FAST DOWNLOAD
The 2026 World Cup is still over 18 months away, but the excitement surrounding the tournament is already building, particularly in host nations Canada, Mexico and the United States. All three are presently building towards the tournament, while qualifying is already well under way in the CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, CAF and AFC regions.
Meanwhile, Europe’s top sides are still playing Nations League football, but some sides are undeniably in far better shape than others right now. There is, of course, an awful lot of football to be played between now and the opening game of the World Cup in Mexico City on June 11, 2026 but, as it stands, who’s looking like a potential victor – and which nations have a lot to work on?
Below, GOAL assesses the prospects of the three hosts and the 13 highest-ranked teams in the international game today…
-
Getty Images16Mexico ⬇️
Jaime Lozano led Mexico to Gold Cup glory in 2023, but he was sacked after last summer’s abysmal Copa America campaign in which El Tri failed dismally to get out of a very winnable 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.
It’s certainly been an eventful start to Aguirre’s third tenure, with Mexico going from the high of beating Mauricio Pochettino’s United States in October to the low of losing the first leg of their Nations League quarter-final in Honduras.
However, Aguirre shrugged off that defeat – and having his head split open by a beer can thrown by a home fan – to mastermind a stirring comeback in the return leg in Toluca, with El Tri triumphing 4-2 on aggregate thanks to some bold attacking calls from their coach.
Is Aguirre, who remains under investigation for his own conduct in Honduras, the man to lead Mexico past the last 16 of the World Cup for the first time since they hosted the tournament in 1986? It’s hard to say at this point. But what’s clear is that his reign will not lack drama.
-
Getty Images15United States ⬆️
Mauricio Pochettino’s long-awaited appointment as the USMNT’s new coach was announced in September to great fanfare, and the Argentine’s reign kicked off with an encouraging 2-0 win over Panama in Austin. However, Pochettino is no miracle-worker, and the scale of the task ahead of him was made clear during his second outing: a comprehensive 2-0 loss to Mexico that was more one-sided than the final scoreline suggests.
Still, a 5-2 aggregate win over Jamaica in the quarter-finals of the Nations League has lifted the spirits (even accounting for the weakness of the opposition, who are ranked 61st in the world) and the fine form of Christian Pulisic (‘Trump Dance’ and all), Tim Weah and Weston McKennie offers further grounds for optimism going forward. Of arguably even greater significance, though, is Ricardo Pepi’s purple patch, as the USMNT have been crying out for a reliable goal-scorer for some time now.
-
-
AFP14Belgium ⬇️
Belgium went into Euro 2024 uneaten under Domenico Tedesco, but after a humiliating loss to Slovakia in their opening game, their campaign only descended further into farce, with Kevin De Bruyne even turning his back on the nation’s fans for expressing their disgust with the team’s dreadful lack of ambition in their final group game against Ukraine.
The Manchester City attacking midfielder decided to play on and impressed in the Nations League win over Israel in Hungary in September, but he cut a bitterly frustrated figure during and after the tame loss to France in Lyon just a few days later. He hasn’t featured since amid ongoing concerns over his fitness and commitment to the cause.
Unsurprisingly, Belgium look lost without their captain and this month’s defeats, at home to Italy and ‘away’ to Israel, mean the Red Devils have now won just one of their last eight games in all competitions. Just over 18 months out from a World Cup, there are serious doubts over whether struggling Belgium will even qualify – let alone win it.
-
Getty13Canada ↔
Canada are a team going places under Jesse Marsch – as underlined by the fact that they’ve climbed from 40th to 35th in the FIFA world rankings since our last update. The American only took over in May and suffered a chastening 4-0 loss to Netherlands in his opening game, but a very creditable 0-0 draw with France proved a sign of things to come, with the Canucks finishing fourth 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 splash at the 2026 World Cup. Canada have only qualified for the finals on two previous occasions (1986 and 2022) and they lost all three of their group games on both occasions. However, Marsch has already shown that he could achieve something special with a hungry team led by the excellent Alphonso Davies and spearheaded by the prolific Jonathan David, who was on target again in Tuesday’s 3-0 Nations League quarter-final second-leg win over Suriname, which made it three wins on the spin for the Canadians.
-
-
AFP12Croatia ⬇️
We thought we’d seen the last of Luka Modric after Croatia’s devastating first-round elimination at the Euros, but the Real Madrid midfielder is still captaining his country and even got the only goal of the game in their Nations League win over Poland in September. However, the fact that Modric is still such an influential figure is worrying. Too many members of the squad are 30 or over, and there is a serious dearth of young talent in attack.
Of course, Croatia remain one of the international game’s great overachievers and, credit where it’s due, they’ve managed to reach the quarter-finals of the Nations League thanks to a 1-1 draw with Portugal. But it’s now three games without a win for coach Zlatko Dalic – the 1-0 loss in Scotland was particularly concerning – and he really needs to rejuvenate his side if they are to have any chance of arriving in North America with any chance of replicating their stunning third-placed finish in Qatar.
