The draw for the first round (group stage) will be held in December 2024. 54 of UEFA's 55 national teams entered the competition, with Russia banned from entering qualifying as a result of their suspension from UEFA and FIFA competitions due to their country's invasion of Ukraine.[1] The teams were seeded into five pots based on the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League interim overall ranking, compiled after the conclusion of the league phase in November 2024. This marks a significant change in procedure, as all World Cup qualifying group draws since 2010 have been seeded based on the FIFA Men's World Ranking. In the draw, Pots 1 to 4 will contain twelve teams, while Pot 5 will contain six teams. The teams will be drawn into twelve groups: six groups of four teams (Groups A–F) and six groups of five teams (Groups G–L). The draw will start with Pot 1 and will complete with Pot 6, from where a team will be drawn and assigned to the first available group (based on draw conditions) in alphabetical order. Therefore, each five-team group contains one team from each of the five pots, while each four-team group contains one team from each of the first four pots.
Following the change in format for UEFA qualifying, the competition will feature staggered starting dates, with five-team groups beginning in March 2025 and four-team groups beginning in September 2025. As numerous teams will be competing in the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League in March 2025 (in the League A quarter-finals and promotion/relegation play-offs), significant restrictions will be applied in the draw to fit all teams within the schedule. Five-team groups can only contain one team competing in March, thereby allowing these teams' two free matchdays in World Cup qualifying to be scheduled during this window, with the remaining four teams in their group playing amongst each other. As all teams in Pot 1 will be competing in March, teams from Leagues B and C that also play during this window will be required to be drawn into four-team groups. Additionally, as the four quarter-final winners will play in the 2025 UEFA Nations League Finals in June, they cannot begin World Cup qualifying until September and must be drawn into four-team groups. As there are only six four-team groups available, and the identity of the Nations League Finals participants will not be known at the time of the draw, the eight quarter-finalists will be represented in the draw as the winners or losers of quarter-finals 1–4.
The following restrictions will be applied with computer assistance:
Four-team groups: The four teams participating in the 2025 UEFA Nations League Finals (identified as the winners of quarter-finals 1–4), along with teams ranked 21–28 and 37–40 in the Nations League interim overall rankings, will be guaranteed to be drawn into groups with only four teams (Groups A–F).
Winter venues: A maximum of two teams whose venues are identified as having high or medium risk of severe winter conditions can be placed in each group: Belarus, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Ukraine.
Excessive travel: A maximum of one pair of teams identified with excessive travel distance in relation to other countries can be placed in each group:
Azerbaijan: with Gibraltar, Iceland, Portugal.
Iceland: with Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, Israel.
Kazakhstan: with Andorra, England, Faroe Islands, France, Gibraltar, Iceland, Malta, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Spain, Wales.
The two "hard winter venues", Faroe Islands and Iceland, generally cannot host games in March or November; the others shall play as few home matches as possible in March and November.
