2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF first round
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 22–26 March 2024 |
| Teams | 4 (from 1 confederation) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 4 |
| Goals scored | 4 (1 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,780 (445 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Luke Paris Hugo Liziario Billy Forbes Jett Blaschka(1 goal each) |
← 2022 2030 → | |
The first round of CONCACAF matches for 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification were played on 22 and 26 March 2024.[1]
Format
[edit]Four teams, ranked as the bottom four in the CONCACAF entrant list, played home-and-away over two legs in two ties. The two winners advanced to the second round.[2]
Seeding
[edit]The seeding was based on the FIFA Men's World Ranking of December 2023 (shown in parentheses).[3][4]
Note: Bolded teams qualified for the second round.
| Seeded | Unseeded |
|---|---|
|
|
The first round ties were predetermined as follows:
- First-ranked team vs fourth-ranked team
- Second-ranked team vs third-ranked team
The lower-ranked teams hosted the first leg, while the higher-ranked teams hosted the second leg.
Summary
[edit]The first legs were played on 22 March, while the second legs were played on 26 March 2024.[5]
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anguilla | 1–1 (4–3 p) | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0–0 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | 1–1 (2–4 p) | British Virgin Islands | 1–1 | 0–0 (a.e.t.) |
Matches
[edit]| Anguilla | 0–0 | Turks and Caicos Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (CONCACAF) |
| Turks and Caicos Islands | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Anguilla |
|---|---|---|
|
Report (FIFA) Report (CONCACAF) |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 3–4 | ||
1–1 on aggregate. Anguilla won 4–3 on penalties and advanced to the second round (Group F).
| U.S. Virgin Islands | 1–1 | British Virgin Islands |
|---|---|---|
|
Report (FIFA) Report (CONCACAF) |
|
| British Virgin Islands | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | U.S. Virgin Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (CONCACAF) |
||
| Penalties | ||
| 4–2 | ||
1–1 on aggregate. British Virgin Islands won 4–2 on penalties and advanced to the second round (Group E).
Goalscorers
[edit]There were 4 goals scored in 4 matches, for an average of 1 goal per match.
1 goal
Discipline
[edit]A player was automatically suspended for the next match for the following infractions:[8]
- Receiving a red card (red card suspensions may be extended for serious infractions)
- Receiving two yellow cards in two different matches (yellow card suspensions are carried forward to further qualification rounds, but not the finals or any other future international matches)
There were no suspensions served during the first round.
References
[edit]- ^ "CONCACAF announces schedule for first two rounds of CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026". CONCACAF. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "CONCACAF announces formats for men's national team competitions for the 2023–2026 cycle". CONCACAF. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
- ^ "Draw Procedures for the CONCACAF Preliminary Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26" (PDF). FIFA. 23 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "Men's Ranking – December 2023". FIFA. 21 December 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "CONCACAF announces schedule for first two rounds of CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026". CONCACAF. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "Anguilla v Turks and Caicos Islands". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 January 2025.
- ^ "US Virgin Islands v British Virgin Islands". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 January 2025.
- ^ "Regulations: FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Competition" (PDF). FIFA. June 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.