World Cup 2026 Power Rankings: In-form France flex their muscles but England and USMNT show frailties while resurgent Sweden claim one of the final six qualifying slots

Curacao have improved enormously over the past 10 years, rising from 150th to 82nd in the world rankings, but their qualification for the finals is nonetheless astonishing. Indeed, it still looked unlikely during their decisive group game against a heavily-fancied Jamaica side, who hit the woodwork three times in November's clash in Kingston and also had an injury-time penalty overturned by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).

However, despite also being shorn of the services of coach Dick Advocaat, who missed the game for personal reasons before stepping down in February, Curacao held firm to claim the point they needed to become the smallest nation - both in terms of size and population - to ever qualify for the World Cup. 

So, while last month's friendly losses to China and Australia underlined that The Blue Wave is unlikely to make a big impact in North America with a low-profile group of players (Manchester United academy product Tahith Chong will be the most familiar face to Premier League followers), it doesn't really matter. Curacao have already made history, and their reward - if you can call it that - is an opening game against powerhouses Germany, before subsequent clashes with Ecuador and Cote d'Ivoire.

Haiti qualifying for their second World Cup, 52 years after their inaugural appearance at the finals, is nothing short of miraculous. The absence of the three strongest sides from the CONCACAF qualifiers (World Cup co-hosts the U.S., Mexico and Canada) obviously helped, but nobody believed Les Grenadiers could top a group containing Costa Rica and Honduras - particularly as Sebastien Migne's side were forced to play all of their home games in Curacao because of the conflict that has plagued Haiti since being devastated by an earthquake in 2010. 

Migne, who has still not been able to visit the Caribbean island and had to rely on Haitian Football Federation officials for information on local players, does not have an especially strong squad at his disposal. However, having already convinced Wolves' France-born midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde to declare for Haiti, Sunderland striker Wilson Isidor has followed suit, scoring on his full debut in the March friendly draw against Iceland while boosting the team's hopes of springing a surprise in a daunting group that contains Brazil, Morocco and Scotland.

The 48th and final team to qualify for the tournament, it's 40 long years since Iraq last played at a World Cup. They claimed Asia's sole inter-confederation play-off spot after a gruelling campaign that began in 2023 and involved five rounds of qualifying, narrowly defeating the United Arab Emirates over two legs in November 2025 to set up a clash with either Bolivia or Suriname to decide who would progress to the tournament proper.

Ultimately, they would face Bolivia in March, defeating the South American nation 2-1 in Mexico despite their preparations and travel being disrupted by the outbreak of war in the Middle East - a triumph that required them to come through a nerve-shredding nine minutes of injury time at the end of the game.

That historic victory has yielded a place in the so-called 'Group of Death' for this edition of the World Cup, alongside 2018 winners France, African powerhouse Senegal and dark horses Norway. Iraq will be rank outsiders, then, but after a four-decade absence from the biggest stage, they won't care one bit after earning the right to test themselves against the planet's best.

After winning hearts at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Panama's fantastic fans will make a most welcome return to the finals next summer after their side snuck into an automatic qualification spot on the final matchday in CONCACAF qualifying. The Red Tide swept the already-eliminated El Salvador aside in a 3-0 win in Panama City and that result, coupled with Suriname's 3-1 loss in Guatemala, saw Thomas Christiansen's team finish first in Group A.

Looking at the strength of their squad, reaching the knockout stage of the World Cup already seemed beyond Los Canaleros, even though they did prove they'll be no pushover by beating South Africa in Cape Town this week. However, after drawing England, Croatia and Ghana, Panama could unfortunately end up losing all three group games - just as they did at Russia 2018.

Jordan made history on June 5 by qualifying for the World Cup for the first time, sparking wild scenes of celebration all across the country. A 3-0 win over Oman, which came courtesy of a hat-trick from Ali Olwan, left Al Nashama on the verge of clinching a spot at the finals, and a top-two finish in AFC Group B was ensured thanks to South Korea's 2-0 win over third-placed Iraq later in the day.

Obviously, not much will be expected of Jordan at the finals, even though they claimed a creditable draw with Nigeria on Tuesday. The majority of Jamal Sellami's side ply their trade in their homeland, though star winger Musa Al-Taamari has spent the majority of his career in Europe, and left Montpellier for Rennes last year.

Jordan, who are ranked 63rd in the world, have also been steadily improving over the past few years and even upset South Korea on their way to a runners-up finish at the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar. But recent friendly defeats to Bolivia, Albania and Tunisia underline that their World Cup campaign is likely to be a hard slog. To have any hope of reaching the round of 32, they'll simply have to have beat either Austria or Algeria before they take on reigning champions Argentina in their final group game.

After underwhelming everyone on their World Cup debut as hosts in 2022, Qatar will be aiming to leave a much more positive impression on the tournament four years on. However, their qualification was shrouded in controversy, with the two-time Asian champions inexplicably allowed to play both of their fourth-round matches on home soil and, after holding Oman to a scoreless draw in Al Rayyan, they beat the United Arab Emirates 2-1 at the same venue to clinch top spot in their three-team group.

Former Real Madrid and Spain boss Julen Lopetegui oversaw the conclusion of Qatar's campaign after taking the manager's job in May, and did a good job shoring up a defence that conceded 24 times in 10 matches during the third round of qualification. In Almoez Ali, Lopetegui is also in possession of a prolific striker who scored more goals (12) than anyone else in the AFC section.

However, while Qatar managed to avoid any of the big boys in the World Cup draw, which placed them in the same group as Canada, Switzerland and Bosnia and Herzegovina, making the knockout stage looks beyond a team on a four-game losing streak.

Back at the World Cup for the eighth time since they made their tournament debut in the United States back in 1994, Saudi Arabia were forced to take the scenic route towards qualification before finally earning their spot in October.

