At least three teams will secure World Cup qualification during this international break, while 11 hopefuls — as an absolute minimum — will be eliminated from contention. Sweden, Nigeria, Cameroon, Poland and the Republic of Ireland are the biggest potential casualties to keep an eye out for over the coming days.
You can watch 2026 World Cup Qualifiers from anywhere with a VPN and potentially for free.
The current 2026 World Cup Qualifying round runs from Thursday, November 13 to Tuesday, November 18. Full schedule below.
• UEFA — ITVX / BBC iPlayer / Virgin Media Play / RTÉ Player (select games FREE in U.K. & Ireland)
• CAF — FIFA Plus (all games FREE in U.K., CA, AU)
• AFC — YouTube (all games FREE in U.S., CA)
• CONCACAF — YouTube (all games FREE in U.K., CA, AU)
• Watch anywhere — Try NordVPN 100% risk free
You'll find the thick of the action in UEFA Groups B, D, E and F. The best that Sweden — now under the stewardship of Graham Potter after Jon Dahl Tomasson's catastrophic spell at the helm — can hope for now is a place in the UEFA playoffs, but they'll fail to meet that low bar unless they beat runaway Group B leaders Switzerland and Kosovo lose to Slovenia. Either one of those outcomes is unlikely.
The Republic or Ireland, Armenia and Hungary are in a three-way shootout for a playoff spot, with Portugal poised to wrap up Group F this week. Of the trio, the Magyars occupy the driving seat, thanks to a last-minute Dominik Szoboszlai equalizer against Cristiano Ronaldo's men last month. They're a point better-off than Ireland and two clear of Armenia, each of whom have to take on Portugal this international break.
The game of the week, meanwhile, could be Italy vs Norway on Sunday. With both teams guaranteed at least a playoff spot, they can afford to throw caution to the wind. Then again, Gennaro Gattuso will be acutely aware that that's exactly how top scorer Erling Haaland would want the Azzurri to set up.
Elsewhere, a CAF playoff between Nigeria, Cameroon, DR Congo and Gabon, the four best group runners-up in African qualifying, will decide who joins Bolivia and New Caledonia in the inter-confederation playoffs. The Super Eagles and Indomitable Lions may have pedigree and world stars like Victor Osimhen and Bryan Mbeumo, but Gabon's Denis Bouanga and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are two of the top scorers in qualifying.
One further inter-confederation playoff spot will go two the winner of a two-legged AFC playoff between Iraq and the UAE, and it's crunch time for CONCACAF nations.
Check out all of the TV and streaming details below to find out how to watch World Cup Qualifiers from anywhere, including free options.
Watch 2026 World Cup Qualifiers for FREE
You can watch every CAF Qualifier free-of-charge on FIFA Plus in the U.K., Canada and Australia; every AFC Qualifier free-of charge on the AFC Asian Cup YouTube channel in the U.S. and Canada, and every CONCACAF Qualifier free-of-charge on the CONCACAF YouTube channel in the U.K., Canada and Australia.
Select CONCACAF Qualifiers are also being shown for free in the U.S., on CBS Sports Golazo.
Select UEFA Qualifiers are free-to-air on ITVX and BBC iPlayer in the U.K, RTÉ Player and Virgin Media Play in Ireland, ORF ON and ServusTV On in Austria, RTBF Auvio in Belgium, L'Equipe TV and TF1 Player in France, ARD and ZDF in Germany, Rai Play in Italy, REplay in Latvia, NOS in the Netherlands, TV2 Play in Norway, RTP Play in Portugal, RTVE Play in Spain, and Play RSI, Play RTS and Play SRF in Switzerland.
Away from home? You may not be able to watch the action like you normally would due to regional restrictions. Fortunately, there’s an easy solution — you can use a VPN to watch World Cup Qualifiers for free. We’ll show you how to do that below.
Watch 2026 World Cup Qualifiers from anywhere
Away from home at the moment and blocked from watching the soccer on your usual subscription?
You can still watch 2026 World Cup Qualifiers live thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network). The software can make your devices appear to be back in your home country regardless of where you are, making it ideal for viewers away on vacation or on business. Our favorite is NordVPN — we explain why in our NordVPN review.
How to watch European World Cup 2026 Qualifiers
🇬🇧 In the U.K., England games are free-to-air on ITVX, while Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland games are free-to-air on BBC iPlayer. All other games are on Prime Video, which costs £8.99/month or £95/year after a 30-day free trial.
🇺🇸 In the U.S., games are split between FS1, FS2, FOX Soccer Plus and Fubo TV.
🇨🇦 In Canada, every game is exclusive to DAZN, which starts at CA$24.99/month.
🇦🇺 In Australia, all games are exclusive to Stan Sport, which starts at AU$32/month.
