2026 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)

All FIFA-affiliated nations entered the joint qualification process for both the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup; Northern Mariana Islands, who is not a FIFA member, would have entered through the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification play-off round. However, the AFC excluded Northern Mariana Islands from the draw for the play-off round.{{cite web|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/national/afc_asian_cup/news/six_teams_to_contest_qualifiers_playoff_for_saudi_arabia_2027.html|title=Six teams to contest Qualifiers Playoff for Saudi Arabia 2027|publisher=AFC|date=2 May 2024|access-date=6 May 2024}}

The qualification format was announced on 1 August 2022, having been revamped to fit the increased finals allocation of eight direct qualifiers and one play-off qualifier:{{cite web|title=Asia’s pathway to the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 confirmed|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/afc_competitions/news/asia%E2%80%99s_pathway_to_the_fifa_world_cup_2026_and_afc_asian_cup%E2%84%A2_2027_confirmed.html|website=the-afc |publisher=Asian Football Confederation |access-date=1 August 2024 |date=1 August 2022}}{{Cite web|title=Seedings revealed for FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers draw|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/national/fifa_world_cup/news/seedings_revealed_for_fifa_world_cup_2026_and_afc_asian_cup_saudi_arabia_2027™_qualifiers_draw.html|access-date=27 July 2023|website=the-AFC|language=en}}

• First round: 20 teams (ranked 27–46) played home-and-away over two legs. The ten winners advanced to the second round. The best loser qualified for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification third round, while the remaining teams qualified for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – play-off round.
• Second round: 36 teams (ranked 1–26 and ten first-round winners) were divided into nine groups of four teams. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The nine group winners and group runners-up advanced to the third round and automatically qualified for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. The remaining teams qualified for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification third round.
• Third round: 18 teams which advanced from the second round were divided into three groups of six teams. The teams will play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The top two teams of each group qualify directly for the FIFA World Cup, the third- and fourth-placed teams advance to the fourth round.
• Fourth round: Six third- and fourth-placed teams from the third round are divided into two groups of three teams each. The teams will play against each other once in a centralized venue. The winners of each group qualify for the World Cup, and the runners-up of each group advance to the fifth round.
• Fifth round: The group runners-up in the fourth round will compete home-and-away over two legs to determine the Asian representation at the inter-confederation play-offs.{{cite web|title=AFC Competitions Committee approves key decisions on reformatted competitions|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/afc_competitions/news/afc_competitions_committee_approves_key_decisions_on_reformatted_competitions_1.html|website=Asian Football Confederation|access-date=1 July 2023|date=1 July 2023}}

The draw for the first and second rounds of joint qualification took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 27 July 2023.{{cite web|date=5 July 2023|title=Stage set for FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers draw|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/national/fifa_world_cup/news/stage_set_for_fifa_world_cup_2026_and_afc_asian_cup_saudi_arabia_2027%E2%84%A2_qualifiers_draw.html|access-date=5 July 2023|publisher=AFC}} The top 26 ranked teams were given byes to the second round, while the 20 teams entering the first round were seeded into two pots of 10 teams each and drawn alternately from pot 1 then pot 2 to form a pairing. The team from pot 1 hosted the first leg and the team from pot 2 hosted the second leg. Pots 1, 2 and 3 for the second round draw contained the teams ranked 1–9, 10–18, and 19–26, respectively, while pot 4 contained placeholders for the ten first round ties. Nine teams were drawn from pot 4 first and placed in position 4 of each group. The tenth team from pot 4 was moved to Pot 3, and subsequently drawn at random from Pot 3. Teams were then drawn into each group sequentially from pots 3, 2, and 1.

The competition schedule is expected to be as follows:{{cite web|url=https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Aug-2023-Jul-2024).pdf|publisher=AFC|title=AFC Competitions Calendar (Aug 2023 – Jul 2024)|format=PDF|date=7 April 2023|access-date=12 April 2023|archive-date=22 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230522064114/https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Aug-2023-Jul-2024).pdf|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Aug-2024-Jul-2025).pdf|publisher=AFC|title=AFC Competitions Calendar (Aug 2024 – Jul 2025)|format=PDF|date=7 April 2023|access-date=12 April 2023|archive-date=18 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418195404/https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Aug-2024-Jul-2025).pdf|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|title=AFC Competitions Calendar (Jul 2025 - Jun 2026)|url=https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Jul-2025---Jun-2026)_upd_26Jun24.pdf|publisher=AFC|format=PDF|date=26 June 2024|access-date=23 July 2024|archive-date=23 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240723064250/https://assets.the-afc.com/downloads/calendars/AFC-Competitions-Calendar-(Jul-2025---Jun-2026)_upd_26Jun24.pdf}}

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{{Main|2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round}}

Note: Bolded teams qualified for the second round of World Cup qualifying.

{{#lst:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round#Summary}}

{{Main|2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round}}

{{legend|#BBF3BB|Qualified for the third round and Asian Cup as winners or runners-up}}

{{legend|#BBF3FF|Advanced to the Asian Cup third qualifying round as third or fourth place }}

{{notelist|group="Second Round"}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group A}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group B}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group C}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group D}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group E}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group F}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group G}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group H}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round|transcludesection=Group I}}

{{Main|2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round|transcludesection=Group A}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round|transcludesection=Group B}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round|transcludesection=Group C}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round|transcludesection=Third place}}

{{Main|2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC fourth round}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC fourth round|transcludesection=Group A}}

{{:2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC fourth round|transcludesection=Group B}}

The two second-placed teams in each group from the fourth round will play against each other over two legs in November 2025 to determine which team advances to the inter-confederation play-offs.

{{#invoke:Sports series|main|flag=n

|Fourth round Group A runner-up||Fourth round Group B runner-up|{{small|13 Nov}}|{{small|18 Nov}}

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{{Main|2026 FIFA World Cup qualification (inter-confederation play-offs)}}

The fifth-round winner will join one team each from CAF, CONMEBOL, and OFC and two from CONCACAF in the inter-confederation play-offs. The teams will be ranked according to the FIFA Men's World Ranking, with the four lowest-ranked teams playing in two {{nowrap|single-elimination}} matches. The winners will meet the two highest-ranked teams in another set of {{nowrap|single-elimination}} matches, with the winners of these matches qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.{{Cite web|date=30 March 2017|title=Bureau of the Council recommends slot allocation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup|url=https://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/organisation/media-releases/bureau-of-the-council-recommends-slot-allocation-for-the-2026-fifa-wor-2878254|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220619161123/https://www.fifa.com/about-fifa/organisation/media-releases/bureau-of-the-council-recommends-slot-allocation-for-the-2026-fifa-wor-2878254|archive-date=19 June 2022|access-date=22 May 2023|publisher=FIFA}}

File:2026 World Cup AFC qualification.png

The following teams from AFC qualified for the final tournament.