France, Portugal and Denmark: some teams haven’t even made their World Cup qualifying debut yet
While South America is wrapping up its Qualifiers, Europe is just getting started and some giants like France, Portugal, and Denmark have not even kicked a ball in the 2026 World Cup campaign.
Europe still in early stages of Qualifiers
With less than a year before the next World Cup, the European Qualifiers are moving at different paces. While Groups G to L already played four rounds between March and June, Groups A to F only begin during this FIFA Date.
That means heavyweights like France, Portugal, and Denmark are only making their debut now. France face Ukraine today (5 September), while Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal open tomorrow against Ireland.
How the Qualifiers work
UEFA split the continent into 12 groups of four or five teams. Each team plays home and away within the group. The group winners qualify directly for the World Cup, while the second-placed teams head to playoffs for the remaining spots.
The tight calendar, combined with domestic and continental competitions, has forced UEFA to stagger the starts of certain groups.
Current standings after four rounds
In the groups already underway, some nations are taking early control:
- Group G: Netherlands, Finland, and Poland are tied on seven points.
- Group H: Bosnia lead with a perfect record.
- Group I: England also boast 100% so far.
- Group J: Wales sit top with 10 points, ahead of Belgium on seven.
- Group L: Czech Republic lead, with Croatia three points behind.
Meanwhile, Italy are struggling in Group I, sitting third with just three points, while Norway are perfect with 12.
