AI-assisted summary
• Rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders is set to receive all first-team practice reps for the Cleveland Browns this week.
• He is stepping in for fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel, who is recovering from a concussion.
• Sanders previously had no first-team practice reps before his regular-season debut last Sunday.

Shedeur Sanders is pegged to get all the first-team reps during the Cleveland Browns practices this week while on the runway to his first NFL start.

Hallelujah. It’s about time the high-profile rookie — poised to step in at Las Vegas on Sunday as fellow rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel recovers from a concussion — gets practice time with the starters.

“I’m truly excited for that, knowing that I have a piece in the offense and a say-so, and how things fit my eye (to) place the players exactly where they need to be,” Sanders said during a Wednesday press conference. “Seeing how they come in and out of routes, seeing the structure of the O-lineman, seeing a set, just having a feeling. Like, I’m more of a ‘feel’ type of person. So, that’s how I learn.”

Well, here’s your chance, kid. This might not go down in history like the time in 2001 when Tom Brady, a sixth-round pick, supplanted an injured Drew Bledsoe and never gave the job back on the way to amassing a collection of Super Bowl rings.

Yet the opportunity to at least get on the practice field with the starters is significant enough on the learning curve for the fifth-round pick who became the biggest storyline of the NFL draft when his projected first-round stock plummeted. When Sanders came off the bench after halftime for his first regular-season action last Sunday, it was his first time getting any action with the first team since joining the team.

Sure, Gabriel should have had the lion’s share of first-team practice reps while manning the starting post.

But zero first-team reps for Sanders?

For weeks, since Joe Flacco was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 6 and Gabriel was promoted to the lineup, Sanders was one snap away from live action. That Browns coach Kevin Stefanski didn’t ensure that Sanders got a break from his scout-team duty to take a few practice reps with the starters struck me as a bit odd, if not coaching malpractice.

Now Sanders is poised to become the 42nd quarterback to start for the Browns since the franchise was rebooted in 1999.

Maybe a few first-team reps would have helped last weekend, when one-snap-away happened. Sanders played the entire second half and despite a disastrous stat line — 4-for-16 passing for 47 yards, one interception, zero points and a 13.5 passer rating while absorbing two sacks during a blitz-heavy 28 snaps — had a shot at the end of a 23-16 defeat.

It’s no wonder Sanders, 23, considered “breaking the barrier” after so many weeks on the sideline as the biggest positive from his debut appearance.

“I don’t think a lot of people understand how challenging that is from a rookie going into a game,” he said. “Now, a lot of NFL vets, backup quarterbacks, they’ve been in the league, you feel me? I’m just coming out of college, so it’s a different feeling.”

Of course, it’s not uncommon for a backup quarterback to not get any first-team practice reps. Yet in a league in which quarterback injuries are seemingly always on the upswing and turn-over-every-stone preparation is thick, the Browns should have had a better break-glass-in-case-of-emergency plan for Sanders. Unlike teams with veterans holding clipboards as backups, the Browns were rolling with Rookie QB1 and Rookie QB2 after trading Flacco.

“Not to have a meaningful rep since August, I don’t know how any quarterback could feel comfortable or confident to be sharp,” Brian Baldinger, an NFL Network analyst, told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday.

“It’s one thing if you’re San Francisco and Mac Jones is your backup. You’re trying to get Brock Purdy ready. Well, Mac has started for two different teams in this league. He’s experienced. When your backup has got zero experience, what happens if he’s one play away?”

After Sunday’s game, Sanders (who completed a Division-1 record 71.8% of his passes during his two seasons at Colorado) mentioned that he wished he had worked with the first-team Browns receivers to get a better grasp of their nuances in running routes.

