Türkiye arrive at the 2026 World Cup for only their third time, following appearances in 1954 and 2002. They qualified for 1950 but withdrew for financial reasons, never making the trip to Brazil. Their defining moment came at the 2002 edition in South Korea and Japan, where a generation built around Hakan Şükür delivered third place. Şükür scored the fastest goal in World Cup history in that bronze medal match, eleven seconds into the game against South Korea. That run remains the peak of Turkish football, and 2026 marks a long overdue return to the world stage after a 24 year absence.

Türkiye navigated a demanding UEFA route to reach 2026. Placed in Group E alongside Spain, Georgia, and Bulgaria, they endured a six nil defeat at home to the Euro 2024 champions in September 2025, a result that underlined the gap to Europe's elite. They steadied, finished second in the group, and earned a playoff berth. In the playoff semifinal on March 26, Ferdi Kadioglu converted an Arda Güler assist to beat Romania one nil in Istanbul. Five days later, Kerem Aktürkoğlu poked home in the 53rd minute in Pristina to defeat Kosovo by the same margin, booking Türkiye's place in North America under coach Vincenzo Montella.