Roberto Mancini resigned as coach after just over a year in charge following a poor Asian Cup campaign and a disappointing start to World Cup qualifying in October 2024, leading to the reappointment of his predecessor, Herve Renard. And while performances under the French manager haven't been consistent, the Saudis managed to edge out Iraq on goals scored in the fourth round of Asian qualifying to book their place in the draw - although they were significantly aided by being able to play both of their games in Jeddah.

It would appear that the influx of foreign superstars into the Saudi Pro League has had a detrimental effect on the national team as a number of players have been forced out of their club line-ups, and a repeat of their shock win over Argentina in 2022 presently feels a long shot for a team hammered 4-0 by Egypt last week.

Cape Verde will become the third-smallest World Cup participant by population after holding their nerve to book their place at next summer's showpiece. The Blue Sharks ensured they will make their tournament debut courtesy of a 3-0 victory over Eswatini in October that secured top spot in their qualifying group, as they remarkably finished four points clear of traditional African powerhouse Cameroon.

They are certainly not a team made up of big names or backed by a wealthy football association. Shamrock Rovers' Pico Lopes, for example, was recruited via the professional social networking platform LinkedIn, while they have benefited from eligible players coming forward to represent them since their run to the quarter-finals of AFCON in 2023.

Cape Verde will, therefore, be rank outsiders at the World Cup, where a side beaten by South American strugglers Chile during the March international break is likely to struggle badly against Spain and Uruguay, even if they'll no doubt feel that their meeting with Saudi Arabia is winnable.

Iran clinched their spot at the 2026 World Cup by twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 with second-placed Uzbekistan in Tehran in March - a result that guaranteed the home side a top-two finish in AFC Group A. Mehdi Taremi proved predictably decisive, with the Olympiacos striker scoring both of his country's goals, though he was once again ably supported by Sardar Azmoun.

Iran do not have a particularly deep pool of players - as underlined by their poor showing in the disappointing loss to Uzbekistan in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup - but they certainly do not lack experience, and a team currently ranked 21st in the world should not be taken lightly. This will be their fourth consecutive finals and, after receiving a relatively kind draw of Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand, they could make it out of the group stage for the first time at the seventh attempt.

However, Team Melli's preparations, and indeed their very participation in the tournament, have been thrown into complete chaos by the United States and Israel's war on Iran, with American president Donald Trump publicly stating that it would not be "appropriate" for Taremi & Co. to play because he cannot guarantee their safety.

A former England Under-21 international was the hero for the Democratic Republic of Congo as they ended a painfully long 52-year wait to qualify for the World Cup. Ex-Manchester United and current Burnley defender Axel Tuanzebe bagged the 100th-minute winner for the nation formerly known as Zaire in their inter-continental play-off against Jamaica in Mexico. Les Leopards had already seen off African footballing powerhouses Cameroon and Nigeria to contest the play-off, having finished second to Senegal in their qualifying group.

Portugal, Colombia and Uzebekistan await in Group K, and there's some decent players in the squad, including West Ham's Aaron Wan Bissaka, Noah Sadiki of Sunderland and Newcastle striker Yoane Wissa. But after such a long, long wait, the Congolese fans and players will surely just be overjoyed to be involved in a World Cup.

For the first time since they hosted in 2010, and for just the third time under their own steam, South Africa have earned qualification for the World Cup, though they almost let it slip through their fingers despite a solid campaign in CAF Group C. The fielding of an ineligible player against Lesotho in September cost them three points, and they thus needed a win over Rwanda in their final match - as well as a favour from Nigeria - to book their spot for next summer.

A run to the semi-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations suggested Bafana Bafana were back on track after a decade or so in the relative wilderness, but this year's disappointing last-16 exit illustrated that they still have an awful lot of work to do, both on and off the field. Of course, manager Hugo Broos can do little about the structural issues that have become such a topic of debate in South Africa, so he remains solely focused on "preparing for future objectives, with the World Cup now firmly in our sights."

The draw has been relatively kind to a team that leans heavily on domestic superpower Mamelodi Sundowns. As they did 16 years ago, South Africa will open the tournament against Mexico, before taking on Czechia and then concluding their group-stage campaign against South Korea. It's by no means the worst schedule but, going by the AFCON losses to Egypt and Cameroon, and their failure to win either of last month's friendlies against Panama, it might prove too difficult for Bafana Bafana to successfully negotiate. 

FIFA's decision to grant Oceania a guaranteed spot at the 2026 World Cup made New Zealand's qualification for the finals for the first time since 2010 a formality, as they have nothing remotely resembling worthy rivals in OFC. As defender Michael Boxall said after the All Whites progressed with a 3-0 win over New Caledonia, "We've gone through heartbreak in [previous campaigns], but once the tournament expanded, we expected this of ourselves."

The question now is whether they can make any kind of impact in North America next year. A recent draw with Norway offered some grounds for optimism - but it's hard to be confident about the prospects of a team that has now slipped to 85th in the world rankings.

March's 4-1 victory over Chile did at least bring an end to a demoralising run of eight games without a win, but there's no getting away from the fact that Nottingham Forest forward Chris Wood is the only truly top-class player in New Zealand's squad. A win over Iran in thei All Whites' opening game, thus, feels essential to their chances of getting out of a group that also contains Egypt and Belgium.

There was never really any doubt over Tunisia reaching a third consecutive World Cup finals. However, their campaign is presently shrouded in uncertainty following a disappointing Africa Cup of Nations campaign that resulted in Sami Trabelsi being sacked as coach and replaced at the helm by Sabri Lamouchi.

Former centre-back Trabelsi had only returned to the role in February of last year and helped The Eagles of Carthage qualify for the 2026 World Cup without conceding a goal. Unfortunately for Trabelsi, though, the AFCON was a disaster for Tunisia, who lost on penalties to Mali in the last 16 despite playing against 10 men for more than 90 minutes of the game in Casablanca.

