Bosnia- Herzegovina's first appearance in the World Cup is against one of the world's best in Lionel Messi and Argentina. 9. Ivory Coast vs. Japan - Saturday, June 14 at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN Group C is up for grabs and every team is a dark horse. Watch for ...

Outside the three co-hosts’ automatic qualification, Japan were the first nation to reach the 2026 World Cup. Dominant in Asian qualifying, they progressed from a second-phase group including Saudi Arabia and Australia with three games to spare, losing just once across 16 matches.

(Photo: The World Cup trophy displayed at the Fifa World Cup 2026 draw at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington DC, December 5, 2025. Credit: Pool via Reuters/Mandel Ngan)

The nation's capital hosted the draw for the 2026 World Cup on Friday, Dec. 5, determining the groups, matchups and venues for next summer's tournament in North America. The United States men's national team had already been placed in Group D as a host and learned its three opponents in the draw,