How do World Cup 2026 group standings work?

Teams earn 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a loss. The top 2 in each group advance automatically, plus the 8 best third-placed teams.

What breaks a tie in the World Cup group standings?

Tiebreakers in order: points, goal difference, goals scored, head-to-head points, head-to-head goal difference, fair play points, and finally a drawing of lots.

When does the group stage start?

The World Cup 2026 group stage runs from June 11 to June 26, 2026, with three matchdays per group.

How are the best third-placed teams determined?

The 12 third-placed teams are ranked by points, then goal difference, then goals scored. The top 8 advance to the round of 32.

World Cup 2026 Group Standings — Points Tables for All 12 Groups

Track every team’s progress through the 2026 World Cup group stage with our comprehensive standings page. All 12 groups, from A to L, with points, goal difference, goals scored, and qualification status updated throughout the tournament. The group stage runs from June 11 to June 26, 2026.

How the Standings Work

The FIFA World Cup 2026 uses a round-robin group stage where each team plays three matches within their group. Points are awarded as follows:

Win: 3 points
Draw: 1 point
Loss: 0 points

Advancement rules:

Top 2 from each group advance to the round of 32 (24 teams)
The 8 best third-placed teams across all 12 groups also advance (8 teams)
Total of 32 teams in the knockout round

Tiebreaker criteria (in order):

Points earned in group matches
Goal difference in group matches
Goals scored in group matches
Points earned in head-to-head matches between tied teams
Goal difference in head-to-head matches
Goals scored in head-to-head matches
Fair play points (yellow/red cards)
Drawing of lots

Group A Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Mexico	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	South Africa	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Korea Republic	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	UEFA Playoff D	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Miami, Philadelphia

Group B Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Portugal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Iran	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Los Angeles, Philadelphia

Group C Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Brazil	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Morocco	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Haiti	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Scotland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Dallas, Kansas City, Atlanta

Group D Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	USA	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Paraguay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Australia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	UEFA Playoff C	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: New York, Boston

Group E Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Spain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Netherlands	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Concacaf/AFC Playoff	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	TBD	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Los Angeles, San Francisco

Group F Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Japan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Peru	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Denmark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	OFC Playoff	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Dallas, Philadelphia

Group G Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Belgium	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Cameroon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Ecuador	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Bolivia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Houston, Kansas City

Group H Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Poland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Saudi Arabia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	CAF Playoff	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Interconf. Playoff 3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Seattle, Dallas

Group I Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Germany	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Serbia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Chile	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Uzbekistan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Dallas, San Francisco

Group J Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Argentina	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Algeria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Austria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Jordan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Miami, Houston

Group K Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	France	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Nigeria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Indonesia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	South Korea	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: Los Angeles, Seattle

Group L Standings

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	England	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Croatia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Ghana	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Panama	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Venues: New York, Atlanta

Third-Place Rankings

This table tracks all 12 third-placed teams and determines which 8 advance:

Rank	Group	Team	Status
1	—	—	—
2	—	—	—
3	—	—	—
4	—	—	—
5	—	—	—
6	—	—	—
7	—	—	—
8	—	—	—
—	—	—	Eliminated
—	—	—	Eliminated
—	—	—	Eliminated
—	—	—	Eliminated

Rankings will be populated once the group stage begins on June 11, 2026.

Qualification Scenarios

Understanding the math behind group-stage advancement is crucial for following the tournament:

To guarantee advancement from any group, a team needs:

7 points (two wins and a draw) — guarantees at least second place
6 points (two wins) — almost always enough for second place
4 points (one win, one draw) — often enough for third place; may advance as best third
3 points (one win) — risky; advancement as a third-placed team depends on other groups

Key thresholds for third-placed teams:

Historically (at the expanded Euro format), 4 points has always been enough for a best-third-place spot
3 points with a positive goal difference gives a strong chance
3 points with a negative goal difference is borderline
2 points or fewer is almost certainly elimination

The new 48-team format with 12 groups makes the third-place calculation more complex than the Euro 2016/2020/2024 format (which had 6 groups). With 12 third-placed teams competing for 8 spots, the bar for advancement is slightly lower — but the uncertainty is higher.

This page will be updated with live results throughout the World Cup 2026 group stage. Bookmark this page and check back during the tournament for the latest standings.

World Cup 2026 Group Standings: All 12 Groups Points Table