Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Only once in the history of the World Cup has the host nation (South Africa in 2010) failed to get out of the group stage. However, we’re thinking Qatar will become the second team to suffer that fate. It’s a really interesting group — with Netherlands seen as the general favorite. Ecuador is no picnic to play against, and Senegal has some world class talent littered throughout its roster. It’s really a toss-up to see which side will be the second to advance from this group (behind Netherlands). Ultimately, we’re going to roll with Senegal as the runner-up.
First Place: Netherlands
Second Place: Senegal
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Group B: England, USA, Wales, Iran
This is another group chock-full of storylines. Obviously, the geopolitical past meshes together the United States with both Iran and England. The same can be said with Iran to England — and England to Wales. Gareth Southgate’s group has looked far from convincing lately. However, they’re still the heavy favorite to advance from the group. The U.S. looked dreadful over the last international window, and there are many questions revolving around the capabilities of manager Gregg Berhalter.
Wales is a tidy, compact team with good team chemistry. It’s one of those the sum is greater than the parts outfit. Iran has some elite attacking talent, and strong technical ability (as the best team throughout Asia in WC qualifying). Still, will the distractions at home be too much of a burden to overcome? We’re picking the U.S. to sneak out as the second team in this group — though we’re not too confident in the selection.
First Place: England
Second Place: United States
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Group C: Mexico, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Argentina
Argentina heads into this tournament as one of the favorites. Unlike years past, the team doesn’t revolve solely around Lionel Messi. He’s now more of a central playmaker — which is arguably even more terrifying considering his class on the ball. The second team out of this group likely comes between Mexico and Poland. Mexico’s group is aging, whereas Poland possesses arguably the best No. 9 in the world in Robert Lewandowski. Those two teams square off versus one another to begin group stage play. The winner likely will advance as the second-place team.
First Place: Argentina
Second Place: Poland
Image Source: Juan MABROMATA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by JUAN MABROMATA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Group D: Tunisia, France, Australia, Denmark
Last cycle’s World Cup winners (France) are battling a number of injuries to an already aging squad. The engine of the team — N’Golo Kante — has already been ruled out of the tournament. There are questions as to whether Paul Pogba will be healthy in time to play. There’s obviously a boatload of talent within the group — though much of it is untested/inexperienced. As such, we think Denmark wins the group ultimately. The Danes are quite gifted in their own right, and have plenty of camaraderie playing with one another. With respects to Australia and Tunisia, neither really pose too much of a threat to the aforementioned duo.
First Place: Denmark
Second Place: France
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Group E: Japan, Spain, Germany, Costa Rica
Costa Rica got into this tournament by the skin of its proverbial teeth. For as prolific of a keeper as Keylor Navas is, even his exploits won’t allow Los Ticos to advance beyond the group stage. Japan is a quick, assertive, dynamic team with some quality. It certainly won’t be a pushover by any stretch — and it won’t be a surprise if Japan ultimately clips one of the top-two projected teams in the group. With that said, Spain and Germany likely will be fighting for first place based upon the collective talents both teams possess.
First Place: Spain
Second Place: Germany
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Group F: Canada, Belgium, Morocco, Croatia
This is a really fun group. Canada has arguably the most talented side in the history of its program (led by Jonathan David and Alphonso Davies). Morocco has some very good talent of his own — most of which plays in Spain/La Liga. Croatia is a nice mixture of veterans from the 2018 group along with some emerging talent, and Belgium’s whole roster essentially was the group dubbed as ‘its Golden Generation’ (despite now being collectively on the wrong side of 30). Croatia does seem like the best bet to win the group. We’d love to take Canada as a second-place darkhorse. However, we’re a bit concerned with its overall depth/talent in the defense.
First Place: Croatia
Second Place: Belgium
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Group G: Cameroon, Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland
Brazil is the odds-on favorite to win the tournament. The team is loaded with starpower across the board, and absolutely devastated the competition in World Cup Qualifying en route to Qatar. Switzerland is a rock-solid team, and is usually always in contention to make it to the knockout round (which is about where its ceiling is). Cameroon is a bit of a wildcard — though its a team with some ability in wide spaces. Serbia is a team nobody really wants to face, as it possesses a couple of lethal goal scorers to go along with a physical back four.
First Place: Brazil
Second Place: Serbia
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Group H: Portugal, Uruguay, South Korea, Ghana
This is another rather wide-open group. All four teams possess varying levels of talent — though each can beat one another on any given day. Ghana has been fortified by a plethora of dual-nationals who’ve since joined the team post-World Cup qualifying. South Korea has Tottenham’s star player Heung-Min Son. Portugal has talent littered all over its projected XI (despite the recent struggles of Cristiano Ronaldo). Uruguay — similarly to Croatia — has a nice mixture of vets (Edinson Cavani, Luis Suarez) with burgeoning stars (Fede Valverde). Uruguay excels in tournaments like these — which is why we like La Celeste to top the group. Portugal will slide into second place, though it could easily fail to reach the knockout stage with poor play.
First Place: Uruguay
Second Place: Portugal
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Round of 16: Netherlands (1A) vs United States (2B)
This is not a good matchup for the United States. As of late October, Berhalter’s side doesn’t really have a solid No. 9 solidified as the starter. It also struggles when forced to break teams down. The Dutch are LOADED in the back — with Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool), Matthjis de Ligt (Bayern Munich), and Stefan de Vrij (Inter Milan) projected as starters in Louis Van Gaal’s 3-4-3 alignment.
