Fact Check: India’s football team is yet to qualify for 2026 FIFA World Cup
India is yet to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as it is still playing in the qualifiers. Both the images in the viral collage are old.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 21 Nov 2023 1:52 PM GMT
Screebgrabs of the post making the false claim.
Hyderabad: A collage of two photos is being shared on social media with the claim that the Indian football team has qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The first photo in the collage shows a massive fan-made poster made to look like a news headline and the other shows the Indian football team posing for a picture.
(Source: Facebook)
At the time of writing this article, the post was shared over 2,000 times and was liked by around 45,000 Facebook users.
Several Facebook users have shared the collage, making the same claim. Click here, here and here to view the posts.
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that India is yet to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as it is still playing in the qualifiers. Both the images in the viral collage are old.
How does World Cup qualifying work for Asia?
Asian countries have to play five rounds to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Out of the 46 teams, this time, eight will finalise through the first four rounds, and the winner of the fifth round makes it to the inter-confederation play-off.
According to Sportstar, India will have to finish in the top two in the second and third rounds of the qualifiers to seal a spot in the FIFA World Cup 2026. India is currently in the second position in the second round after defeating Kuwait in an away game by 1-0 on November 17. India is scheduled to play against Qatar on November 21 at 7 pm in another qualifier at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar, Odisha.
What about the viral images?
Upon a reverse image search of the first image, we found it on the photostock website Getty Images, published on October 15, 2019, titled ‘India v Bangladesh - World Cup 2022 Qualifying Match.’
“Indian supporters wave a banner during the World Cup 2022 and 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifying football match between India and Bangladesh at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on October 15, 2019,” read the image’s description.
(Source: Getty Images)
The reverse image search of the second photo directed us to the official Facebook page of the Indian football team, posted on June 15, 2022.
We also found the image on the website of the All India Football Federation in a 2022 report titled ‘India put 4 past Hong Kong, finish top of AFC AsianCup Qualification Group.’
Hence, we conclude that both the images are old and the claim that India has qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup at this stage of the matches is false.