“Listen, it’s obvious that the more time and the more reps, period, are always better,” Stefanski said on Wednesday, with journeyman Bailey Zappe in line to back up Sanders against the Raiders. “As quarterbacks, they sit in that room (and) watch a lot of tape together. So, you watch the receivers and sometimes you don’t get the rep, but you see how those guys come out. That’s what you have to do as backups, that Shedeur does, that all of our guys do. When you’re not getting that rep, you just making mental notes to yourself about how guys come out of breaks.”

Baldinger, a former guard who played 11 NFL seasons for four teams from 1982-93, analyzed Sanders’ final eight plays against the Ravens for one of his popular “Baldy’s Breakdowns” segments on X. He was impressed that despite the rough outing, Sanders had the Browns in position to tie the game in the final two minutes before the last-gasp drive fizzled with three consecutive incompletions from the Ravens’ 25-yard line.

Yet he also pointed out how practice reps with the starters might have helped with the timing in connecting with Jerry Jeudy, running a curl route, on one incompletion. On the next-to-last incompletion, Sanders, facing a blitz, opted to throw to Gage Larvadain in the end zone, against Chidobe Awuzie’s tight coverage. He opted not to flip a pass to Jeudy running open on an underneath out route that might have moved the chains.

“It was in Larvadain’s hands,” said Baldinger, mindful that the Browns are tied for third in the NFL with 20 dropped passes. “It was a perfect throw, and it gets ripped out of his hands in the end zone.”

The sequence might have provided a valuable lesson for Sanders.

“There was a decision there, but anybody could’ve said, ‘I’m taking a shot here,’” Baldinger said. “He could have dumped it off to Jeudy and gotten closer. Going back and looking at it, he probably wishes he would have done it.”

Will the practice reps make a difference? We’ll see.

One thing for sure: There will be no shortage of scrutiny when the most-hyped quarterback from the NFL draft class finally makes his first NFL start.

A relic of the not-so-distant past could determine the American championship and in turn which Group of Five team reaches the College Football Playoff.

With five teams in the mix for the conference title, the American could break a multiple-team tie via the sort of computer metrics college football opted to leave in the Bowl Championship Series era in favor of the playoff’s human-driven ranking process.

This potential reliance on computer metrics could make the chase for the American crown the most controversial in the Bowl Subdivision.

Here’s how the race could unfold with two weeks left until the conference title game:

What are the American tiebreakers?

In a perfect world, the American would end the regular season with just two teams atop the conference standings with one league loss. But things rarely go according to plan.

In the case of a multiple-team logjam without any round-robin results to break the tie, the American will first use the penultimate playoff rankings to determine which two teams play for the league title.

Should two teams appear in the rankings on Tuesday, Nov. 25, before Week 14 and then win their season finales, that pair would meet in the conference championship. If three teams make those rankings, the title game will feature that week’s two highest-ranked winners. These are the dream scenarios for the American and for the playoff.

No. 24 Tulane was the only team from the Group of Five in this week’s rankings.

If that’s not an option, the league will split hairs by using the compositive average of four computer metrics: ESPN reporter Bill Connolly’s SP+, SportSource Analytics’ TR116 SOR, ESPN’s SOR and the KPI, a measurement tool created by Michigan State associate athletics director Kevin Pagua.

Who can still win the American?

There are five teams still eligible to reach the conference championship game:

Navy (8-2, 6-1) finishes American play at Memphis on Thanksgiving but won’t put a bow on the regular season until playing Army on Dec. 13. That last game won’t have any impact on the College Football Playoff should Navy win the conference. The Midshipmen beat South Florida but lost to North Texas.

Tulane (8-2, 5-1) still plays Temple and Charlotte. The Green Wave lost to Texas-San Antonio but own wins against East Carolina and Memphis. They didn’t play Navy, North Texas or South Florida.

North Texas (9-1, 5-1) will play at Rice this weekend and then host Temple on Black Friday. The Mean Green has the win against Navy but lost to South Florida.

East Carolina (7-3, 5-1) closes with road trips to Texas-San Antonio and Florida Atlantic. The Pirates just beat Memphis but lost at Tulane in early October.

