Italy will enter not just as hosts, but three-time champions. It was another fantastic campaign for them, with Matteo Berrettini and Flavio Cobolli excelling in Bologna as they charged to yet another title in rampant fashion. They will be the strong favourites heading into next year’s event, with Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti still to call on.
The defeated finalists Spain also have talent of their own back at home. World number one Carlos Alcaraz had intended in competing for his country but was forced to pull out with a minor injury. They will be hoping the six-time Grand Slam winner is back in their camp as they look to regain the title they last won in 2019. As the finalists, they have earned themselves a bye into the second-round of qualifying. For the other 26 nations, it is all on the line as they step out onto the court representing their country.
2026 Davis Cup qualifiers draw
It will be a trip to South America for Novak Djokovic’s Serbia as they face off against Chile. Peru will be going in the complete opposite direction. They have a tough draw against semi-finalists Germany who came so close to knocking out Spain in this year’s event. Led by world number three Alexander Zverev, they will be a firm favourite for glory
An all-European tie will Croatia host Denmark, who will be without their star player Holger Rune. Ecuador have got themselves a home tie against Australia. The 28-time champions have not won the competition since 2003 and failed to qualify for the Finals in Bologna this year. This is despite boasting a strong team headed by Alex de Minaur.
A tasty tie in Scandinavia sees Norway host Great Britain. Led by Andy Murray back in 2015, Great Britain brought home the coveted prize for the first time since 1936. They failed to get past this stage last year after a damaging defeat to Japan. They will be hoping for more progress against Casper Ruud’s Norway. Speaking of Japan, they host Austria.
Belgium was hugely impressive in their 2025 campaign. They will strive for similar results when they traverse to Bulgaria while the Netherlands make the trip to Asia to lock horns with India. South Korea will host Argentina as the record-holding 32-time champions USA look to get back into the Finals after surprisingly missing out this year. They start their quest for the title in Europea against Hungary.
The USA were dumped out of qualifying by the Czech Republic. They host Sweden with quarter-finalists France taking on Slovakia. The concluding tie is 2022 champions Canada welcoming Brazin in North America.
Contrasting to later on in the event, the first-round of qualifiers take up a more traditional approach. It is best-of-five matches over two days. Two singles ties make up day one ahead of a doubles match kicking off day two swiftly followed by the reverse singles matches. The home nation gets to choose venue and surface, giving them a slight advantage. They will also have a partizan crowd backing them all the way. The 13-winners will then join Spain in the second-round of qualifiers. The second-round will follow from 18-19/19-20 September 2026, with the finals once again taking place in Bologna from 18th November – 23rd November.
First-round qualifierHomeAwaySpain (1)v(BYE)ChilevSerbia (14)Germany (2)vPeruCroatia (13)vDenmarkEcuadorvAustralia (3)NorwayvGreat Britain (12)BulgariavBelgium (4)JapanvAustria (11)IndiavNetherlands (5)South KoreavArgentina (10)HungaryvUSA (6)Czech Republic (9)vSwedenFrance (7)vSlovakiaCanada (8)vBrazilSecond-round qualifierSpainvChile/SerbiaGermany/PeruvCroatia/DenmarkEcuador/AustraliavNorway/Great BritainBulgaria/BelgiumvJapan/AustriaIndia/NetherlandsvSouth Korea/ArgentinaHungary/USAvCzech Republic/SwedenFrance/SlovakiavCanada/Brazil