Lamouchi has, at least, made an undefeated start to his tenure, overseeing a 1-0 win over Haiti and a scoreless draw with Canada, but he is clearly going to find it very difficult to get Tunisia out of a World Cup group that also contains Netherlands and Japan, especially as the squad is so short on world-class quality.

Australia confirmed their participation in the 2026 World Cup in emphatic fashion by winning away to Saudi Arabia on June 10 (when merely avoiding a five-goal defeat would have sufficed) - but it was the 1-0 win over Japan five days before that effectively secured qualification.

The Socceroos are now looking forward to a sixth consecutive appearance at the finals but, as it stands, this star-less squad doesn't look capable of matching the last-16 finishes achieved in 2006 and 2022. Performances have definitely improved since Popovic succeeded Graham Arnold as coach in September 2024, and the emergence of exciting youngsters such as Mohamed Toure, Nestory Irankunda and Alessandro Circati certainly points to a brighter future for the game 'Down Under'.

That they avoided any of the big guns in the group stage gives them a chance of making the round of 32, at least, as March's victories over Cameroon and Curacao suggest the Australians are capable of picking up sufficient points from their games against Turkiye, the U.S. and Paraguay to sneak into the knockouts.

After numerous near-misses and no shortage of heartbreak, Uzbekistan will finally make their first appearance at the World Cup finals this summer. Qualification was far from facile, with Srecko Katanec forced to step down as coach in January due to illness, and former midfielder Timur Kapadze finishing the job that the Slovenian had started by securing a nail-biting 0-0 draw with United Arab Emirates on June 5 that guaranteed a top-two finish in AFC Group A. 

However, Italy legend Fabio Cannavaro will oversee the Asian nation's maiden World Cup campaign, with Kapadze serving as his assistant. The World Cup winner's tenure has started promisingly, with The White Wolves winning November's Al Ain International Cup (a friendly tournament) by beating Egypt in the semis and edging out Iran on penalties in the final, before then defeating Gabon and Venezuela in the 2026 FIFA Series. 

What's clear is that Uzbekistan's undeniably slim hopes of making the knockout stage at the World Cup will hinge upon a strong defence led by Manchester City centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov, which will be tasked with keeping the likes of Luis Diaz and Cristiano Ronaldo quiet in their first two group games, against Colombia and Portugal, respectively, before the must-win meeting with DR Congo.

Bosnia and Herzegovina are the reason Italy have missed out on a third consecutive World Cup. After they fell agonisingly short of automatic progress from Group H, denied by a late equaliser from Austria in their final qualifying game, few would have backed the Bosnians to make it to the tournament proper after they were drawn on the same side of the play-offs as four-time winners the Azzurri - but they pulled off a remarkable upset.

They required penalties to see off Wales in their semi-final after the evergreen Edin Dzeko had delivered for his country once again with an 86th-minute equaliser, and just four days later they would go the distance again, breaking Italian hearts in a shootout after Alessandro Bastoni's first-half red card gave them a route back into a game they were trailing 1-0 at the time.

While they will just be glad to be there in the circumstances, Bosnia will fancy their chances of making it out of a World Cup group comprising of co-hosts Canada, Switzerland and Qatar in what will be a joyous swansong for 40-year-old Dzeko.

Czechia have ended a 20-year wait to return to the World Cup stage, experiencing the added euphoria of coming through the play-offs to earn their place after finishing a distant second to Croatia in their qualifying group.

They certainly did things the hard way in the semi-final and final, too; the Czechs trailed Ireland 2-0 after just 23 minutes in Prague before staging a dramatic comeback in the semi, as Ladislav Krejci's 86th-minute equaliser forced extra-time before the Wolves man netted the winning penalty in the eventual shootout. There was no shortage of drama in their subsequent showdown with Denmark, either, with the two sides inseparable after both netting in extra-time. The Danes missed three of their four spot-kicks to hand Czechia victory, despite dominating the statistics across the 120 minutes.

They find themselves in World Cup Group A with co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea as a result, but while they have some handy attacking players in Pavel Sulc and Patrik Schick and can be solid defensively, it would be a big surprise to see them make much headway.

At the time of writing, Ghana are without a coach less than three months before the start of the World Cup. Previous boss Otto Addo had come under intense pressure after a calamitous Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, and although he managed to secure The Black Stars a spot at the World Cup, he was dismissed after a run of four consecutive friendly defeats, which included a humiliating 5-1 loss to Austria on March 27.

Czeslaw Michniewicz is now rumoured to be taking over, and while the former Poland boss will be looking forward to working with the likes of Antoine Semenyo and Mohammed Kudus, a side short on confidence is going to be up against it in a World Cup group containing England, Croatia and Panama.

Canada have definitely improved under Jesse Marsch - as underlined by the fact that they're up to 30th in the world rankings. It's not been all plain sailing since the American took over, though. June's CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-final loss to Guatamela was a major embarrassment - and a friendly defeat to Australia didn't bode well at all. However, recent draws with fellow World Cup qualifiers Colombia, Ecuador and Tunisia proved that the Canucks can compete at the highest level.

Indeed, it shouldn't be forgotten that shortly after taking over in May of last year, Marsch led Canada to a fourth-placed finish at the 2024 Copa America - which arguably ranks as the finest achievement in the nation's soccer history. The challenge now, of course, is to make an even bigger impact at the World Cup. Canada have only qualified for the finals on two previous occasions (1986 and 2022), losing all three of their group games both times, but their hopes of progressing to the knockout stage have undoubtedly been boosted by the fact that they'll face Bosnia and Herzegovina in their tournament-opener rather than Italy, before then taking on Qatar and Switzerland.

The fitness of captain Alphonso Davies, who has been plagued by injury issues over the past year, will obviously be key - but it's arguably even more important that star striker Jonathan David rediscovers his goal-scoring touch, which he's misplaced since joining Juventus during the summer. 