South Florida (7-3, 4-2) lost to Navy and Memphis but owns the tiebreaker against North Texas. The Bulls are still alive, if barely, with games against Alabama-Birmingham and Rice to end November.

What are the American tiebreaker scenarios?

The cleanest scenario has Navy beating Memphis, North Texas winning out, Tulane losing to Temple and ECU losing to Texas-San Antonio. That would leave the Midshipmen and Mean Green as the only 7-1 teams in league play.

Another simple scenario sees North Texas and Tulane win out, Memphis beat Navy and ECU lose once, leaving the Mean Green and Green Wave atop the standings.

Should every favorite win this weekend — led by Tulane over Temple and North Texas over Rice — the American could place two or even three teams in the penultimate rankings, though that’s not guaranteed.

Will the American champion make the playoff?

Almost certainly. But there are two teams that could sneak ahead if the American flops down the stretch:

San Diego State (8-2, 5-1) has wins against California, Fresno State and Boise State, and could add solid wins against New Mexico and the second-place team in the Mountain West by taking the conference title.

James Madison (9-1, 7-0) is cruising to the Sun Belt championship but currently has just one win against an opponent with a winning record in Old Dominion. The Dukes could add two more against Coastal Carolina to end the month and then against the winner of the West division in the conference title game. Southern Mississippi currently leads the division but just lost by 27 points at home to Texas State, which was previously winless in league play.

Neither team is expected to finish in front as long as the American champion has two or fewer losses.

Favorites could take care of business and things could go according to plan in the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and even the ACC, should Georgia Tech and Virginia cross the finish line with just one conference loss.

But of the Power Four leagues, the ACC remains the Power Four league most likely headed for chaos with just two weeks remaining until conference championship games.

That’s not great news for the conference, which might have a slew of contenders battling for a title-game appearance but could end up sending only its champion into the College Football Playoff.

A tipping point comes this Saturday. Georgia Tech could lock down a trip to Charlotte, North Carolina, by beating Pittsburgh. But a loss opens up a range of possibilities that include Miami playing for the ACC title despite two conference losses.

The other three also have the possibility of some wild permutations should upsets happen in the final two weeks.

Here’s where each race stands in the Power Four and the possible tiebreakers that will impact which teams play for conference titles:

SEC conference tiebreakers

Contenders: Texas A&M (7-0), Georgia (7-1), Mississippi (6-1), Alabama (6-1).

The conference race won’t be determined until Texas A&M meets No. 18 Texas and Alabama takes on Auburn in the Iron Bowl after Thanksgiving. That would be your two teams advancing to Atlanta if both teams win.

If A&M loses and Alabama wins, the Crimson Tide would face Georgia, which is already in the clubhouse at 7-1 and would edge out the Aggies thanks to a better record against four common league opponents. If Alabama loses and A&M wins, the Aggies will face Georgia because of the Bulldogs’ win against Mississippi.

In the case of losses by A&M and Alabama, the title game would pit the Georgia and Ole Miss, which would finish ahead of the Aggies by virtue of a stronger conference opponent winning percentage. And if the Aggies, Tide and Rebels all lose, A&M would backdoor into a matchup against Georgia.

Big Ten conference tiebreakers

Contenders: Indiana (8-0), Ohio State (7-0), Southern California (6-1), Oregon (6-1), Michigan (6-1).

As in the SEC, the Big Ten race could stick to the script: Indiana beats Purdue to secure the first Big Ten championship game appearance in program history and meets Ohio State, which beats Michigan.

At this point, there’s no reason to think the Hoosiers will faceplant against the woeful Boilermakers. If they do, though, and then Oregon beats Southern California on Saturday and Michigan tops Ohio State a week later, the loss to Purdue would drop Indiana into fourth place in the final standings and send the Ducks and Wolverines to Lucas Oil Stadium.

