New FIFA rankings set top-seed teams in World Cup tournament draw with Germany edging out Croatia

ZURICH (AP) — The top-seeded teams for the Dec. 5 World Cup tournament draw, including Germany but not Croatia, were set Wednesday when FIFA published new rankings the day after four continents completed qualifying.

Co-hosts the United States, Canada and Mexico will be joined in the pot of No. 1 seeds by top-ranked Spain, defending champion Argentina, France, England, Portugal, Brazil, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

Croatia, a semifinalist in 2022 and beaten finalist by France in 2018, was edged down into pot 2 for the draw ceremony at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. President Donald Trump is scheduled to attend.

The updated FIFA rankings also decided seeding for the draw Thursday for playoff brackets in March that will decide the final six entries in the expanded 48-nation lineup.

The 22 playoffs teams include 16 in Europe playing for four World Cup places and six from the other regions chasing two spots in the intercontinental brackets.

Italy is the headliner in the European brackets as the four-time world champion aims to avoid a humiliating third straight exit in the playoffs.

The 12th-ranked Italians were pushed into the playoffs after finishing runner-up in a qualifying group won by Norway. Erling Haaland’s Norwegian team shapes as a dangerous option from pot 3 in two weeks’ time.

Italy will be drawn Thursday at home against a fourth-seeded team. It could again be North Macedonia, which shockingly eliminated the Italians in 2022.

The winner on March 26 advances to a playoff final five days later against the team that emerges from the No. 2 seed vs. No. 3 seed pairing in its knockout bracket. Home advantage in the single-game playoff finals will be decided by the draw Thursday and not FIFA ranking.

The teams that eventually emerge from the four separate European playoff brackets are expected to be placeholders from low-ranked pot 4 in the Dec. 5 draw.

The intercontinental brackets will see top-seeded Iraq and Congo each await the winner of playoff semifinals that involve Bolivia, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname.