The Socceroos are in the World Cup. Here's what you need to know
With a 2-1 victory over Saudi Arabia on Wednesday morning, the Socceroos qualified for their sixth consecutive FIFA World Cup.
It's a year to the day until the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico begins, which means Socceroos coach Tony Popovic has 365 days to ready his team for their first match of the tournament.
So now Australia is guaranteed a start, here's what you need to know ahead of kick-off.
Where is it, and who is playing?
The 2026 World Cup in North America will be the first tournament under the expanded format and will run for about five weeks from June 11 to July 19.
Previously, 32 teams have always competed for the title, but that will increase to 48 for the first time next year, and teams will compete across three nations and 16 cities.
Extra teams mean that qualification has become a little easier, but the Socceroos have qualified directly, which takes the pressure off the next few months.
Eight countries have so far guaranteed their spot at the 2026 World Cup – Australia, Japan, Jordan, Korea Republic, Iran, Uzbekistan, New Zealand and Argentina. The host nations are also guaranteed a spot, which means the United States, Canada and Mexico have also booked their tickets.
Qualifying is divided by confederation (decided by continent/location), with the AFC – the Asian confederation that Australia is in – the first to have multiple nations begin securing spots. Back in March, Japan were the first to secure a World Cup spot; European qualification only began that month.
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