Let’s take that hard-to-imagine scenario off the table and lock the Hoosiers into the championship game. We will also assume no other upsets among the contenders.

Indiana would meet Oregon if the Ducks top USC and Michigan beats OSU. If USC wins on Saturday and the Wolverines win, the Trojans will finish in second place and face the Hoosiers because of a stronger conference opponent winning percentage.

In the case of an Indiana win, Michigan’s path to the Big Ten championship game requires a win against the Buckeyes and then the winner of Oregon and USC losing the following weekend — the Ducks to Washington or the Trojans to UCLA.

Big 12 conference tiebreakers

Contenders: Texas Tech (7-1), Brigham Young (6-1), Utah (5-2), Houston (5-2), Arizona State (5-2), Cincinnati (5-2).

Texas Tech is locked into the championship game by beating West Virginia next Saturday. Tech can also advance with a loss should Brigham Young lose one of two against Cincinnati and Central Florida.

The Cougars are in with a clean finish. They could also lose once and earn a rematch with the Red Raiders if Arizona State drops one of two against Colorado and Arizona. In this case, BYU breaks a three-way tie with Utah and Houston thanks to the head-to-head win against the Utes and a better record against common conference opponents than the Cougars.

Arizona State is looming if BYU stumbles. If BYU loses once and ASU and Utah win out, the Sun Devils will return to the Big 12 title game because of a perfect record against three common conference opponents. If the Utes lose once to leave a two-way tie, ASU will advance because of a win against Texas Tech.

Losses to BYU and Tech have left Utah with a very narrow path to the championship game. To get there, the Utes would need to beat Kansas State and Kansas while BYU loses twice and ASU loses once.

There is also an extremely slim possibility of a seven-way tie for second place that breaks Utah’s way thanks to a win against ASU and the highest conference opponent winning percentage.

Cincinnati has a long-shot chance which includes wins against BYU and TCU and losses by Arizona State, Utah and Houston.

ACC conference tiebreakers

Contenders: Georgia Tech (6-1), Virginia (6-1), Pittsburgh (5-1), SMU (5-1), Miami (4-2), Duke (4-2).

Georgia Tech ends ACC play on Saturday against Pittsburgh. Virginia takes on Virginia Tech next weekend. SMU still plays Louisville and California. Miami closes at Virginia Tech and at Pittsburgh.

If Georgia Tech, Virginia and SMU win out, the Yellow Jackets would finish first because of their win against Wake Forest, which beat the Cavaliers and Mustangs. Virginia would finish ahead of SMU by conference opponent winning percentage.

Virginia will face Duke if the Cavaliers beat the Hokies, the Panthers beat Georgia Tech and SMU lose one of two. Under the same criteria, Pittsburgh would face Virginia by also beating Miami in the season finale.

A lane is opening for Miami to play for the ACC crown despite losses to Louisville and SMU. To get there, the Hurricanes have to win out while Georgia Tech loses to Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech tops Virginia.

• Is it time for the NFL to take a page out of soccer’s playbook and sublet its stars?
• It would certainly be nice to see Myles Garrett with a team positioned to make a deep playoff run as he toils with Cleveland for a ninth season.
• In addition to Garrett, these five other stars would also be prime loan candidates in 2025.

One can get some loopy ideas, especially when one subjects oneself to 14 hours of NFL football on any given Sunday.

Take last weekend for instance.

Aside from those who live in South Florida, inside the Beltway or have a fantasy team anchored by De’Von Achane, then there was little reason to get up early to watch the Week 11 matchup between the Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders … unless you were curious to see the visuals from the league’s first-ever regular-season contest from Madrid – which included Real Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium, perhaps European fútbol’s preeminent palace.

Sunday night’s, uh, fixture between the Eagles and Lions featured two teams with Super Bowl aspirations – even if one could argue each might be a pivotal player away from World Cup, er, Lombardi glory. If only they could sublet another player.

Wait, what?!?!