After a 12-year absence, Algeria will return to the World Cup finals in 2026 after securing their place with a game to spare in CAF qualifying. The intervening period has been a mixed bag for the Desert Foxes, who won the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations but crashed out in the group stages of the same tournament without winning a game on three other occasions. Meanwhile, in this year's edition, they beat DR Congo in the last 16, only to suffer a 2-0 loss to Nigeria that the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) felt had been unduly influenced by refereeing decisions that "raised questions and left widespread outrage".

Truth be told, it felt like an attempt at deflection, given the dismal nature of the display, and it was telling that while attacking the officials, the FAF also called on the fans to remain united in their support of Vladimir Petkovic and his players with the World Cup on the horizon. The national team is very clearly "going through a reconstruction phase" and remains worryingly dependent upon the 35-year-old Riyad Mahrez, even though Mohamed Amoura really stepped up in qualifying, with 10 goals.

Still, while Algeria have no chance of topping a World Cup group containing defending champions Argentina, they'll believe themselves more than capable of finishing ahead of not only Jordan but also Austria after a positive March international break in which they hammered Guatemala 7-0 before holding Uruguay to a scoreless draw.

South Korea's participation in next summer's World Cup will come as a surprise to absolutely no-one given the Taeguk Warriors have featured in the past 10 tournaments. This time around, qualification was sealed with an unbeaten campaign, which they completed by routing Kuwait 4-0 in their final fixture.

It wasn't all plain sailing, though, as they were held to three consecutive draws before getting the job done against Iraq, while several key players are getting on a bit, including legendary captain Son Heung-min. Still, manager Hong Myung-bo got the Koreans back on track after their shock semi-final loss to Jordan at the 2023 Asian Cup, which resulted in the dismissal of Jurgen Klinsmann as coach, and the new boss has already started trying to rejuvenate the squad ahead of the World Cup.

However,  heavy defeats to Brazil and the Ivory Coast in recent months mean nobody will be tipping South Korea to even go close to matching their fourth-placed finish at the 2002 World Cup, even if the draw didn't go too badly for them, with Mexico, South Africa and Czechia their opponents in a quite evenly-balanced Group A.

Scotland are heading to their first World Cup in 28 years after qualifying in the most dramatic manner possible, with Steve Clarke's men scoring twice in injury time in their must-win meeting with Denmark at Hampden Park. Truth be told, the Danes were the better side - even with 10 men - but the Scots showcased remarkable fighting spirit and no end of quality. Indeed, the goals scored by Scott McTominay, Kieran Tierney and Kenny McLean in an already-famous 4-2 win were all sensational.

Whether Scotland really have sufficient quality to get out of the group stage at a World Cup for the first time is very much up for debate, though - and even more so after back-to-back March friendly losses to Japan and Ivory Coast. Remember, this side impressed in qualifying for Euro 2024 but were dreadful in Germany, and their task in North America has not been made any easier by a difficult draw that has placed Clarke's side in the same group as Brazil and Morocco.

Still, they should easily beat Haiti, and with the support of the Tartan Army, they've got a shot at picking up the other point they'd need to at least claim third place in their pool.

Jaime Lozano led Mexico to Gold Cup glory in 2023, but he was sacked after last year's abysmal Copa America campaign in which El Tri failed dismally to get out of what was expected to be a very straightforward group featuring Jamaica, Venezuela and Ecuador. Consequently, Javier Aguirre is back at the helm and, this time, he's being assisted by the legendary Rafael Marquez, who has been pencilled in to take over as head coach after the World Cup.

Aguirre's third tenure has been nothing if not eventful so far, with Mexico recovering from a shock first-leg loss to Honduras (during which the coach was struck by a beer can thrown by a home fan!) to go on and win the Nations League last March - before then claiming another trophy in June with a 2-1 victory over the U.S. in the final of the Gold Cup in Houston. 

A wildly unpredictable Mexico side than failed to win another game in 2025, but they kicked off 2026 with three consecutive wins before holding European heavyweights Portugal and Belgium to draws to raise hopes of El Tri reaching the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time since they hosted the tournament all the way back in 1986.

For a team as successful as Egypt within African football, their record in reaching World Cups is pretty abysmal. The Pharaohs have played in five of the last 11 AFCON finals, winning three of them, but 2026 will mark just the second time they have competed on the global stage since 1990. Their previous campaign left plenty to be desired, too, as they lost all three matches within what looked to be a less-than intimidating group in 2018, so Egypt's veterans will be determined to make a big impact on the World Cup - and none more so than Mohamed Salah. 

The prolific winger's Liverpool career may be set to end on a low note, but Salah remains his country's talisman, netting nine goals on the road to North America, and is joined in a menacing forward line by Manchester City's versatile attacker Omar Marmoush. Manager Hossam Hassan also possesses a well-drilled defence that conceded just twice in 10 qualifiers. 

As this year's run to the semi-finals of the AFCON underlined, an Egyptian squad containing just three players based in Europe is very reliant on Salah, but last month's rout of Saudi Arabia and draw with Spain proved that the general strength of the squad should not be underestimated. Salah will unquestionably be key, and if he's fully fit and firing, he should be able to lead his country out of a group containing Belgium, Iran and New Zealand.

Paraguay have come a long, long way over the past year or so - and coach Gustavo Alfaro is the main reason why. La Albirroja fell at the first hurdle in the 2024 Copa America, losing all three of their group games, which resulted in the dismissal of Daniel Garnero. Alfaro has worked wonders since taking over, with Paraguay clinching qualification for the World Cup thanks primarily to an immediate upturn in form that saw them beat Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay during a 10-game unbeaten run.

Their progress was checked by a 1-0 loss to Brazil in Sao Paulo in June, but Paraguay secured a place at the World Cup finals for the first time since 2010 courtesy a scoreless draw with Ecuador in September. So, while Alfaro doesn't have any world-class attackers to call upon, he boasts a brilliant backline led by Palmeiras' veteran centre-half Gustavo Gomez that is very hard to break down - at least in competitive fixtures.

