The World Cup draw has been announced and now sets the stage for the biggest tournament in soccer. There are still six spots left for nations to qualify, but all the groups have been locked in. 

In group A, South Korea and Mexico are the top contenders. Switzerland should be top of Group B, and Brazil or Morocco should top Group C. 

USA is in Group D with Paraguay, Australia, and the winner of the European Playoff C, between Türkiye, Romania, Slovakia, and Kosovo. It should be an easy way to the round-of-32 for USA, as they are the highest ranked in the group, at 14th in the FIFA men’s world ranking. 

Germany is the strongest in Group E. Group F should be the group of death, as Netherlands and Japan are both high ranked countries, and will be competing with Tunisia and the European Playoff B winner, which will be Ukraine, Sweden, Poland, or Albania.

Belgium is the best in Group G, while Spain and Uruguay are the main contenders in Group H. France should top Group I and Argentina should top Group J. 

The last two groups are tougher, with Portugal and Colombia in Group K, and England and Croatia in Group L.

There are many key players in this upcoming World Cup, including rising youngsters like Spain’s Lamine Yamal and Pedri, Germany’s Florian Wirtz, Jamal Musiala, and Lennart Karl. 

Some of the star players in the tournament will be Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele for France, Cristiano Ronaldo and Vitinha for Portugal, Lionel Messi and Alexis Mac Allister for Argentina, and Harry Kane and Cole Palmer for England. 

This World Cup will most likely be both Messi and Ronaldo’s last dance for their international campaigns, meaning that it will be the end of an era.

Norway, Morocco, Colombia, and Japan look to be the potential dark horses, as these countries have more talents and depth within their squad than usual. 

Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, Argentina, England, the Netherlands, and Brazil are widely known to be the strongest nations and are expected to qualify for at least the quarter-finals. Spain, England, and France are the heavy favorites to reach the finals on July 19, with Spain being favored to win the World Cup. This young Spanish squad, led by 18-year-old star attacker Lamine Yamal, is coming off a big win in the 2024 Euros, where they defeated a strong England squad 2-1.

This will be a thrilling 2026 World Cup following Argentina’s second ever, and it will be the first ever 48 team version, with the first knockout stage being the round of 32.