…to The Tap-Inn. Where you can tap in to the world of soccer with me, your bartender Joe.

In honour of the World Cup draw finally being made, we’ve gone and made ourselves a sexy new logo. You better like it. It’s definitely not going to change again any time soon…

“OK Joe, sure. Can you tell me what I should know about this draw already?”

Let’s tap in. 🍺

On Friday night after a painful 2 hours, 25 minutes and 25 seconds, 47 irrelevant celebrity appearances, 4 unoriginal “it’s called football, not soccer” jokes and eventually an actual draw, we now finally know the state of play for the FIFA World Cup 2026.

I could analyze the permutations, simulations and ramifications until my kegs run dry but instead I’m going to break down what this draw actually means for the real Greatest Show on Earth.

Teams now know the exact locations for their group-stage games. This year, with the tournament being played across three different countries, travel distances between stadiums and climates vary more than ever. That makes planning training and recovery crucial.

The USMNT for example will have two group stage games in LA (vs Paraguary and a TBD team from Europe) and one in Seattle (vs Australia). Place first in their group, and they’ll be off to San Francisco for their next game in the round of 32.

In total, there are 16 host cities across Mexico (3), Canada (2) and the USA (11).

Every country now knows the exact kick-off times for each game. For fans, this is the moment to start figuring out which games we can watch live, which late-night kickoffs might destroy our sleep, and yes, when to start booking your tables at The Tap-Inn.

Pour one out for some of the European fans though - they’ll be getting up at (or staying up until) 4am for a whole lot of the group stage action. Zzzzz…

The biggie. The draw (pictured above) reveals not just group opponents, but the potential knockout path. Teams can plan strategies for the teams they’re certain to play, while fans can start imagining dream results, underdog runs, and early must-watch games.

One of the more exciting possible permutations involves one last dance for Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Should Portugal and Argentina both progress from their groups in 1st place and go on to win their respective round of 32 games, they’ll face each other in the round of 16. Get the popcorn ready, folks.

Next years World Cup is the first to be hosted by more than one nation.

Keep scrolling for the answer ⬇️

A 95th-minute winner from substitute Emi Buendía saw Villa upset Arsenal and move up to 3rd in the table. They’re now just 3 points off leaders Arsenal, with Manchester City only 2 points behind the Gunners.

English frontman Harry Kane bagged another hat-trick in a comfortable win against 10-man Stuttgart. Bayern are 8 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga table, having won 12 and drawn 1 of their 13 games.

A hat-trick from Ferran Torres, a first Barca goal for Roony Bardghji and a penalty from wonderkid Lamine Yamal leaves the Catalan giants in podium position in La Liga. Real Madrid’s defeat last night to Celta Vigo means they’re now four points behind.

When a player dramatically falls over with zero contact from their opponent, trying to win a free kick or penalty.

This is called diving - half acting, half disgrace. It’s NOT a good look in soccer.

Norman Hunter became the first player to make his England Debut coming on as a ‘sub’ on this day in 1965.

Although its commonplace for players to come on as substitututes now, in 1965, they weren’t much of a thing. Players used to play the whole game, start to finish without any substitutions.

Still confused? Check out my explainer HERE.

The 2002 World Cup was joint-hosted by South Korea and Japan.

However, this years tournament is the first to be hosted by three nations.

Thanks for stopping by The Tap-Inn.

If you enjoyed this, forward it to that friend who knows nothing about soccer and help spread the good word.

I’ll be behind the bar every week, Monday and Friday, serving up soccer. Sláinte.

— Joe