(Henry Russell/Yahoo Sports illustration)
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CONCACAF World Cup qualifying was on hiatus in March, as the national teams of North and Central America and the Caribbean competed in Nations League finals and for spots in this summer’s Gold Cup.
It will resume in June, but it’s been watered down by the fact that the 2026 World Cup’s three co-hosts — Canada, Mexico and the United States — have all qualified automatically.
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World Cup qualifying format: After a four-team play-in round to shave the field from 32 to 30, those 30 were divided into six groups of five. The top two in each group will advance to a decisive third round, where the 12 second-round survivors will be drawn into three groups of four. The three winners of those groups qualify for the World Cup, and the two best runners-up head to the intercontinental playoffs.
Standings | Schedule and results
CONCACAF 2026 World Cup qualifying bubble
Qualified: Canada, Mexico, United States (all automatically)
Confident: None
Bubble: Honduras, Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, Curacao, Haiti, Panama, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Jamaica, Suriname, El Salvador
Long shot: Cuba, Cayman Islands, Antigua and Barbuda, Bermuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Bahamas, Saint Lucia, Aruba, Barbados, Guyana, Montserrat, Belize, Dominican Republic, Dominica, British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla
Eliminated: U.S. Virgin Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands