FIFA World Cup
The finals tournament is held every four years. In the other years there are only qualifiers (qualifying tournaments) in the six FIFA world regions. These games help to decide which teams will move on. Over 160 national teams play in the qualifying games. The best teams from the qualifying games win a place in the finals. The finals now include 32 teams. Before 1998, only 24 teams were in the finals; starting in 2026, there will be 48 teams in the finals. Many years before each World Cup, FIFA picks the host nation, the country where the finals will be held. Being the host nation means that their team has qualified for the finals tournament automatically and does not need to play any qualifying games. The 32 teams in the finals then play for four weeks, usually between June and July, to decide who the champion (tournament winner) will be.