Paraguay have shipped nine goals in the six games they've played since qualifying for the World Cup, losing three times in the process. They could, thus, struggle to get out of a group that also features the U.S., Turkiye and Australia. 

Marcelo Bielsa is taking Uruguay to the World Cup and that's joyous news for anyone who loves colourful characters and attacking football. 'El Loco' is one of the most iconic coaches in football history and nobody has any idea what he is going to do next!

As well as overcoming Brazil on their path to the semi-finals of the 2024 Copa America, Uruguay also took four points off the Selecao during their World Cup qualification campaign - and even upset Argentina in Buenos Aires. The two-time world champions struggled for consistency and fluency in 2025, though, and a 5-1 drubbing by the U.S. set alarm bells ringing and prompted Bielsa to reflect on his character and methods in an extraordinary press conference held just a few days later.

Things seemed to have calmed down a bit since, and a couple of draws during the March international break, against England and Algeria, would appear to suggest that Bielsa will at least still be in charge when the World Cup kicks off. It would certainly be a shame if they were to self-destruct at the finals, because a place in the round of 32 is there for the taking for a team that will take on Spain, Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia in the group stage.

Mauricio Pochettino's long-awaited appointment as the USMNT's new coach was announced in September 2024 to great fanfare, and it's been a real rollercoaster ride so far. 

After some seriously painful defeats, most notably to Panama and Canada in the Nations League, and Mexico in the final of last year's Gold Cup, the U.S. had built up some serious momentum by the end of 2025 thanks to a run of five games without defeat, culminating in a 5-1 rout of Uruguay. However, the Americans were given a brutal reality check by Belgium last month, with the Red Devils romping to a 5-2 win in Atlanta before Portugal made it back-to-back defeats for the Americans.

Star player Christian Pulisic is remaining upbeat, and the co-hosts really should emerge from a weak group containing Paraguay, Australia and Turkey, but 18 months into Pochettino's reign, it's still difficult to know exactly what to expect from his side on any given day.

Talk about squeezing in through the back door! Sweden didn't win a single match in a disastrous qualifying campaign as they suffered the ignominy of finishing bottom of their group (behind Switzerland, Kosovo and Slovenia, no less), losing four games and drawing twice.

How the hell did they qualify for the World Cup, then, you ask? Well, to answer that question we have to jump way back to November 2024, as the Swedes remarkably claimed a play-off place by virtue of topping a Nations League C group comprising of Azerbaijan, Estonia and Slovakia - and they'd been relegated from League B to even get that opportunity.

Nevertheless, the decision to sack Jon Dahl Tomasson and parachute in former West Ham, Chelsea and Brighton boss Graham Potter ahead of the spring play-offs has paid serious dividends, as the Englishman got the job done in the most dramatic of circumstances. Sweden comfortably beat Ukraine in their semi-final, aided by the fact the game was played at a neutral venue rather than in the war-hit nation, before an 88th-minute Viktor Gyokeres strike saw off Poland in a 3-2 victory back on home turf.

Despite their incredibly unorthodox route to the tournament, the Swedes could still pose a threat in North America with Gyokeres and Alexander Isak (if he is fully fit) in their attacking arsenal. On paper it's an exciting young squad overall, with players like Lucas Bergvall, Roony Bardghji, Yasin Ayari and Williot Swedberg all considered to have high ceilings. However, their qualification woes tell you they will still have their work cut out to spring any surprises at the World Cup proper as they take their place in Group F alongside the Netherlands, Japan and Tunisia.

Turkiye have ended a 24-year wait to return to football's biggest stage, taking the back door to the World Cup by coming through the play-offs. They will probably feel that is deserved, too, after only dropping four points in qualifying (all against Spain) and finishing just three points behind the European champions in Group E.

The Turks rarely seem to do things the easy way; despite being firm favourites, they only narrowly beat Romania and then Kosovo in the play-offs to reach the tournament proper, with 53 proving to be their lucky number as they bizarrely scored winning goals in that minute in both their semi-final and final.

Perennially everyone's choice as dark horses, Turkiye showed what they can do by reaching the quarter-finals of Euro 2024, and with the group largely still the same, that experience will be crucial in North America. The squad blends youth and experience, with Real Madrid's Arda Guler and Kenan Yildiz of Juventus both serious threats, with the wily Hakan Calhanoglu operating behind them. They could feasibly top a group that also includes co-hosts the U.S., Australia and Paraguay.

Ecuador proved an absolute nightmare to play against in South American qualifying - which maybe isn't that surprising given their defence is marshalled by Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Willian Pacho and protected by Chelsea's ball-winning machine Moises Caicedo. No team in CONMEBOL conceded fewer goals(just five in 18 games), while they also kept a staggering12 clean sheets, with their only two defeats coming away to Brazil and Argentina, the latter of whom Ecuador beat at home in their final qualifier to clinch second spot in the South American standings. 

Unfortunately, coach Sebastian Beccacece is not blessed with an abundance of talent up front (the 35-year-old Enner Valencia remains their best source of goals) and Ecuador draw far too many games as a result. Indeed, they played out stalemates with both Morocco and 10-man Netherlands during the March international break. 

However, they're very well-equipped to frustrate the life out of World Cup Group E rivals Germany and Ivory Coast, knowing that even if they were to take just one point from either of those two games, it would probably be enough for them to make amends for their 2022 group-stage exit, as a win over Curacao should be a given. 

Cote d'Ivoire are back at the World Cup after missing out on the last two tournaments - and they qualified in impressive fashion. The Elephants didn't concede a single goal in CAF Group F and won eight of their 10 fixtures, drawing the other two, with Gabon and Kenya. Led by Emerse Fae, who memorably took over as manager midway through their triumphant 2023 Africa Cup of Nations campaign, the Ivorian squad contains plenty of experienced players, such as Franck Kessie, Nicolas Pepe, Jean Michael Serie, Sebastien Haller and Ibrahim Sangare.

