The Board of Directors of the Icelandic Football Association at its meeting adopted a decision to appoint Arnar Gunnlaugsson as the head coach of the national team.

The new mentor of Ukraine's group D World Cup 2026 qualifier previously worked with club "Vikingur." The 52-year-old professional also coached "Akrúnar" and was an assistant to the coach at "Reykjavík." With "Vikingur," Gunnlaugsson twice won the Icelandic championship (2021, 2023) and four times — the Icelandic Cup (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023). In 2021 and 2023, he was recognized as the best coach in the Icelandic league.

The first matches of Iceland's national team under Arnar Gunnlaugsson will be play-off games against Kosovo for a place in League B of the Nations League. The first match will take place on March 20 at the "Fadil Vokrri" stadium in Pristina, and the return match — on March 23 at the Murcia Enrique Roque arena in Spain.

The World Cup 2026 qualifiers between Iceland and Ukraine will take place on October 10 and November 16 of this year.

World Cup 2026. Qualification in UEFA zone. Group D match schedule

Round 1. September 5, 2025

Ukraine — France/Croatia 9:45 PM

Iceland — Azerbaijan 9:45 PM

Round 2. September 9, 2025

Azerbaijan — Ukraine 7:00 PM

France/Croatia — Iceland 9:45 PM

Round 3. October 10, 2025

Iceland — Ukraine 9:45 PM

France/Croatia — Azerbaijan 9:45 PM

Round 4. October 13, 2025

Ukraine — Azerbaijan 9:45 PM

Iceland — France/Croatia 9:45 PM

Round 5. November 13, 2025

Azerbaijan — Iceland 7:00 PM

France/Croatia — Ukraine 9:45 PM

Round 6. November 16, 2025

Ukraine — Iceland 7:00 PM

Azerbaijan — France/Croatia 7:00 PM

Kiev time.

World Cup 2026. Qualification in UEFA zone. First round

Group A: Germany/Italy (winner), Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg.

Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo.

Group C: Portugal/Denmark (winner), Greece, Scotland, Belarus.

Group D: France/Croatia (winner), Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan.

Group E: Spain/Netherlands (winner), Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria.

Group F: Portugal/Denmark (winner), Hungary, Ireland, Armenia.

Group G: Spain/Netherlands (runner-up), Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta.

Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino.

Group I: Germany/Italy (runner-up), Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova.

Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein.

Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra.

Group L: France/Croatia (runner-up), Czech Republic, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar.

UEFA (Europe): 16 spots.

Qualification in the European zone will take place from March 2025 to March 2026 and consist of two rounds. Teams will compete for 16 spots at the World Cup.

Round 1: Twelve groups with five or four teams each will play from March to November 2025 in a traditional group stage system. The twelve winners of the groups will receive direct tickets to the final stage.

The twelve teams that finish second, along with the four best group winners of UEFA Nations League 2024/2025 who finish below second place in the European qualification group stage, will participate in mini-tournaments.

Round 2: mini-tournaments in March 2026 will consist of one-legged semi-finals and finals. Sixteen participants will be divided into four playoff paths. The four winners will receive tickets to the World Cup 2026.

World Cup 2026. Final tournament

The World Cup 2026 — the first in history where 48 teams will compete in the final stage. There will be twelve groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group and eight best third-placed teams will advance to the round of 16.

Matches of the 23rd World Cup will take place in sixteen cities. In Canada — Toronto and Vancouver, Mexico — Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey; USA — Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle.

The opening match of the World Cup will take place on June 11, 2026 in Mexico City, and the final match will be held in New York on July 19.