FIFA 2026 WC draw to be held virtually as President Gianni Infantino seems to dodge the harsh spotlight on him.
FIFA 2026 WC draw will be staged as a virtual event.
On December 11, an extraordinary FIFA congress will be held online to acclaim Saudi Arabia’s successful bid for 2034. The Guardian has learnt that the draw for European qualifying for the 2026 World Cup will also be conducted remotely two days later.
Infantino has chosen to keep the international media away from Zurich and is under pressure to defend a number of recent contentious FIFA decisions, including awarding Saudi Arabia the right to host the World Cup without a vote and organising the Club World Cup for the next year. The 54-year-old surprised everyone by declining to speak following this year’s Fifa congress in Bangkok. He hasn’t had a press conference since he was re-elected president at the 73rd Fifa congress in Rwanda in March 2023.
Vladimir Putin attended the draw for the 2018 tournament in Russia, which was held in St. Petersburg three years prior. Previous draws were also held in the nation that would host the finals. The European qualification draw for the World Cup has historically been a major event.
The 2022 tournament’s preliminary draw was televised from Zurich in December 2020, although FIFA had few options because international travel was severely restricted and much of the world was still under COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. Europe’s coaches have been invited to participate in an online draw next month, suggesting that FIFA has adopted the lockdown format.
It is believed that a number of national organisations were taken aback by the plans because they had anticipated visiting Zurich, though this time it might work for the FA. The governing body may have been overshadowed by a dispute over whether the German should attend the glamorous draw event, and it has come under fire for allowing the new England manager, Thomas Tuchel, to postpone his start date until January.
The 55 European teams will be divided into five groups of four and seven groups of five in a format adjustment. While the smaller groups won’t begin their campaigns until next September, teams selected in groups of five will start qualifying in March.
The 12 group winners will qualify automatically for the 48-team World Cup in the United States, while the four remaining spots will be determined by playoffs.