Who are the 2026 World Cup dark horses? GOAL writers have their say

Mark Doyle: As they proved by beating Brazil last year, Japan are definitely capable of reaching the quarter-finals for the first time ever. However, Norway were the third seed that all of the big guns wanted to avoid in the draw - and with good reason. Stale Solbakken’s well-drilled side stormed through qualifying, routing Italy twice along the way, mainly because they now have a supporting cast worthy of superstar striker Erling Haaland. If Norway survive the closest thing to a ‘Group of Death’ at a 48-team tournament, nobody will want to play them in the knockout stage.

Krishan Davis: It actually feels as though there is a dearth of potential dark horses among the European teams, with many of Croatia and Belgium’s big names beyond their best, while Norway lack tournament experience. Turkiye, though, are in the equation as usual. However, I reckon Morocco could be best placed to spring another surprise after their extraordinary exploits at the 2022 World Cup. They have quality players across the pitch, including the likes of Achraf Hakimi, Brahim Diaz and Bilal El Khannouss, and I believe they could repeat the feat.

Stephen Darwin: Senegal might seem like a frankly ludicrous shout, given they’ve been paired with France and Norway in Group I, they lost a pre-tournament friendly to the United States and are about as unfancied to go far in the competition as all but the minnows of the competition, but I can’t look past that attack - Sadio Mane, Ismaila Sarr, Iliman Ndiaye and Nicolas Jackson - and not see goals. Mark my words - Senegal are going to be a problem for many of the big guns this summer.

Peter McVitie: Boasting Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland, as well as English champion and Champions League finalist Martin Odegaard, Norway are aiming to make a big impression at their first World Cup since 1998. Amazingly, they did not need either of those players to outclass Nordic neighbours Sweden on June 1, seeing Jorgen Strand Larsen and Alexander Sorloth to shine up front for Stale Solbakken’s team. Factor in the likes of Antonio Nusa, Sander Berge, Julian Ryerson and Oscar Bobb, and Norway will surely put up a great fight against France, Senegal and Iraq.

Amee Ruszkai: There is a lot of quality and experience in this Switzerland, squad and the tournament feels set-up for them to do well. It was only two years ago that Murat Yakin guided this team to the quarter-finals of the Euros, where England needed penalties to beat them, and that experience should also help as they look toward to a World Cup in which they should top their group, thus securing a favourable first knockout game. After that, don’t be surprised if they pick off some ‘bigger’ nations in a deep run. .

Tom Hindle: Turkiye are always dark horses, or so we are told, but the answer this year has to be Colombia. Luis Diaz is a star while James Rodriguez still has some football left in those legs, and there’s plenty of talent around them. They came within a piece of Lautaro Martinez magic of winning the Copa America in 2024, and have only strengthened since then. If Colombia top a group that also includes Portugal, they could have a kinder run to, say, a semi-final.

Chris Burton: Japan made light work of their qualification campaign, suffering only one defeat through 16 matches - winning 13 and conceding only three goals. They then showed against England in a friendly date at Wembley that they can compete with the big boys. Full of energy in the middle of the park - with Premier League experience and a former Real Madrid wonderkid in Take Kubo to call upon - their high press will cause anybody problems. Goals have not always been easy to come by at World Cups for Samurai Blue, but Feyenoord striker Ayase Ueda heads into the tournament with an Eredivisie Golden Boot under his belt and should be full of confidence.

Alex Labidou: Probably Colombia or, dare I say, Brazil?! Yes, Brazil are always expected to win, but there are more questions than answers for this team, which means they’ve been undersold for a while. It's also worth noting a key factor: Climate. Remember last year how much complaining and adjusting European teams had to do for the Club World Cup? That gives South America the edge and helps Brazil or their rivals, Colombia.

Ryan Tolmich: Is it fair to call Norway a dark horse? They have a cheat code up top in Erling Haaland and, with that cheat code, they should be able to bulldoze a few teams. They’ll also be able to put real fear into the 'elite', and one or two goals from Haaland is enough to turn that fear into a major upset. No matter what, Norway will feel they can win every game due to the big fella up top, and teams with that mentality tend to make significant runs, particularly when matched up with favourites unable to cope with their own pressure.

Tom Maston: While Norway obviously have Erling Haaland, and Japan's pre-tournament results have been eye-catching, I'm going to plump for Colombia. Backed by what will be one of the largest followings outside of the host nations and with no climate issues to concern them, Colombia have plenty going for them even before you bring up Luis Diaz being one of the form players in world football right now. James Rodriguez, meanwhile, showed at the 2024 Copa America that he still has plenty to offer on the international stage, and so even if they don't top their group, expect Los Cafeteros to make a deep run through the knockouts.