48 teams in the 2026 World Cup still have regrets: 4 debutants, 4-star Italy absent, 8 Arab teams participating.

The 48 teams for the 2026 USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup have all been finalized, forming the largest family in World Cup history. From a geographical perspective on Earth,it spans from Norway near the Arctic Circle in the north to Argentina close to Antarctica in the south, from New Zealand in the east at UTC+12 to the USA in the west at UTC-11, crossing 19 time zones directly.The 2026 World Cup is massive: 8 teams from the Arab region have qualified, and 4 new World Cup debutants have emerged. However, there are still regrets, as champion teams and some star players are absent from the historically largest World Cup—the 2026 USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup.

Overview of the 2026 USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup classification:

• Eight teams from the Arab region participatingSpecifically, from the African zone:Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egyptand from the Asian zone:Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, Jordan.
• Four World Cup debutantsJordan, Uzbekistan, Cape Verde, Curaçao. This also fills the gap of no World Cup participant from Central Asia and brings World Cup participation back to the Caribbean region after 20 years.
• Long-absent World Cup participantsNew Zealand and Paraguay (after 16 years), Czech Republic (after 20 years), Turkey (after 24 years; last participated in 2002, in the same group as China's national team, finishing third), Austria, Norway, and Scotland (after 28 years), Iraq (after 40 years), DR Congo and Haiti (after 52 years). Also, South Africa returns after 24 years via qualification; in 2010, South Africa participated as host.
• World Cup attendance leaders:Brazil is the only team to have participated in all 23 World Cups, Germany 21 times, Argentina 19 times, Italy remains at 18, host Mexico ties Italy at 18. For consecutive participations: Brazil 23 times, Germany 19 times, Argentina 14 times ties Italy, Spain 13 times, Korea Republic 11 times ranks 6th (setting a record for Asian teams' consecutive World Cup appearances).
• World Cup finalists absentIn 96 years of World Cup history, 15 teams have reached the final. This edition has 13 of them present; absent are 4-star Italy and Hungary, a two-time runner-up. The 2026 World Cup is also the most complete in terms of participating teams after 36 years.

Strong teams and stars missing the 2026 USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup: four-time World Cup champion Italy misses three consecutive World Cups, perhaps the biggest regret of this edition, as Italian football is the dream football for many longtime fans. Stars absent include Italy's Donnarumma and Tonali, Poland's Lewandowski, Hungary's handsome and talented Szoboszlai, Cameroon's Mbeumo, Denmark's Højlund…

Nothing in the world is perfect; being close to perfection is already very perfect. The World Cup is the pinnacle of football, a feast for fans. Let us eagerly anticipate the arrival of the 2026 USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup!