England embark on their journey to the 2026 Fifa Men’s World Cup this week as they kick off their qualification campaign.
We finally get to see Thomas Tuchel in the dugout as Three Lions boss, five months after he was appointed, when his side take on Albania and Latvia at Wembley Stadium. Serbia and Andorra make up the rest of Group K.
England will play each nation in their group home and away between now and the conclusion of the campaign in November of this year.
16 Uefa nations will head to next summer’s World Cup, hosted by the USA, Mexico and Canada, with the 12 group winners qualifying directly.
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The remaining berths will be determined by play-offs involving the 12 group runners-up, which will take place in March 2026.
Should England win their group as expected, they will be vying with 47 other countries to win the World Cup in the new expanded format. The Three Lions reached the semi-finals in 2018 under previous manager Gareth Southgate, but have not won the tournament since 1966.
England fixture schedule for 2026 World Cup qualifiers
- 21 March: England v Albania
- 24 March: England v Latvia
- 7 June: Andorra v England
- 6 September: England v Andorra
- 9 September: Serbia v England
- 14 October: Latvia v England
- 13 November: England v Serbia
- 16 November: Albania v England
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