Europe resumes World Cup qualifying with first games for recent champions France, Germany, Spain

GENEVA (AP) — European soccer now focuses on qualifying for the 2026 World Cup with recent champions France, Germany and Spain among the nations starting a six-game, 11-week sprint to advance to the tournament being played across North America.

The European qualifying program returns Thursday with six days of games involving 54 teams — 24 of them kicking a first ball on their intended road to play on soccer’s biggest stage in the United States, Canada and Mexico starting June 11.

Italy began its campaign — shakily — in June and resumes its quest to avoid a third straight failure to qualify already trailing nine points behind group leader Norway.

England opened in March and looks to add to three straight wins with no goals conceded for coach Thomas Tuchel.

Among those starting their qualifying program are top-tier teams who played a thrilling set of Nations League games in March and June.

Spain, the 2010 World Cup winner, begins at Bulgaria on Thursday when 2014 champion Germany starts at Slovakia.

France, the 2018 title winner, starts Friday away against Ukraine in Les Bleus’ first game in the competition since losing an epic final against Argentina in December 2022.

Ukraine will host that game in Wroclaw in neutral Poland because of security concerns at home during the Russian military invasion. Russia’s teams were banned by UEFA and FIFA from all international competitions in February 2022 when the war began.

Europe has 16 entries in the first 48-team men’s World Cup, three more than in the 32-team format played in 2022.

The 12 first-place teams when qualifying groups end in November advance direct to the tournament.

The 12 runners-up go to the playoffs scheduled in March, joined by four winners of Nations League groups played last year. Those extra teams could include, remarkably, San Marino, 210th and last of the men’s national teams ranked by FIFA.

The 16 European playoffs teams will be seeded into four knockout brackets of four teams each. They play single-game semifinals and finals on March 26 and 31, to decide the four remaining World Cup slots.

The extra World Cup entries given by FIFA, and Nations League knockout stage expanded by UEFA, have changed the qualifying formula.

Europe now has its first World Cup qualifying groups of just four teams since those that finished in November 1989, just days after the Berlin Wall fell and reshaped the continent.

High-ranking nations that once had to play in groups of five or six teams across 15 months now have a condensed program playing two games in each of three straight months. An injury could remove a key player for the entire qualifying program. Germany will not have Jamal Musiala, who sustained a serious leg injury playing for Bayern Munich at the Club World Cup in July.

The format changes again next year. After the 2026 World Cup, the FIFA schedule for men’s national-team games will combine the separate September and October breaks into a four-game block over back-to-back weekends.

European champion Spain's reward for beating the Netherlands in a Nations League quarterfinal in March was to land in a four-team group with Turkey and Georgia, two breakout successes at Euro 2024.

Georgia, with star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, was the most dangerous team among third-seeded options in the draw last December. Georgia hosts Turkey on Thursday and plays at Spain on Oct. 11.

Maybe the hardest to predict is the four-team group of Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia and Kosovo.

Switzerland was an impressive quarterfinalist at Euro 2024 yet must face some of Europe's most expensive forwards — Slovenia's Benjamin Šeško, now at Arsenal, and a Sweden attacking line of Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyökeres and Anthony Elanga who were collectively signed for more than $300 million this season by, respectively, Liverpool, Arsenal and Newcastle.

A talented Kosovo squad that actively recruits from its migrant population in Switzerland comes to Basel on Friday with the Swiss team captained by its all-time great Granit Xhaka, who has family ties to Kosovo.

One group sure to make news is currently led by Norway ahead of Israel and Italy.

Norway has not qualified for a men’s World Cup since before 25-year-old Erling Haaland was born. The team is on track after the star forward scored in each of four straight wins since starting in March.

Norway has no fixture Friday in the five-team group and hosts last-place Moldova next Tuesday.

Italy, infamously, has not played a World Cup tournament game since June 2014. Then, Giorgio Chiellini was bitten by Uruguay’s Luis Suárez in a 1-0 loss that sent the four-time champion home from the group stage in Brazil.

Italy hosts Estonia on Friday, three days before going to face Israel in neutral Hungary, at Debrecen.

Israeli teams have not been allowed to host home games in international competitions for security reasons since the October 2023 attack by Hamas.

Norway hosts Israel on Oct. 11 in Oslo and pledged last month to donate its profits from ticket sales at that game to humanitarian aid work in Gaza.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Manchester City's Erling Haaland warms up prior to the English Premier League soccer match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Manchester City at the Falmer stadium in Brighton, England, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

England men's soccer team head coach Thomas Tuchel, attends the news conference in London, Friday, Aug. 29, 2025 ahead of England's soccer World Cup qualifiers against Andorra and Serbia. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

FILE - Newcastle's Alexander Isak celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell, File)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe gestures during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Mallorca in Madrid, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

BOSTON (AP) — When Zdeno Chara signed with the Boston Bruins in 2006, the No. 3 he wore early in his career had already been retired by the Original Six franchise.