UEFA World Cup 2026 Qualifying schedule
(All times ET)
Thursday, November 13
12 p.m. — Armenia vs Hungary
12 p.m. — Azerbaijan vs Iceland
12 p.m. — Norway vs Estonia
2:45 p.m. — Moldova vs Italy
2:45 p.m. — Andorra vs Albania
2:45 p.m. — France vs Ukraine
2:45 p.m. — England vs Serbia
2:45 p.m. — Republic of Ireland vs Portugal
Click to see more UEFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers ▼
Friday, November 14
12 p.m. — Finland vs Malta
2:45 p.m. — Luxembourg vs Germany
2:45 p.m. — Gibraltar vs Montenegro
2:45 p.m. — Croatia vs Faroe Islands
2:45 p.m. — Poland vs Netherlands
2:45 p.m. — Slovakia vs Northern Ireland
Saturday, November 15
9 a.m. — Kazakhstan vs Belgium
12 p.m. — Turki̇ye vs Bulgaria
12 p.m. — Georgia vs Spain
12 p.m. — Cyprus vs Austria
12 p.m. — Liechtenstein vs Wales
2:45 p.m. — Denmark vs Belarus
2:45 p.m. — Switzerland vs Sweden
2:45 p.m. — Greece vs Scotland
2:45 p.m. — Slovenia vs Kosovo
2:45 p.m. — Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Romania
Sunday, November 16
9 a.m. — Hungary vs Republic of Ireland
9 a.m. — Portugal vs Armenia
12 p.m. — Ukraine vs Iceland
12 p.m. — Serbia vs Latvia
12 p.m. — Albania vs England
12 p.m. — Azerbaijan vs France
2:45 p.m. — Italy vs Norway
2:45 p.m. — Israel vs Moldova
Monday, November 17
2:45 p.m. — Czechia vs Gibraltar
2:45 p.m. — Northern Ireland vs Luxembourg
2:45 p.m. — Montenegro vs Croatia
2:45 p.m. — Malta vs Poland
2:45 p.m. — Germany vs Slovakia
2:45 p.m. — Netherlands vs Lithuania
Tuesday, November 18
2:45 p.m. — Austria vs Bosnia and Herzegovina
2:45 p.m. — Sweden vs Slovenia
2:45 p.m. — Wales vs North Macedonia
2:45 p.m. — Romania vs San Marino
2:45 p.m. — Kosovo vs Switzerland
2:45 p.m. — Scotland vs Denmark
2:45 p.m. — Bulgaria vs Georgia
2:45 p.m. — Belarus vs Greece
2:45 p.m. — Spain vs Turki̇ye
2:45 p.m. — Belgium vs Liechtenstein
How to watch African World Cup 2026 Qualifiers
🇬🇧 🇨🇦 🇦🇺 In the U.K., Canada and Australia, all games are free-to-air on FIFA Plus.
🇺🇸 In the U.S., games aren't being shown live, but full replays are available to watch on-demand and for free on FIFA Plus.
CAF World Cup 2026 Qualifying schedule
(All times ET)
Thursday, November 13
11 a.m. — Nigeria vs Gabon
2 p.m. — Cameroon vs DR Congo
Sunday, November 16
2 p.m. — CAF playoff final
How to watch Asian World Cup 2026 Qualifiers
🇺🇸 🇨🇦 In the U.S. and Canada, games are priced at £3.99 on the AFC Asian Cup YouTube channel.
🇬🇧 In the U.K., each game is available for a £3.99 PPV fee via OneFootball TV.
🇦🇺 In Australia, all games are exclusive to Paramount Plus, which starts at AU$6.99/month after a 7-day FREE trial.
AFC World Cup 2026 Qualifying schedule
(All times ET)
Thursday, November 13
11 a.m. — UAE vs Iraq
Tuesday, November 18
11 a.m. — Iraq vs UAE
How to watch CONCACAF World Cup 2026 Qualifiers
🇬🇧 🇨🇦 🇦🇺 In the U.K., Canada and Australia, all games are free-to-air on the CONCACAF YouTube channel.
🇺🇸 In the U.S., select games are free-to air on CBS Sports Golazo. All games, however, are being shown on Paramount Plus, which starts at $7.99/month after a 7-day FREE trial.
CONCACAF World Cup 2026 Qualifying schedule
(All times ET)
Thursday, November 13
5 p.m. — Suriname vs El Salvador
7 p.m. — Bermuda vs Curacao
7 p.m. — Trinidad and Tobago vs Jamaica
9 p.m. — Guatemala vs Panama
9 p.m. — Haiti vs Costa Rica
9 p.m. — Nicaragua vs Honduras
Click to see more CONCACAF World Cup 2026 Qualifiers ▼
Tuesday, November 18
8 p.m. — Guatemala vs Suriname
8 p.m. — Trinidad and Tobago vs Bermuda
8 p.m. — Jamaica vs Curacao
8 p.m. — Haiti vs Nicaragua
8 p.m. — Panama vs El Salvador
8 p.m. — Costa Rica vs Honduras
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