Who are the favorites to win WC 2026?

The defenders still need to defend.

 

We have our first weather delay (England x Costa Rica).

 

Whoops! Meant to post this in the "friendlies" thread.

 

yes.

 

No single team stands out this time. However, I would say it is between France, England, and Spain, in that order. If not them, then next come Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, Germany, in that order. It will 98% be one of the aforementioned teams. But in the 2% chance it is not, it is between Netherlands and Belgium. In terms of teams that might make it to semis unexpectedly, I would pick Colombia, Ecuador, Switzerland.

 

Spain is a favourite for sure but they are the type that might dominate then go out on penalties. England is same, but maybe Kane can bail them out. France is more of a tournament team with that winning edge but it is rare to reach 3 finals in a row. Argentina are still strong but the curse is real. Though Argentina strike me as the type of team that would still try to actually win the whole thing with full motivation, I think European teams would be more vulnerable to the curse.

 

The Dutch are certainly locked in. I am impressed with how hungry they are so far. I think that they are entering the higher tier just under the favorites with how entertaining and sharp they've been in this world cup.

 

Don't get misled by this 5-1 vs Sweden, as our defense but Dumfries looked like shit. Denzel gets a 7 out of 10 rating from me, but V. van Dijk, van de Ven and van Hecke scored a 5 in my rating.

 

For sure. I think Netherlands is #10 or #11 in the world right now.

 

He is so so. Holland needs Memphis in good form to go anywhere in this WC.

Agree, they looked shakey. On paper, they should be better than this defensively.

 

If you put their transfer values together (real ones, not fake Transfermarkt suck a thumb ones), I suppose it's one of the most expensive defense line, if not the most expensive one, at the WC, while being kept lower than in reality, because of the contractual limited price Real had to pay for Dumfries.

 

I still think France is the team to beat in the tournament, but I team that is making me question that selection is the Netherlands. I think they could easily make a good run and possibly win the whole thing as well with the way they are playing at the moment.

 

Them and Spain i assume as the most likely.

 

Spain I discount because it's very unlikely that a team can win the WC without passing a knockout round in the previous two editions.

 

Spain didn't do much at all in the 2 WCs before they won in 2010. This would be very similar to that if they win this year.

Also, France themselves were basically irrelevant in WCs before winning in '98.

 

im not sure about that. I think 1998 was the first World Cup they won, but they were definitely a strong team back in the Platini era.

 

Looking at the bracket, it seems like this is now a real possibility, with France vs Spain, and Argentina vs England as the semifinals.

But there is a slim but possible chance Germany upsets France, and a slim chance that Brazil upsets England. Also a slim chance someone will knock out Spain via penalties prior to semis.

 

Don’t take Argentina vs Portugal for granted either.

 

We have to see where Portugal place. They might get Spain. If they beat Colombia, then they can get Brazil. But yes, they can beat Spain or Brazil, but this depends on if they bench Cristiano.

 

France went from 3rd place to two missed qualifications to winning it.

 

Power being the host.

That being said. Let's go USA and Mexico! Concacaf baby! My noob predicting powers say one of us makes the final four maybe or both . Just need that England Ghana ref lol

1930 Uruguay host win
1934 Italy host win
1966 England host win
1974 Germany host win
1978 Argentina host win
1990 Italy host semifinal
1998 France host win
2002 South Korea host semifinal
2006 Germany host semifinal (tbf Germany 02-14 run was all them)
2014 Brazil host semifinal
2026

 

I expect USA run to end at the SF after pulling one major upset which I expect to be against Spain in the QF.

 

This is my opinion on Spain up to this point in the Group Stage as they have been the least intimidating of the favorite teams to win the World Cup like France and Argentina. So pulling off an upset against them would still be a major boost to US soccer in my opinion due to the play of Spain so far in this WC it would not be a complete shock if it actually happened. I think there is a better chance of that happening than the US taking down France or Argentina.