2026 WC USA (et al): Worldwide Opponents Watch [all R's]

Fajardo gets Panama a huge win at The Cuscatlan. They're technically behind Suriname in the table right now due to scoring one less goal, but they'll host Suriname on Tuesday in a huge match

 

Final scoreboard from last night:

Curacao 2 Jamaica 0
El Salvador 0 Panama 1
Bermuda 0 T&T 3
Suriname 1 Guatemala 1

If you think being a USMNT fan gives you heartburn, just imagine being a Jamaica fan. Nothing can ever be easy for Jamaica.

Panama now also in much better shape.

As noted by folks above, the really interesting fight is Honduras, Haiti, and Costa Rica in group C.

 

A pretty hopeful strike from a difficult angle ends up in the back in the of the net (possibly from a deflection it was hard to tell). Oman up 1-0 on UAE early. Would still need help from The UAE in the next game, but would be a massive result towards their first World Cup berth

 

UAE has a penalty overturned by VAR but score a few minutes later anyway. Tie game in a match where both teams probably won't be thrilled with a draw. Should be a fun last 10 minutes.

EDIT: Right as I type this UAE scores their second

 

UAE has an absurd number of fully naturalized, no family background duals. Half dozen+ Brazilians.


I’m supportive of dual nationals broadly speaking. I do think it’s starting to get out of control though with entire national teams being fielded of players with grandparents of that country or naturalized.

 

UAE comes from behind to beat Oman 2-1.

UAE vs Qatar in Qatar on Tuesday, UAE will qualify for their first World since 1990 with a win or tie.

I think these are the scenarios for the final game

UAE multi-goal or 1-0 win: UAE qualifies, Oman to the playoff, Qatar out

UAE wins 2-1: UAE qualifiers, we're counting yellow cards to determine the playoff spot (Oman has 2 more than Qatar)

UAE wins by 1 goal, but Qatar scores twice: UAE qualifies, Qatar to the playoff.

Draw: UAE qualifies, Qatar to the playoff, Oman out

Qatar wins: Qatar qualifies, UAE to the playoff, Oman out

 

I was curious about their XI

Goalkeeper: Born and raised in Dubai

Back line: Portuguese guy who moved there in 2020 (just became eligible this summer), Brazilian who also moved there in 2020 and just became eligible, Ivorian player who moved there in 2019, Brazilian who moved there in 2019

Midfield isn't too bad. 3 players who were born and raised there, plus a Brazilian who's now lived there for a decade. They do have one Argentine who moved there in 2020 and only just became eligible

Striker: Brazilian who moved there in 2020 and only just became eligible.


I'm not surprised by the amount of naturalized players, but it's wild how much of the XI only became eligible this year

 

Most of the Philippines are dual nationals. Some countries just don’t have the players or resources to have a competitive fully domestic squad. And it not just soccer. The entire men USA handball teams are all Europeans and Egyptians . It sucks but small countries like uae have no choice.

 

Bench is full of them too. FIBA for hoops put in a rule to cap at 1 naturalized player per national team. Think fifa rule is its fine if 5+ years in that country. So the clubs just scout and bring over 18-21 years olds and then the national team scoops them at the 5 year mark.

 

UAE has the resources just not the players ha.

 

I don't care about naturalized players who grew up somewhere or even played professionally for a long time. Or countries like Curacao who take advantage of their Dutch Diaspora

I'm a naturalized citizen myself and get uncomfortable with trying to limit it, but it is the cynical way countries like The UAE and Qatar go about it that rubs me the wrong way.

I don't know what the rule should be, I'm not a fan of a hard limit and 5 years seems reasonable enough, but with an expanded field it's definitely gonna allow some of these countries to buy World Cup Caliber squads

 

There domestic players probably just are not that good

 

Very few countries will do that though. You still have to citizenship and many countries are tightening there rules.

 

I'm aware, it's a niche issue which is why I'm not sure I'd support a broader restriction from FIFA, but it does provide an easier path for some Gulf Nations who do this in plenty of sports. I remember The Qatari handball team awhile back that basically became a global powerhouse for a few years when Qatar hosted the World Cup

 

They have a choice. They can not be as good.

There's also a difference between recruiting dual nationals who actually have real ties to the country -- I think the Philippines women's soccer team is all Phillipino-Americans from California -- and naturalizing players with no ties for the express reason of playing on the team.

There's obviously shades of grey in there, and % of the team matters. At some point, it's simply buying a team.

 

There all naturalized citizens. There’s nothing fifa can do here if the gulf governments fast track citizenship.

 

The only thing fifa can do without punishing countries like Morocco or the Philippines is for fifa to intervene into uae and Qatar citizenship laws

 

They did do something about it, they put the 5 year rule in place which is why Qatar wasn't able to buy a great soccer team in 2022 like they did for Handball. It wasn't just Qatar and The UAE that did it under the old rules either, I was born in Poland and the government fast tracked a couple citizenships for players before the 2002 World Cup and 2008 Euros.

I'm not disagreeing with you about there probably not being a better solution beyond that.

I don't love it though. I don't care if naturalized players go through a normal process that a Starbucks cashier would go through, but it does get a tad cynical when a government is giving special treatment to athletes for the purpose of getting them on their national teams

 

FIFA actually have tighter restrictions than some countries. For example in my country you can get citizenship after 4 years as a resident (although it depends on which visa you have) and FIFA says 5 years.

 

And isn’t the path to US citizenship also approximately 5 years in most scenarios?

All these players have lived in the UAE for at least 5 years. Can Yunus Musah and Folarin Balogun, both without US family ties, say the same?

 

I didn't say they could. I'm just saying that they do have a choice and there absolutely is a difference.

 

But Yunus and Balo would be US citizens if they weren't soccer players or elected to play for other national teams.

It's not the fact that they're naturalized, it's more that they're likely getting special treatment in countries that from what I understand are quite difficult to become a naturalized citizen in

 

Iraq beat Indonesia 1-0.

I believe this means Saudi Arabia just needs the one point against Iraq to qualify. Whichever of the two team doesn’t qualify will make the two-team playoff.

 

If there was an elite MLS player that could be naturalized and play for the USMNT, the board would be mostly in favor of bringing him into the fold. The timelines are difficult.

I don't think we have such a player capped up this year. [A recent one is Julian Gressel. Was he the last?]

As long as what the UAE is doing is legal according to FIFA regulations, I have no problem with it.

 

I agree. Five years living there is enough for me.