The question on everyone’s mind is: what time is the World Cup draw for 2026? The highly anticipated draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026—the biggest tournament ever with 48 teams—will take place this coming Friday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, USA. Football fans in India can watch the ceremony starting at 10:30 PM IST via live streaming.
This World Cup draw marks a significant milestone as the tournament expands from 32 to 48 teams. Thirty-eight teams have already qualified, while six more will join via playoff matches in March 2026. The draw splits these teams into 12 groups of four (Groups A to L). The top seeds, including hosts Canada, Mexico, and the United States, are placed in Pot 1, guaranteeing their position in separate groups.
There will be no shortage of legends in attendance for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Draw 🤩
Coverage of the draw begins at 11:30am ET on FOX 🙌 pic.twitter.com/xalh027kb3— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 5, 2025
Defending champions Argentina headline the top seeds along with powerhouses Spain, France, and England. These elite teams cannot face each other until at least the semi-final stage, ensuring thrilling matches down the line. Other heavyweights in Pot 1 include Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. Pot 2, Pot 3, and Pot 4 contain teams from other confederations and those still fighting through playoffs, including new entrants Uzbekistan, Jordan, and Cape Verde.
The draw will also follow specific rules to ensure confederation diversity: no group can have more than two UEFA teams, while other confederations can only have a maximum of one team in each group. After the group stage’s single round-robin matches, the top two teams from each group, alongside the eight best third-placed teams, will qualify for the knockout rounds. This draw sets the stage not only for group placements but also for the paths teams will take through the knockout rounds in the expanded tournament format.
Viewers in India can catch the live action of the World Cup 2026 draw on FIFA+ and the official FIFA social media channels, as no live TV broadcast is planned in India. The event promises to be a pivotal moment in football history as fans eagerly wait to see the initial matchup lineups of this historic 48-team event.
This comprehensive preview combines essential details of what time the World Cup draw is, where to watch, the draw format, pots, and team placements, ensuring optimized SEO use of the keyword “what time is the world cup draw” throughout the article.