The 2026 FIFA World Cup expands from 32 to 48 teams for the first time. The tournament will be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026. The 48 teams are divided into 12 groups of 4 teams each for a single round-robin competition. The top 2 teams from each group and the 8 best third-placed teams will advance to the round of 32.     The round of 32, round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, third-place play-off, and final will all adopt a single-elimination format. If the score is tied after 90 minutes, extra time will be played. If it remains tied after extra time, a penalty shootout will determine the winner.          If two or more teams in the same group are equal on points after the completion of the group stage, the following criteria will be applied in the order listed to determine their final ranking:     a) Greatest number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned     b) Superior goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned     c) Greatest number of goals scored in the group matches between the teams concerned     If teams are still equal after applying criteria a) to c), the following criteria d) to f) will be applied to those teams still tied to determine their final ranking:     d) Superior goal difference in all group matches     e) Greatest number of goals scored in all group matches     f) Highest team conduct score relating to yellow and red cards received by players and team officials. The deduction rules are as follows:     Yellow card: minus 1 point     Indirect red card (as a result of a second yellow card): minus 3 points     Direct red card: minus 4 points     Yellow card and direct red card in the same match: minus 5 points          If the rankings cannot be separated after applying all the above criteria, the FIFA Organizing Committee will draw lots to decide the final group rankings.     The rules to determine the eight best third-placed teams among all groups are as follows:     a) Greatest number of points obtained in all group matches     b) Superior goal difference in all group matches     c) Greatest number of goals scored in all group matches     d) Highest team conduct score     e) If two or more teams remain tied after the above criteria, the ranking will be determined by the latest FIFA Men's World Ranking published     f) If a tie still persists, the previous edition and then the one before that of the FIFA Men's World Ranking will be traced back in turn until the final ranking can be determined.