Full transparency, I’m no kickball enthusiast – unless “Ted Lasso” or “Welcome to Wrexham” is about to resume. Soccer is replete with drawbacks – such as ties (I mean draws), offsides, fake injuries, hooligans, midseason Cups (like the moronic one the NBA continues clinging to) and FIFA. But it does have some otherwise intriguing aspects to its tableau – think promotion/relegation and spectacular venues such as Bernabéu.

And the loan system. Can you imagine that in the NFL?

Maybe you’re thinking the league’s transfer window – trade deadline, I mean trade deadline – just expired earlier this month. That is true, of course, and a few big names, namely ex-New York Jets Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner, joined new sides. Yet, like in most leagues, most NFLers who are dealt in the middle of a season are often sub-star-caliber and literally are rentals, sent to a new team for what’s probably a temporary hitch as their existing contract runs out – essentially what happened with new Eagles OLB Jaelan Phillips, Seahawks WR Rashid Shaheed and Jaguars WR Jakobi Meyers.

But consider the possibilities – and additional interest – if the league implemented a loan window after the trade deadline? I’m talking about the opportunity of a team allowing a superstar to play elsewhere, probably for the remainder of a given season (or maybe an additional year) in return for draft picks (maybe), prospects (maybe) or even salary cap space (which currently can’t be exchanged) in addition to whatever would be saved when the gaining team picked up the player’s paychecks for the term of the rental. This might also be an avenue to give younger, unproven guys developmental playing time elsewhere if they’re buried on the depth chart of a good team.

And I get it, football is an inherently riskier sport than fútbol, and a club and its fan base would certainly suffer some degree of agita watching one of their key guys selling out while in harm’s way and in another uniform, if only temporarily. But everyone has a price point. And there’s also an argument to be made that a bond between a player and organization could be strengthened if he was liberated – if only for a finite period of time – to pursue a Lombardi Trophy elsewhere.

With this wild proposal in mind, here are six players I wish were eligible for loans in 2025 – for the greater good of their teams, but mostly for them personally.

DE Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns

He has to be the premier example here, right? In case you’d forgotten, he requested a trade prior to Super Bowl 59 earlier this year, even penning a goodbye letter to Browns fans. A four-year, $160 million extension in March unsurprisingly changed Garrett’s mind as it made him the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback at the time. Yet he’s enduring a similar fate in 2025 as previous campaigns, playing extraordinary football in the dark, on pace for a single-season record 25½ sacks – 10 coming over the past three games (all losses), including four in Sunday’s defeat to Baltimore.

Said Cleveland safety Grant Delpit: “I mean he’s the greatest of all time. He’s the best I’ve seen do it. I’m glad that he’s on my team.”

But imagine if the No. 1 pick of the 2017 draft wasn’t – at least not exclusively. What if the Browns could double deal, just a little bit, but ultimately keep the guy who could wind up being the greatest player in franchise history not named Jim Brown while also obtaining (needed) assets to upgrade Garrett’s supporting cast − all while affording him the opportunity to chase the ring he claimed he wanted so badly earlier this year? And how fascinating would it be to learn what teams might be willing to bid in order to borrow a guy for a half-dozen games or so? Sure, the notion of a dude playing his entire career in one helmet is romantic … even if every team has three helmets now. It also basically never happens. That hasn’t diluted Tom Brady’s ties to New England or Peyton Manning’s to Indianapolis or Jerry Rice’s to San Francisco.

The NFL is predicated on competitive balance, and loans would theoretically only disrupt that temporarily – while potentially adding another highly riveting component to the later stages of the regular season, when circumstances are always going to force some clubs by the wayside, regardless of conditions.

“Free Myles” … even if we’re merely furloughing him.

(And Cleveland needs to update the above social post.)

Playoff career: One win in two postseason appearances over his first eight seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – Patriots: New England is tied for the league’s best record (9-2), has – by far – the most unused cap space in the league ($52 million-plus, per OverTheCap) and no dominant pass rusher on an eighth-ranked defense.

