Eisbachtaler Sportfreunde Overview

The 2026 World Cup is underway and so is the race for the prestigious Golden Boot - the award given to the tournament's top scorer. There's a long road ahead as 48 nations battle for the top prize, but which star will take home the illustrious award? Here are GOAL's predicted candidates for the prize as we keep track of the tournament's most prolific stars

German football icon Lothar Matthaus has mapped out two distinct paths that could see national team manager Julian Nagelsmann exit his post early despite holding a contract until 2028. Speaking ahead of the 2026 World Cup, the 1990 World Cup winner insisted that the 38-year-old's future hinges entirely on performance, outlining both an immediate dismissal in the event of a group-stage disaster and a voluntary departure to club football should Germany lift the trophy.

Assan Ouedraogo has been surprisingly called up to the German national team for the 2026 World Cup. The RB Leipzig youngster was added to replace the injured Lennart Karl and has now humorously described how he learned of his good fortune.

Four nations will make debuts at the 2026 World Cup, with Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan set to grace the grandest stage in international football for the first time. It will be the tournament with the most newcomers since 2006 and all will have ambitions of ending a 16-year wait for a debutant to reach the knockout stages.