However, they are not short on exciting young talent either. Teenage attackers Bazoumana Toure and Yan Diomande both showed during this year's run to the AFCON quarter-finals that they are players of real promise - while the 23-year-old Amad Diallo now looks perfectly placed to realise his full potential, after scoring three times in five outings in Morocco.

So, while The Elephants might not have as many household names as they did when they qualified for three successive World Cups between 2006 and 2014, they boast a mix of unpredictability in attack and organisation in defence that helped them rack up impressive friendly wins over fellow finalists South Korea and Scotland last month. Make no mistake about it: Cote d'Ivoire could cause Germany, and especially Curacao and Ecuador, plenty of problems this summer.

Anyone who followed Euro 2024 will be thrilled that Austria have qualified for the World Cup, given Ralf Rangnick's side were one of the most exciting teams to watch in Germany thanks to a wonderfully positive and dynamic brand of football that saw them top one of the toughest groups in the tournament. They've had some disappointing results since then - most notably October's 1-0 loss in Romania that ruined their unblemished record in UEFA Group H - but they secured top spot on the final matchday by coming from behind to draw with second-placed Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Austria have some quality players, such as Christoph Baumgartner and Konrad Laimer, but the big concern over Rangnick's side is that the 36-year-old Marko Arnautovic remains the main goal-scoring threat, while Marcel Sabitzer and Michael Gregoritsch are also the wrong side of 30 - which might make it difficult for them to press with their usual intensity in North America next summer.

Still, they showed what they're all about during last month's 5-1 rout of Ghana, and while they're unlikely to get anything out of their marquee group-stage clash with Argentina, Austria will fancy their chances of beating both Algeria and Jordan to make it safely through to the last 32.

We thought we'd seen the last of Luka Modric in the international arena after Croatia's devastating group-stage elimination at the Euros, but the Ballon d'Or winner is now set to captain his country at the World Cup at 40 years of age. Zlatko Dalic's side pretty much cruised through qualifying, sealing their spot with one round remaining thanks to a 3-1 win over Faroe Islands in Rijeka, but, as always seems to be the case with Croatia, we find ourselves wondering whether they can really make a major impact at a tournament while continuing to rely on so many of the same ageing stars. 

After all, Modric isn't the only veteran defying the rages of time; Ivan Perisic (36) and Andrej Kramaric (34) also made crucial contributions to their qualifying campaign. Encouragingly, Petar Sucic and Franjo Ivanovic (both 22) have emerged as exciting prospects, but the defence desperately needs Josko Gvardiol (23) to win his race against time to be fit for the finals, after suffering a tibial fracture in January.

The poor performance in Tuesday's loss to Brazil doesn't bode well for Croatia but, as we all know, Modric & Co. love making a mockery of pre-tournament predictions. They will start their journey alongside England, Ghana and Panama in Group L and will doubtless be quietly confident of making the last 32 at the very least.

Nestor Lorenzo has done a fine job since taking charge of Colombia in June 2022, leading Los Cafeteros to the final of the 2024 Copa America before securing a spot at the World Cup with one game to spare. James Rodriguez was key to their qualification, with the breakout star of the 2014 World Cup rather fittingly opening the scoring in the 3-0 win over Bolivia that guaranteed his country a top-six finish in CONMEBOL, but Bayern Munich star Luis Diaz was also immense.

On the plus side, Colombia are unlikely to struggle to score goals at the World Cup: Jhon Arias, Richard Rios and Daniel Munoz are all talented players, while Jhon Duran is a real wildcard. However, punters will be wary of backing a very streaky team that went six matches without a win before finally getting over the finish line against Bolivia, and lost to both Croatia and France last month, suggesting that they don't quite have sufficient quality in defence to mix it with the big boys.

They should at least get out of their group, though. Portugal will be tough to beat, but Colombia should cope quite comfortably with Uzbekistan and DR Congo.

Aside from Lionel Messi leading Argentina to World Cup glory, Morocco were the story of Qatar 2022, with The Atlas Lions becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals in the tournament's history. Walid Regragui's side certainly have it in them to make another big impact in North America this summer, particularly as their group (Brazil, Scotland and Haiti) is by no means intimidating. However, there is now a major question mark over their state of mind, after a devastating defeat by Senegal in the AFCON final.

Despite the strength of the opposition, Morocco were favourites to triumph in Rabat, given they'd not lost a competitive fixture at home since 2009. However, they were beaten in extra-time after the tournament's top scorer, Brahim Diaz, missed a spot-kick in the final seconds of normal time with a horribly ill-advised 'Panenka' penalty.

Of course, the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) has since stripped Senegal of the title and awarded it to Morocco because the Lions of Teranga walked off the field after the award of the hosts' penalty - but it very much remains to the seen whether that hugely controversial decision will help heal the mental scars they sustained on the evening of January 18. They certainly didn't look right in last week's 1-1 draw with Ecuador, but the subsequent 2-1 win over Paraguay will have hopefully lifted their spirits.

Japan became the first team to actually qualify for the World Cup on March 20 of last year by beating Bahrain, and their stated objective is to reach the quarter-finals for the first time. Whether they can do so, however, is a topic of intense discussion at home. They will certainly be tested in the group phase, having been drawn alongside the Netherlands, Tunisia and Sweden, while the season-ending injury suffered by Wataru Endo came as a hammer blow - even if the Liverpool midfielder apparently hasn't give up hope of making the World Cup.

The great thing is, though, that Japan made light of Endo's absence to beat both Scotland and England in their own backyards during the March international break to make it five wins on the spin for the Samuari Blue. So, while emerging from their pool will be far from easy, nobody in the last 32 will want to run into a dynamic and well-balanced team that scored 30 goals in qualifying while only conceding three.

Senegal received a rotten World Cup draw, with Pape Thiaw's team having the misfortune to be placed in the same group as France and Norway, as well as Iraq. However, based on what we've seen from The Lions of Teranga over the past year, they could do some serious damage in North America this summer.

