Co-hosts the United States, Canada and Mexico are already in, but the list is growing for the 2026 World Cup field

(CNN) — Japan became the first country to qualify for the 2026 men’s World Cup after it beat Bahrain 2-0 at Saitama Stadium on Thursday. Second-half goals from Daichi Kamada and Takefusa Kubo were enough for the Samurai Blue to earn its spot at next year’s tournament which is being hosted in the US, Canada and Mexico.