So he picked No. 33 without giving it much thought.

“Little did I know how meaningful 33 was,” Chara said on Thursday night before his number was raised to the TD Garden rafters not far from where Larry Bird's No. 33 already hangs in Celtics green.

It is the 13th number retired by the Bruins, and the latest in a collection of Hall of Fame defenseman that runs from Eddie Shore to Bobby Orr to Raymond Bourque.

“It's a huge honor,” Chara told reporters. "I can’t explain to you how honored I feel. I’m humbled about being selected to be one of the numbers being retired. Being with that history, forever."

The 2009 Norris Trophy winner and a 2025 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, Chara spent 14 of his 24 NHL seasons in Boston, leading the Bruins to the 2011 Stanley Cup championship. His 1,680 games is the most of any NHL defenseman; at 6 feet, 9 inches (2.06m), he is the tallest player in league history, and his 108.8 mph (175.1 kmh) slap shot in the 2012 skills competition remains the NHL record.

But his teammates and other Bruins attending Thursday's ceremony said Chara's biggest contribution was signing with a team that hadn't won a playoff series in six years — “the best decision I ever made” — and turning them into champions.

“Things really changed when Zee came here as a free agent,” Bourque said. "From that point on, the culture and everything that comes with that, and the success and the run that they had, he was such a big part of that.

“He’s a legend,” Bourque said. “He really deserves to be up there.”

Bourque was among the former Bruins greats in attendance, along with Orr — both of them, like Chara, Boston defensemen who finished their careers elsewhere on their way to the Hall of Fame. They arrived via gold carpet that led them past adoring fans and the statue of Orr flying through the air following his Cup-winning goal in the 1970 finals.

Other fellow retired number honorees in attendance included Cam Neely, Willie O’Ree, Rick Middleton, Terry O'Reilly and John Bucyk. The current Bruins sat on the bench, all wearing Chara jerseys.

Five members of the 2011 roster — Patrice Bergeron, Mark Recchi, Dennis Seidenberg, David Krejci and Tuukka Rask — carried the retired number onto the ice, and teammate Andrew Ference served as emcee.

In his speech, Chara read the names of every player on the Bruins last Cup winners. Asked why, he said after: “Without championships, you are not going to be successful, you’re not going to be recognized.

"The championships, that’s what they do. They raise everyone, they extend careers for everyone,” he explained. "They create dynasties. They create stories. They create memories. They created what we’re experiencing tonight.

"It’s very simple: Once you win the championship, everything gets so much better for everyone. And the most beautiful thing about it: You create extended families with each other. It’s true. You have bonds, you have friendships that are now still forever. It’s amazing; it’s like you’re seeing your brother. You trust the person; you know everything about them. And anytime anybody needs something, you’re there for them.

“That’s what winning championships do,” he said. “Not just for a career, but for the rest of your lives, it means something very special.”

The ceremony at center ice featured a “Big Zee” ice sculpture flanking the podium and a large No. 33 behind it. Fans were asked to get in their seats two hours early, and the full TD Garden erupted in a giant shout of “Zee!” followed by an extended cheer of “Thank you, Chara!”

A highlight video featured former Bruins Brad Marchand and current coach Marco Sturm, Chara's teammate from 2006-10. Many of them spoke of the way Chara led by example.

“He wasn’t really a ‘Rah, rah!’ guy,” former Bruins forward and current team president Neely said, “but when he spoke, it was with a purpose.”

And so, when it was time to raise his No. 33 to the rafters, Chara stood by with his wife, Tatiana, while their children — Zack, Ben and Elliz — pulled the ropes.

“That’s the biggest reward for me: To see my children and my family doing it instead of me. I think I get better joy watching them doing it than the joy of me doing it because it's so much more meaningful,” he explained. "They deserve that more than me."

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara speaks during his number retirement ceremony before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara leads his family over to his number "33" to raise it to the rafters before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara, center, waves to the crowd during his number retirement ceremony, as Bruins' players with their number already retired, from left, Willie O'Ree, Rick Middleton, Terrry O'Reilly, Cam Neely, emcee Andrew Ferrance and Bobby Orr look on before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara's number "33" is raised to the rafters at TD Garden before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Bobby Orr applauds, left bottom, as former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara waves to the crowd during his number retirement ceremony before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)