After playing England off the pitch in a friendly at the City Ground in June, Senegal then went and won their second Africa Cup of Nations title by upsetting Morocco in their own backyard. Thiaw and his players rightly received a lot of criticism over their walk-off in Rabat, but Sadio Mane continues to lead by example at 33 years of age and is ably supported by a well-balanced, physically imposing and technically gifted group of players, including Kalidou Koulibaly, Idrissa Gueye and Paris Saint-Germain's teenage sensation Ibrahim Mbaye, who scored his third goal for his country in Tuesday's friendly win over Gambia.

Make no mistake about it: Senegal will relish the opportunity to emulate their shock 2002 opening-round win over France, and if they manager to emerge from Group I, they'll take some stopping in conditions that should definitely suit them.

The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) finally managed to get Carlo Ancelotti to take over the national team last May, but doubts persist over whether "the greatest coach in history" can really turn the Selecao into world champions in just over a year. 

Brazil certainly have some big-name players, including Raphinha and Vinicius Jr, but they finished fifth in CONMEBOL after losing a third of their matches and there's long been a worrying lack of cohesion about the South Americans, who fell at the quarter-final stage at both Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022.

The fact that so many supporters and former players were calling for a 34-year-old Neymar to be included in the World Cup squad after a deflating friendly loss to France tells you everything you need to know about the lack of faith in the current crop of attackers. In that context, Ancelotti could really do with one of his centre-forwards catching fire at the finals, with Igor Thiago now looking like the leading candidate after opening his international account in the morale-boosting win over Croatia on Tuesday. 

Brazil should have enough about them to navigate a safe passage through an awkward group featuring Morocco, Scotland and Haiti, but unless Ancelotti can get Vinicius to belatedly replicate his Real Madrid form at international level, or Estevao lives up to his billing as the 'new Neymar' in North America, it's hard to see them going beyond the quarters.

Kevin De Bruyne admitted as far back as 2022 that Belgium's best chance to win a major international trophy with their 'Golden Generation' had already passed them by - and nothing has happened in the interim to change that view. Euro 2024 was a disaster for the Red Devils, with De Bruyne clashing with the nation's travelling fans - and that was before they'd been knocked out in the last 16. 

They did at least manage to qualify for the World Cup without losing a game, but it was a weak group and even Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku admitted after the 1-1 draw with Kazakhstan in November that Belgium "dropped too many points" and "weren't good enough in a large number of matches". 

So, while Rudi Garcia's team certainly looked the part in dismantling the U.S. in a March friendly and should have little trouble topping a World Cup group containing Egypt, Iran and New Zealand, it's hard to make a compelling case for Belgium finally ending their trophy drought this summer.

Norway's participation in a first World Cup finals since 1998 was effectively confirmed by a 4-1 win over Estonia that meant they could have lost 8-0 to Italy in their final qualifier and still finished top of their group. However, Norway didn't take their foot off the pedal, and instead went to Milan and made a statement with another three-goal win over the Italians to put the seal on a flawless qualification campaign. 

Unsurprisingly, Erling Haaland was among the goals, scoring twice in a sensational second-half showing at San Siro, but there is more to Stale Solbakken's side than their outstanding No.9, as underlined by the fact that Oscar Bobb and Jorgen Strand Larsen both made big impacts off the bench against the Azzurri.

Their 'reward' is a tough World Cup group alongside France, Senegal and Iraq, but if everyone is fully fit, particularly captain Martin Odegaard, then Norway could enjoy a deep run in North America - even if March's loss to Netherlands and draw with Switzerland have tempered expectations somewhat.

Switzerland are low-key qualification masters. They've not missed a World Cup since 2002 and can nearly always be relied upon to reach the last 16. On this occasion, they had to wait until the final matchday to officially seal their spot at the 2026 tournament with a 1-1 draw in Kosovo. However, the Swiss had already effectively clinched top spot in UEFA Group B with a stirring 4-1 rout of Sweden in Geneva that perfectly illustrated why Murat Yakin's men make for such awkward opponents.

The squad may not be stacked with superstars, but Breel Embolo is a proven goal-scorer at this level, Dan Ndoye is a real livewire on his day, Johan Manzambi is a very exciting prospect and, most importantly of all, veteran midfielder Granit Xhaka is arguably playing the best football of his career.

Basically, the Swiss - who lost 4-3 to Germany in March before drawing with Norway - should not be underestimated, and they will be very confident of reaching the last 32, especially now that they'll have Bosnia-Herzegovina rather than Italy for company in Group B, along with Canada and Qatar.

The Netherlands are one of the more curious teams in international football. For example, they never really convinced at Euro 2024, but after finishing third in their group went on to reach the semi-finals, where they lost narrowly to England.

Frustratingly, it remains difficult to know what to make of Ronald Koeman's team. The numbers from their World Cup qualification campaign make for great reading: six wins, two draws, zero defeats, 27 goals scored, four conceded. However, they failed to beat second-placed Poland home or away. Here's what we can say about the Dutch, though: they're dangerous. 

Virgil van Dijk leads a defence that also features Micky van de Ven and Denzel Dumfries, the midfield is so strong that Ryan Gravenberch isn't a certain starter, and say what you will about Memphis Depay, but the man can score goals at international level - particularly when supported by the likes of Tijjani Reijnders, Xavi Simons and Cody Gakpo. Bottom line, then: the Dutch are dark horses. Should they get out of a tricky group that pits them against Japan, Tunisia and Sweden, Oranje will be a problem for whomever they face in the knockout stage.

The common consensus was that Germany were rather unlucky to run into Spain in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024, particularly as Julian Nagelsmann's side more than played their part in an epic encounter in Stuttgart that would have made for a fitting final. However, the coach's ability to get the best out of a talented crop of players came into question after back-to-back losses on home soil at the 2025 Nations League finals were followed by an embarrassing 2-0 defeat to Slovakia in their opening World Cup qualifier. 

