Austria is eagerly anticipating its first World Cup appearance in 28 years, and as of Friday evening, the three group opponents for Alexander Schlager & Co. have finally been determined, and they include the defending champions of the 2022 World Cup! In the official FIFA draw, the Austrian national team, seeded in Pot 2, landed in Group J. Their three opponents there are Argentina, Algeria and Jordan.

Austria will play their first group match against Jordan on June 16, either in San Francisco or Kansas City. Match two will be against Argentina, and the group will conclude with a clash against Algeria. Details regarding the exact dates and fixtures will follow shortly.

It's a truly exciting group! Getting the defending champions is, of course, a fantastic draw, and Algeria also have many players who play for top clubs. I can't yet assess Jordan very well. We will definitely try to show that Austria can play a significant role at the World Cup

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The Japanese national team – for which Sota Kitano was recently called up for the first time – will compete in Group F, where they will face the Netherlands, Tunisia, and one of the playoff winners (Ukraine, Sweden, Albania, or Poland).

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Karim Konate, who was a regular for Les Elephants before his injury, will also have followed the draw with great interest. Ivory Coast will face Germany, Ecuador and Curaçao in Group E in the summer of 2026.

Kerim Alajbegovic, another of our lads, is also hoping for a place in a World Cup squad. His Bosnia and Herzegovina will face Wales in the play-offs in March, and potentially the winner of the Northern Ireland v Italy tie, for a possible World Cup spot. Only a victory in both matches will see Kerim and his country travel to the finals in North America. If they qualify, they would face hosts Canada (coached by Jesse Marsch), Qatar, and Switzerland in Group B.

Austrian TV details

ServusTV and ORF will each broadcast 52 World Cup matches live. ServusTV will show Austria's second group stage match and, if they advance, their Round of 32 tie. The Austrian Football Association (ÖFB) will broadcast the remaining Austrian matches.

New mode with more teams

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has been expanded to 48 teams, a significant increase from the previous 32 nations. These teams have been divided into 12 groups of four, bringing the total number of matches to 104. As usual, each team will play three matches in the group stage. A total of 32 teams will qualify for the knockout stage, which now begins with the round of 32: all the group winners and runners-up, as well as the eight best third-placed teams.

World Cup draw: Schlager & Co to face Argentina