2026 World Cup Discussion

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BlueMoonAcrossThePond

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The 2026 World Cup will be hosted by three countries: Canada, The USA and Mexico. It will feature an expanded field of 48 teams consisting of 16 groups of 3 (as opposed to the current format of 32 teams in 8 groups of 4 - however the division of the 48 teams into groups is still a matter of ongoing debate within FIFA as of this post in late 2022). In the States, Fox retains broadcast rights for the cup.

This thread is about anything 2026 World Cup.

* Predictions about teams likely to dominate in 4-years time.
* Teams in decline - great now but unlikely to do well in 4 years.
* Upcoming talent.
* Best player to make the tourney. MBappe is getting better and better - but if Norway can qualify (48 teams now!), Haaland could easily overshadow him.
* Technology - VAR and other automated technologies are becoming ever more prominent. Will the 2026 cup feature side-line out-of-touch technology? Might offside technology be improved? - instant communication to the sideline officials so that offside is called immediately?
* And anything else.
 
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I'll start with teams in decline:
Belgium had its golden generation - and that looks to be over. They'll likely qualify but they won't be a big force.
Croatia? - Modric will be gone. Maybe there's enough young talent though to continue Croatian excellence?

Teams on the rise:
Spain - they have a bunch of young talent - but lack a killer striker. Only going to get better IMO.
USA - getting better and better.

USA TV Coverage:
Unfortunately it's Fox again. Still, the announcers in 2022 were good - I skipped all the half-time talk/analysis though because - let's be honest - it's awful.

Expanded Field:
I'm not a fan. I like to watch every World Cup game if I'm able. With the expanded field it seems that there will be 80 total games instead of the current 64 - or perhaps 100 games depending on the final format.
 
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I read an article where they showed the impact of the additional 16 teams at the next WC based on who would have qualified for Qatar had it been that number.

Africa - Algeria, DR Congo, Egypt, Mali and Nigeria
Asia - Iraq and UAE
CONCACAF - Jamaica and Panama
Oceania - New Zealand
South America - Chile, Colombia and Peru
Europe - North Macedonia, Sweden and Ukraine

Thrilling isn't it.

It will be 2x 6 groups of 4. They'll merge them into a round of 32, last 16 and so on. England will get to play an extra game before going out in the QFs to the first good team we meet. Or, we might manage to make the semi's because we don't meet anyone good until then!

It's hard to call things in 4 years time. I don't know enough about emerging talent in Brazil, but defensively you wonder if they'll be good enough. Argentina without Messi will struggle unless some of their youngsters kick on. Germany will be strong again, if they finally accept they're not Spain and play a striker. Spain will improve further and if they can find a keeper to play their style and unearth some more youngsters (you'd expect them to) they'll challenge. Italy I can't see being competitive. Croatia will be done. Portugal should still be in good shape.

The two squads you look at and see the most hope for are England and France. The French have so much talent and they'll keep bringing players through. England have a fantastic squad we just need more defensive/goalkeeping options and we have to ensure our best players are in positions to influence games and not be afraid to bring on new talent or unfashionable names to change things.
 
supercity88 said:
I read an article where they showed the impact of the additional 16 teams at the next WC based on who would have qualified for Qatar had it been that number.

Africa - Algeria, DR Congo, Egypt, Mali and Nigeria
Asia - Iraq and UAE
CONCACAF - Jamaica and Panama
Oceania - New Zealand
South America - Chile, Colombia and Peru
Europe - North Macedonia, Sweden and Ukraine

Thrilling isn't it.

It will be 2x 6 groups of 4. They'll merge them into a round of 32, last 16 and so on. England will get to play an extra game before going out in the QFs to the first good team we meet. Or, we might manage to make the semi's because we don't meet anyone good until then!

It's hard to call things in 4 years time. I don't know enough about emerging talent in Brazil, but defensively you wonder if they'll be good enough. Argentina without Messi will struggle unless some of their youngsters kick on. Germany will be strong again, if they finally accept they're not Spain and play a striker. Spain will improve further and if they can find a keeper to play their style and unearth some more youngsters (you'd expect them to) they'll challenge. Italy I can't see being competitive. Croatia will be done. Portugal should still be in good shape.

The two squads you look at and see the most hope for are England and France. The French have so much talent and they'll keep bringing players through. England have a fantastic squad we just need more defensive/goalkeeping options and we have to ensure our best players are in positions to influence games and not be afraid to bring on new talent or unfashionable names to change things.
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I'd have liked to see Sweden qualify (to hopefully see Zlatan play) and Ukraine (for sentimental reasons - they're going through hell as a nation due to the war).

But yeah - not a fan of the expanded field. But who knows - maybe another gem-in-the-rough like Morocco emerges to surprise us all.
 
BlueMoonAcrossThePond said:
I'd have liked to see Sweden qualify (to hopefully see Zlatan play) and Ukraine (for emotional reasons - they're going through hell as a nation due to the war).

But yeah - not a fan of the expanded field. But who knows - maybe another gem-in-the-rough like Morocco emerges to surprise us all.
Click to expand...

There will be a few surprises as it's football after all! I don't mind more games, I end up watching most of them and finding some reason to enjoy them. When the 4 games a day ended it left a hole in my work schedule.

Hard to know what will happen in 4 years. Generally it's the usual suspects at every tournament, but it does feel as though a lot of players played their last tournament this time around and might leave a few too many holes to fill. I'm sure there are bright generations coming through in obscure places as well. England will have the heat to whinge about at the next World Cup as well.
 
I think the 16 groups of 3 is DOA given the "watch and wait" adverse incentive set up for the side not playing. I'd actually like 8 groups of 6 with every side playing a minimum of five matches instead of three and the top two advancing. But I suppose it will be 12 groups of 4 with the "best" 4 second place teams advancing (which I don't really like given the potential variation in quality within the groups).

I'm already planning to take off a few weeks. I can warn all the stadium near San Francisco (Levis) is a fucking nightmare. Skip it. I am going to try to hit Vancouver for sure, as well as Boston and LA and Miami given the friends I have in those places. Not as focused on which sides I see really; more which cities I want to spend time in.
 
FogBlueInSanFran said:
I think the 16 groups of 3 is DOA given the "watch and wait" adverse incentive set up for the side not playing. I'd actually like 8 groups of 6 with every side playing a minimum of five matches instead of three and the top two advancing. But I suppose it will be 12 groups of 4 with the "best" 4 second place teams advancing (which I don't really like given the potential variation in quality within the groups).

I'm already planning to take off a few weeks. I can warn all the stadium near San Francisco (Levis) is a fucking nightmare. Skip it. I am going to try to hit Vancouver for sure, as well as Boston and LA and Miami given the friends I have in those places. Not as focused on which sides I see really; more which cities I want to spend time in.
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Yup.

The 2026 format is still in flux. I quoted the 3-group proposal from the wiki but that's still subject to change. I edited my original post accordingly.

en.wikipedia.org

2026 FIFA World Cup - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
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