-
Getty Images11Morocco 🆕
Aside from Lionel Messi leading Argentina to World Cup glory, Morocco were arguably the story of Qatar 2022, with The Atlas Lions becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals in the tournament’s history. As it stands, Morocco also look like the continent’s best hope of a victory in 2026, having propelled themselves onto our list by climbing above Uruguay in the FIFA world rankings.
Walid Regragui’s side have lost just two games since finishing fourth in Qatar and are presently on a eight-match winning streak – during which they’ve scored a whopping 34 goals.
Their World Cup qualification campaign still has some way to go, but it would be a huge shock if they don’t top a group containing Congo, Zambia, Tanzania and Niger, particularly as they’ve claimed a maximum nine points so far and have also successfully integrated former Spain international Brahim Diaz into their squad. The Real Madrid attacker has already netted seven times in just eight appearances for his new team!
-
-
Getty Images10Brazil ⬇️
Dorival Junior claimed in September that Brazil will reach the final of the 2026 World Cup, but that looks like wishful thinking right now. The Selecao have lost just once in 2024 – away to Paraguay just a few days after Dorival’s bold prediction – but they were atrocious at the Copa America, where they were eliminated on penalties by Uruguay in the quarter-finals, and were booed off the pitch by their own fans after drawing 1-1 with the same side in their latest World Cup qualifier in Salvador.
The Selecao sit fifth in the South American standings, but there’s little chance of them failing to qualify automatically, as they’re still five points ahead of Bolivia down in seventh spot, which offers an inter-confederation play-off. However, Dorival is only going to come under more and more pressure if he continues to struggle with a squad that contains some incredible attacking talent in Vinicius Jr, Raphinha and Savinho.
-
Getty9Colombia ⬇️
Nestor Lorenzo has done an extraordinary job since taking charge of Colombia in June 2022, leading Los Cafeteros to the final of last summer’s Copa America, where they were only beaten in extra-time by Lionel Scaloni’s all-conquering Argentina. That defeat was avenged in World Cup qualifying, in September, but Colombia have surprisingly struggled since then.
They immediately bounced back from a 1-0 loss in Bolivia, which was attributed to the high altitude, by routing Chile, with Luis Diaz and Jhon Duran both on target in Barranquilla. However, they were beaten in both of their November internationals, losing 3-2 away to Uruguay before being upset 1-0 at home by Ecuador, and dropped from second to fourth in the South American standings as a result.
Colombia should still easily make it to the World Cup – the top six qualify automatically and they have a six-point cushion to seventh-placed Bolivia – but they have clearly lost a lot of the momentum they’d built up under Lorenzo and their resurgent skipper James Rodriguez.
-
AFP8Netherlands ⬆️
Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands remain a difficult side to work out. They were very fortunate to get out of their group at Euro 2024, but undeniably improved as the tournament went on and ended up reaching the semi-finals, where they were narrowly beaten by England. There is serious talent in the squad – Xavi Simons and Cody Gakpo proved that during the summer – while Ryan Gravenberch’s revival as a No.6 at Liverpool has come as a timely boost.
However, serious doubts remain over whether Joshua Zirkzee is the answer to their search for a world-class No.9, while they could clearly do with Matthijs de Ligt belatedly delivering on his world-class potential, particularly as captain and star centre-half Virgil van Dijk is not getting any younger. Consistency is a major issue in general for the Dutch, who have progressed to the Nations League quarter-finals, but only by winning two of their six games.
-
Getty7Italy ⬇️
Italy have failed to qualify for the last two World Cups and were utterly humiliated at Euro 2024, with the Azzurri beaten with embarrassing ease by Switzerland in the last 16 after scraping into the knockout stage with a last-minute equaliser against Croatia. Still, while Luciano Spalletti made several bizarre decisions in Germany, he remains an excellent coach and he’s slowly but surely starting to make some real progress with a squad left in a state of shock following Roberto Mancini’s shock resignation in August 2023.
Italy may have blown a glorious chance to progress to the Nations League quarter-finals as one of the seeded sides by slumping to a 3-1 loss at home to France, but the mere fact that they were in that position is serious grounds for optimism. After all, the Azzurri had already done enough to advance to the knockout stage by taking 13 points from five games, and the performances in those outings were nearly always as impressive as the results.
This is by no means a vintage Italy squad, but the club form of Mateo Retegui and Moise Kean is a major positive, given the country’s ongoing search for a reliable goal-scorer.
-
-
AFP6Portugal ⬆️
There is no end in sight to ‘The Cristiano Ronaldo Show’, with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner making it abundantly clear that he has no intention of retiring from international football even though it was made painfully obvious during the Euros that he can no longer cut it at the very highest level. When one considers that Portugal boss Roberto Martinez doesn’t have it in him to drop Ronaldo for the good of the team, it’s now inevitable that the Seleccao’s World Cup hopes will once again hinge upon the form and fitness of an egomaniac who will be 41 when the competition rolls around.