DE Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas Raiders

If Garrett is in a tier unto himself, Crosby is right below him. A talented, relentless, loyal soldier who’s remarkably straightened out his life and blossomed into a leader with the franchise that drafted him – and he and the Raiders remain mutually dedicated after he signed his own three-year extension earlier this year – Crosby nevertheless remains tethered to an organization that seems stuck in a perpetual rebuild. Hopefully he eventually plays for a Sin City winner, but it’d be nice if he could finally showcase his talents for one elsewhere.

Playoff career: Zero wins in one postseason appearance over his first six seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – Lions: Detroit still hasn’t found a certifiable wingman for fellow DE Aidan Hutchinson, who was routinely enveloped Sunday night by the Eagles’ O-line. Borrowing Crosby would make opponents pay for double-teaming anyone on the edge.

OLB Brian Burns, New York Giants

He’s in the midst of a career year, Burns’ 13 sacks trailing only Garrett (15) league-wide. But that spectacular effort won’t last beyond 17 games with the flatlined G-Men, Burns no closer to his first-ever playoff trip.

Playoff career: No appearances over his first six seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – Panthers: After he was traded last year, let’s send Burns back to Charlotte, where he toiled for his first five seasons and already knows much of the building and DC Ejiro Evero. The Panthers are currently hovering just outside the projected NFC playoff field and don’t have a defender with more than three sacks. A brief get-together with their former flame could be hot stuff for both parties.

DT Jeffery Simmons, Tennessee Titans

The Titans once again have the league’s worst record but have identified Simmons, a three-time Pro Bowler, as part of their future and opted not to trade him. But if they could loan him? He’s not Aaron Donald, but who is? However Simmons is certainly on par with Williams, who fetched a first- and second-round pick plus more from Dallas, and can certainly crush a pocket that so many of the league’s elite passers rely upon in January. Here’s hoping Simmons lasts long enough to reach another postseason game in Nashville – but sure would be nice if he was guaranteed one under a different situation.

Playoff career: Two wins in three postseason appearances (none since 2021) over his first six seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – 49ers: Granted, Simmons isn’t an off-ball linebacker or pass rusher who could fill in more seamlessly for Fred Warner or Nick Bosa, the Niners’ injured defensive stalwarts. But Simmons could wreck shop from the inside for a unit that values D-line depth but had already been largely revamped by free agency before losing its two best players.

TE Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals

He’s been more than living up to the four-year, $76 million contract he signed earlier this year, albeit for a team that’s taken a major step back in 2025. If he’s not the league’s best tight end at present, McBride is certainly the most productive, his 71 catches, 718 yards and seven TDs all tops at the position entering Week 12.

Playoff career: No appearances over his first three seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – Packers: What a Band-Aid McBride would be for a Super Bowl hopeful forging ahead without injured Tucker Kraft.

RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

Maybe it’s somewhat premature to suggest loaning a potential superstar, one who scored two more touchdowns in obscurity during Sunday’s come-from-ahead loss to Carolina. But Robinson, now in his third season but eligible for his first mega-money extension in 2026, seems headed down the Saquon Barkley road with the ill-constructed Falcons, who are quickly squandering the prime years of a player whose position almost certainly limits his professional longevity. And given what a real-time highlight reel the luminous Robinson is capable of being, he’s the kind of high-wattage star and personality who deserves the opportunity to flourish on grander platforms.

Playoff career: No appearances over his first two seasons.

Ideal “loan” fit – AFC West: Can you imagine if the Chiefs, Broncos and Chargers got to fight over Robinson as a potential temp? Kansas City doesn’t run the ball particularly well and would surely love to make another move to spark their expected playoff push; Denver just lost RB J.K. Dobbins to a foot injury that will probably end his season; and the Bolts have been trying to get by without injured Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris. But Robinson to K.C. might be especially … special? Seeing what he could do during a deep postseason run while leveraging his multi-dimensional ability with the game’s most clutch quarterback would be something to behold.

