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.
We are now just hours away from the start of the 2026 World Cup finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with all 48 teams having made their way to North America with dreams of glory driving them. All of the pre-qualifying favourites made it safely through, including Spain, Brazil, England, France and defending champions Argentina.
Harry Kane has sent a heartfelt message to his former Tottenham team-mate Christian Eriksen following the midfielder's latest on-field health scare. The Denmark international caused widespread concern when he clutched his chest and fell to the ground during a friendly against Ukraine, reminiscent of his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.
Christian Eriksen has broken his silence to reassure supporters that he is recovering at home following a terrifying on-pitch collapse during Denmark’s clash with Ukraine. The 34-year-old midfielder was discharged from the hospital after his internal defibrillator was triggered during the international friendly on Sunday.
Andros Townsend has led calls for Christian Eriksen to consider retiring from professional football after the midfielder suffered a second terrifying in-game collapse. The football world was left in shock on Sunday as the 34-year-old went down during Denmark’s friendly against Ukraine, almost five years since his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.