The FIFA World Cup is an international soccer or football competition where different countries play against each other in the hopes of becoming World Cup champions. It occurs every four years, and the location changes every tournament. France is the 2018 championship team from the tournament in Russia, and the 2022 World Cup is being held in Qatar. Get all of the latest World Cup news here!
The World Cup qualifiers are a three-year process that must occur before teams can qualify for the tournament phase. Once in the tournament, 32 teams are placed into different brackets, and the winners of the brackets play each other in the finals. It is widely considered the most prestigious football tournament in the world and winning the World Cup is the greatest accomplishment for any international football player. While the qualification process has remained relatively unchanged for close to 100 years, the 2026 World Cup will increase the number of teams which qualify from 32 to 48 teams.