Indeed, five goals in the Nations League will have only strengthened Ronaldo’s resolve to continue leading his country for another two years, while younger and more mobile forwards are forced to play second fiddle to the superstar striker. Portugal have more than enough talent to qualify for the World Cup with a veteran up front, but it’s hard to shake the suspicion that they’re once again going to pay a heavy price for indulging Ronaldo at a major tournament – just as they did at Qatar 2022 and Euro 2024.
-
Getty5France ⬆️
Say what you will about Didier Deschamps but the man is resilient. The painfully pragmatic coach appeared to be a sitting duck after September’s Nations League loss at home to Italy, in what was France’s first outing following a mind-numbingly boring run to the semi-finals of Euro 2024. However, Les Bleus bounced back by beating Belgium and then, in spite of the mysterious absence of their captain and talisman, Kylian Mbappe, took 10 points from their four games in October and November to pip the Azzurri to top spot in their Nations League group.
The 3-1 victory at San Siro was particularly impressive and illustrated France’s enviable strength in depth, but it’s clear that Deschamps will need Mbappe back – and back at his best – if the 2022 World Cup runners-up are to have a real shot at winning in 2026. Right now, nobody’s entirely sure of the forward’s mental or physical state.
-
-
AFP4England ↔
Statistically speaking, 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 (FA) has now 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?
His nationality is already proving a bone of contention with certain sections of the media, which doesn’t bode well, but what’s clear after Lee Carsley’s short reign as interim coach is that Tuchel will have a deep pool of players at his disposal. England won five of their six games under the former Ireland international, who also handed out debuts to eight players, including the impressive Curtis Jones and Lewis Hall. Indeed, the new manager’s biggest problem will be figuring out who to leave out, with even Harry Kane’s starting spot the subject of much debate right now.
-
Getty Images Sport3Germany ↔
Germany’s Euro 2024 clash with Spain probably should have been the final, with the two best teams in the tournament playing out an absorbing and high-quality quarter-final encounter in Stuttgart that La Roja only edged thanks to a 119th-minute winner from Mikel Merino. Julian Nagelsmann’s side were understandably devastated by the nature of that defeat, but their performance against the eventual winners showed just how far they’d come under the former Bayern Munich boss, who took over a team in turmoil following Hansi Flick’s dismissal in September 2023.
Germany have since lost the hugely influential Toni Kroos to retirement, as well as Manuel Neuer, Thomas Muller and Ilkay Gundogan, but they’ve still got the multi-talented Joshua Kimmich leading a squad that contains two potential superstars in Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz, as so thrillingly underlined by the pair playing a starring role in last week’s stunning 7-0 demolition of Bosnia & Herzegovina.
Die Mannschaft were then held to a 1-1 draw away to Hungary in their final Nations League group game, but they’d long since sealed a spot in the quarter-finals and, as it stands, Nagelsmann is doing a decent job trying out different options, including Tim Kleindienst, while also getting good results.
-
-
Getty Images2Argentina ↔
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 now is whether he will continue until 2026. It’s a real possibility, as he’s top scorer in the CONMEBOL qualifying group, while he’s also just equalled Landon Donavan’s international assists record.
However, Argentina’s Messidependencia is a tad worrying. The GOAT is 37 now and, even accounting for the recent hat-trick against Bolivia, he’s clearly not as explosive as he once was. Lionel Scaloni definitely needs a serious contingency plan, so it was encouraging to see Lautaro Martinez maintain his fine form for club and country in 2024 by netting the winner in Tuesday’s clash with Peru to propel the Albiceleste five points clear in the South American standings. If Julian Alvarez also steps up, Scaloni will have a formidable front two by the time the next World Cup comes around no matter what Messi decides to do.
-
Getty1Spain ↔
Spain were most worthy winners of Euro 2024, with Luis de la Fuente shaking off early doubts over his elite-level credentials by putting together a wonderfully balanced team that was excellent offensively and dogged defensively. Consequently, La Roja were able to make light of their lack of a prolific No.9 (though captain Alvaro Morata did lead the line diligently in Germany) and a world-class goalkeeper to beat all-comers thanks to the security offered by the resurgent Aymeric Laporte and Marc Cucurella in defence, the majesty of Rodri and Fabian Ruiz in midfield, and the skill and pace of Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal out wide.
De la Fuente could still do with a reliable goal-scorer emerging over the next couple of years (Samu Aghehowa could be the answer to those prayers), but Spain just seem to be going from strength to strength thanks to emergence of even more promising young players, such as Pau Cubarsi, Marc Casado and Pablo Barrios.. They’ve now gone 16 games without defeat (even that was was a friendly!) and they cruised into the Nations League quarter-finals by taking 16 points from a possible 18. As it stands, La Roja are the team to beat in 2026.
-
-