Europe’s new qualifying format for the 2026 World Cup includes a 16-team second round, with four pods of four teams fighting for UEFA’s final spots in next summer’s tournament.

Four-time champion Italy finds itself in the playoffs and will need to win two matches to avoid missing out on a third consecutive World Cup. UEFA has 16 places in the 2026 World Cup, one-third of the expanded field and 12 teams have already secured their spots.

The semifinals will be played on March 26, 2026, with the higher-ranked teams hosting and the final in each bracket set for March 31.

Here’s what to know for the UEFA World Cup qualifying playoffs:

UEFA World Cup playoffs bracket, qualifiers for 2026

Path A

Semifinals – March 26, 2026

• Northern Ireland at Italy
• Bosnia and Herzegovina at Wales

Final – March 31, 2026

• Northern Ireland/Italy winner at Bosnia and Herzegovia/Wales winner

Path B

Semifinals – March 26, 2026

• Sweden at Ukraine
• Albania at Poland

Final – March 31, 2026

• Albania/Poland winner at Sweden/Ukraine winner

Path C

Semifinals – March 26, 2026

• Romania at Turkey
• Kosovo at Slovakia

Final – March 31, 2026

• Romania/Turkey winner at Kosovo/Slovakia winner

Path D

Semifinals – March 26, 2026

• North Macedonia at Denmark
• Republic of Ireland at Czechia

Final – March 31, 2026

• North Macedonia/Denmark winner at Republic of Ireland/Czechia winner

When is the UEFA World Cup qualifying playoff?

All eight semifinals will be played on March 26, 2026, and the four finals on March 31.

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Of the 48 spots in the expanded World Cup 2026 field, 42 have been secured.

Despite the World Cup draw taking place on Dec. 5, six spots still will be up for grabs during tournaments played in March.

While UEFA holds a 16-team playoff to determine that confederation’s final four World Cup berths, a six-team intercontinental tournament will take place for two additional spots.

The intercontinental playoff tournament that will take place during the FIFA international window from March 23 through March 31. Bolivia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname will compete for two World Cup spots in a tournament held in Mexico.

Here’s what to know about FIFA’s intercontinental playoffs:

World Cup intercontinental playoff bracket

The six teams are seeded based on the latest FIFA world rankings. The two highest-seeded nations – DR Congo (No. 56) and Iraq (58) – were automatically placed into the finals of two separate brackets. The remaining teams – Jamaica (70), Bolivia (76), Suriname (123) and New Caledonia (149) – were drawn into the semifinals. The two Concacaf teams – Jamaica and Suriname – were placed in separate brackets.

• Semifinal 1: New Caledonia vs. Jamaica
• Semifinal 2: Bolivia vs. Suriname
• Final 1: New Caledonia-Jamaica winner vs. DR Congo
• Final 2: Bolivia-Suriname winner vs. Iraq

When is the intercontinental playoff?

The World Cup qualifying intercontinental playoffs will be held in March 2026.

Where is World Cup intercontinental playoff?

The four matches in the 2026 intercontinental playoffs will be played in Mexico, a co-host of the summer’s World Cup. Matches will be held at the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara and the Estadio BBVA in Monterrey.

How did these teams qualify for the intercontinental playoff?

• Bolivia was the seventh-place finisher in CONMEBOL, the soccer federation of South America.
• Democratic Republic of the Congo won a four-team playoff in Africa, defeating Cameroon in the semifinal and Nigeria in a penalty shootout in the final.
• Iraq won a two-legged playoff against the United Arab Emirates.
• Jamaica was one of the two best group runners-up in qualifying in Concacaf, the soccer federation of North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
• New Caledonia was the runner-up in the Oceanian confederation’s qualification.
• Suriname was one of the two best group runners-up in Concacaf qualifying.