World Cup 2026 qualifying begins

Extra places throws qualifying wide open, but next summer's Copa America will disrupt things

- TIM VICKERY

In recent times all ten South American nations have gone into World Cup qualification campaigns with hopes of making the cut - and that applies all the more now that the expansion of the tournament has awarded the continent six automatic slots plus one more through a play-off. This makes it all but impossible for the traditional powers to miss out, and is likely to turn the middle of the table into a battleground where the outcome will only become clear once the smoke has cleared and the final ball has been kicked in September 2025.

By then, after 18 competitive rounds, all the teams should be battle-hardened; but at this point, they look strangely raw. Usually there is a gap of at least 15 months and often more between the end of one World Cup cycle and the start of another, which grants new coaches time to bed in. But this time, the gap is little more than eight months. In practice preparation time has been restricted to the FIFA dates of March and June, meaning that many teams will take the field this September as works in the early stage of progress.

At one extreme are Argentina, where Lionel Scaloni has been in charge for five years. The task now for the reigning world champions is to undergo a gentle period of transition in the centre-back position, for example - and prepare for the more traumatic possibility of losing Lionel Messi before 2026.