This time, however, it was finally different. The team secured its place in North America by finishing runners-up in AFC qualifying Group B, behind South Korea, to book a historic first-ever World Cup appearance.

Managed by Jamal Sellami, the squad is composed largely of players based in regional leagues across the Middle East, including the Jordanian Pro League, the Iraqi First Division and the Saudi Pro League. The standout exception is captain Musa Al-Taamari, who plays his club soccer in France’s Ligue 1 with Rennes.

Uzbekistan

Fabio Cannavaro is Uzbekistan's manager. | IMAGO/Sebastian Frej

Uzbekistan made the unexpected—and somewhat controversial—decision to part ways with head coach Timur Kapadze last fall after he guided the White Wolves to their first-ever World Cup qualification, replacing him with Italy’s 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro.

How that decision will play out remains to be seen, but there is little doubt the task ahead is a difficult one. Uzbekistan has been drawn into a challenging group alongside Portugal, Colombia and DR Congo, meaning Cannavaro’s side will face a steep learning curve on the world stage.

Even so, the squad does feature several well-known European-based players, including Manchester City defender Abdukodir Khusanov and captain and leading striker Eldor Shomurodov.

The White Wolves also make history as the first Central Asian nation—and only the third former Soviet republic after Russia and Ukraine—to qualify for a World Cup.

READ THE LATEST WORLD CUP NEWS, PREVIEWS & ANALYSIS HERE

Add us as a preferred source on Google