Nagelsmann has since turned things around, though. Germany secured top spot in UEFA Group A with a satisfying 6-0 rout of the Slovakians last November and they've since extended their winning streak to seven matches thanks to friendly victories over Switzerland and Ghana, with Florian Wirtz absolutely outstanding in the 4-3 win over the former in Basel. All of a sudden, then, the four-time champions look like a team to fear in North America - particularly as Kai Havertz is already back in action and Jamal Musiala is likely to be fully fit and firing again by the end of the season. 

Curacao, Ivory Coast and Ecuador await in what is a pretty straightforward World Cup group for Germany, though a potential quarter-final against France has raised fears of further last-eight heartbreak...

Statistically speaking, Sir Gareth Southgate was England's most successful manager since Sir Alf Ramsey, but he failed to end the most infamous trophy drought in international football, with the Three Lions once again coming up short at Euro 2024, where they were outclassed in the final by Spain. The Football Association, thus, turned to Thomas Tuchel to lead the country at the 2026 World Cup, so what chance does the German have of finally getting England over the line at a major tournament? Honestly, it's still a little hard to say.

England toiled at times against deep-lying opponents in a painfully weak qualifying group - the games against Andorra were particularly tough to watch - but Tuchel's team still made a statement of intent by becoming the first European nation to ever win all of their matches without conceding a single goal. 

And yet England failed to win both of their March internationals, with nobody impressing in what was essentially a trial match against Uruguay, before the fans were given a disturbing glimpse of a future without talisman Harry Kane in the 1-0 loss to Japan. So, while Tuchel can call on a plethora of high-profile players, he still has to figure out how to get the best out of the likes of Jude Bellingham, while it really does feel as if the Three Lions would have no chance of going all the way were anything to happen to Kane.

Very few fans attach much importance to the Nations League, but it proved an absolute life-saver for Cristiano Ronaldo and Roberto Martinez. Both men came under an awful lot of pressure after Portugal's incredibly embarrassing Euro 2024 campaign. However, victory in the 2025 Nations League strengthened their respective positions as captain and coach, meaning Ronaldo will, fitness-permitting, almost certainly lead Martinez's Seleccao into the 2026 World Cup at 41 years of age - particularly as the superstar striker inexplicably but inevitably avoided a three-game ban for his dismissal during his country's shock 2-0 loss to Ireland in qualifying.

The wisdom of continuing to rely on a player that's flopped at his past two international tournaments remains a huge topic of debate, but there's no denying that Portugal have the talent to carry Ronaldo - not least because they boast arguably the best midfield trio in world football in Vitinha, Joao Neves and Bruno Fernandes. Certainly, the Seleccao, who drew with Mexico and beat the U.S. during the March international break, should have little trouble dealing with a World Cup group containing DR Congo, Uzbekistan and Colombia.

Say what you will about Didier Deschamps, but the man is resilient. The painfully pragmatic France coach appeared to be a sitting duck after a mind-numbingly boring run to the semi-finals of Euro 2024. However, there was nothing dull about Les Bleus' run to the last four of the 2025 Nations League, where they were beaten 5-4 by Spain in a cracking contest.

Kylian Mbappe's return to form has obviously been integral to France's revival, but they've also been aided by Michael Olise taking his game to a whole other level since joining Bayern Munich, Ousmane Dembele finally getting his act together and the emergence of Hugo Ekitike, who scored the crucial second goal in last week's friendly win over Brazil, and Desire Doue, the star of the show in Sunday's defeat of Colombia. 

Consequently, Deschamps actually has a good chance of ending his tenure on a high next summer, because while the feeling persists that France are not as good as they should be on account of the coach's conservatism, they picked up 16 of a possible 18 points in qualifying while conceding only four goals in six matches.

The big concern, though, is the strength of their World Cup finals group, as Les Bleus are down to the face AFCON 'winners' Senegal, Erling Haaland's Norway and Iraq, meaning they have a real battle on their hands to finish first. Still, if they were to come through those tests unscathed, they'd have some serious momentum and belief going into the knockout stage.

Will he or won't he? Lionel Messi could have retired after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in 2022 with his magical, Diego Maradona-like performances in Qatar but, because he was still having so much fun with the Albiceleste, he stuck around to win another Copa America. The question remains, however, whether he will actually continue until this summer's tournament in North America. At this stage, it would be a bigger surprise if he decided against playing.

The good news is that Lionel Scaloni's squad is becoming less dependent upon Messi, as they so thrillingly underlined by routing Brazil in qualifying without their injured skipper, and, no matter what Argentina's talisman decides to do, the team certainly wouldn't lack a goal threat next summer - not with the likes of Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez to choose from up front.

The fact remains, though, that if Messi plays on, Argentina would be even more confident about retaining their title. He says that he doesn't want to be a "burden", but it looks like his mere presence remains a blessing for a group of players that are willing to run through walls for their inspirational captain, who could be afforded some valuable rest in a relatively weak group containing Algeria, Austria and Jordan.

Spain were outstanding at Euro 2024 - but they could be even better at the 2026 World Cup. Lamine Yamal continues to go from strength to strength, the same goes for his Barcelona team-mate Pedri, while Dean Huijsen has slotted seamlessly into the back four.

La Roja are by no means unstoppable, of course. Portugal proved that by edging them out on penalties in the Nations League final in June, while there are growing concerns that Yamal could be at risk of burnout. The doubts over their lack of a prolific No.9 resurfaced during Tuesday's scoreless draw with Egypt (a game overshadowed by racist chanting) but, in general, Spain haven't had too many issues scoring goals, mainly thanks to the two Mikels, Merino and Oyarzabal, both of whom netted six times in qualifying - and the good news is that the former is expected to win his race to be fit for the World Cup after his recent foot fracture. 

A World Cup group featuring Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay should also be easy enough for Luis de la Fuente's men, who will be supremely confident of adding a world title to their European crown.