The U.S. has to hope that it’s top-two attacking players are both healthy (Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna) for the Yanks to have any shot at winning this match. We’ve seen nothing to suggest that Berhalter can make the tactical adjustments to actually put the Dutch on its proverbial heels. Additionally, the U.S. and its unsettled centre-back grouping must deal with the likes of Memphis Depay, Cody Gakpo, Steven Bergwijn, and others.
Winner: Netherlands
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Round of 16: England (1B) vs Senegal (2A)
Will Southgate actually take the reins off this team and let them play? It’s the big question heading into the tournament. His unwillingness to loosen from his highly conservative style of play has led to England looking rather pedestrian over the last few months. Playing a double pivot with two holding midfielders doesn’t make a whole lot of sense when you’ve got a plethora of highly gifted attacking players.
Of course, England should be all too familiar with Sadio Mane. He is the talisman for Senegal — and the guy who can cause England some real issues on the counter (as can Watford’s Ismaila Sarr). The midfield is buoyed by Everton’s Idrissa Gueye, and Chelsea’s tandem of GK Edouard Mendy and CB Kalidou Koulibaly lead the defense. England should be able to win this match assuming Southgate doesn’t overthink things. Otherwise, things could get dicey real quick.
Winner: England
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Round of 16: Argentina (1C) vs France (2D)
What a dream matchup this would be for networks all over the world. You’d have two of the most prolific footballing nations around the world competing versus one another in the Round of 16 knockout stage. When diving deeper into this game, we’d have to give Argentina the edge. For one, France likely wouldn’t be able to control the midfield in its usual fashion without Kante in the middle.
Secondly, Argentina has not lost a match since July of 2019 (versus Brazil). The attacking options for La Albiceleste are both creative and dynamic. Without being so reliant on Messi, you’re seeing other players emerge — including starlet Julian Alvarez (Manchester City). This team truly seems as if they’re on a mission to give Messi the World Cup title he’s desperately aching for.
Winner: Argentina
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Round of 16: Denmark (1D) vs Poland (2C)
Denmark is a real sleeper within this tournament. This is a team possessing both physicality and technical ability on the ball. Kasper Dolberg (pictured) is a gigantic target man up top (as is 19-year-old Atalanta striker Rasmus Hojlund). Christian Eriksen is class on the ball in the middle of the park. Additionally, the Danes have a couple of really talented youngsters ready to emerge on the world’s stage (Mikkel Damsgaard, Andreas Olsen, Jesper Lindstrom).
Furthering Denmark’s case to advance is the fact that the majority of the roster is either in its prime — or is on the cusp of it. Simply put, the side has more depth than Poland. The Danes have more ways to create goal-scoring chances comparatively speaking, and the lack of threatening players next to Robert Lewandowski up top will be Poland’s ultimate downfall.
Winner: Denmark
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Round of 16: Spain (1E) vs Belgium (2F)
We like the make-up of this Spanish side. The leadership qualities of Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba will be accentuated by the new crop of potential superstars — which is led by Ferran Torres, Gavi, and Pedri. This team has the quality to essentially play anyone off the park on their day. The midfield might be a bit green, but talent is among the best in the world. Pablo Sarabia and Alvaro Morata need to be threatening up top for Spain to truly reach its full potential.
Belgium’s group is star-studded from a name standpoint. It’s essentially the same group we saw four years ago. The main issue for Roberto Martinez’s team is collective age. You’re looking at a group with on average will likely be the oldest in the tournament. The defense is glacially slow, and injuries could pose problems with so many matches in a short amount of time.
Winner: Spain
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Round of 16: Germany (2E) vs Croatia (1F)
This is somewhat of a toss-up match here in the Round of 16. On paper, Germany appears to have the stronger, younger team. There’s terrific midfield play with the combination of Ilkay Gundogan, Joshua Kimmich and Jamal Musiala — not to mention creative wingers (Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry) and a veteran presence in Thomas Muller. The lack of a true No. 9 is still a bit of an issue.
Croatia is the older side of the two, but it’s the one with far more experience and team chemistry. Luka Modric is still an absolute machine in his late 30’s — and collectively the Croatian midfield is a very strong unit. This match really could go either way depending on the day. Ultimately, Croatia will eek out the victory.
Winner: Croatia
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Round of 16: Brazil (G1) vs Portugal (H2)
This would be a fun matchup — and one with plenty of starpower. Brazil mowed down CONMEBOL opponents en route to this point. With Neymar functioning more centrally as an attacking midfield, it’s enabled other members of the team to really shine in the attack. You’re talking about a team who can field a who’s who of players at any given moment. Among them — Vinicius (Real Madrid), Richarlison (Everton), Raphinha (Barcelona), Gabi Jesus (Arsenal), Bobby Firmino (Liverpool), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), and Antony (Manchester United).
There’s a chance 39-year-old Pepe is starting at center back for Portugal. This is somewhat of a scary proposition for a backline already struggling a great deal with pace. While there’s no question Portugal has some elite attacking talent (Bruno Fernandes, Joao Felix, Rafael Leao, Diogo Jota), Cristiano Ronaldo’s lack of form is a major storyline. The team might be better off not starting him — though is CR7 willing to accept that fate gracefully? Either way, Portugal seems susceptible to be caught out on the counter by Brazil’s ridiculous attacking depth.
Winner: Brazil
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Round of 16: Uruguay (H1) vs Serbia (G2)
This game could end up being one of the most fascinating of the tournament up to this point. Uruguay is always super tough to play against at the World Cup. It’s a very proud nation with an even prouder tradition of making life difficult for the opponent. Clinical, technical, aggressive and measured, it’s yet again a group led by veterans (Edinson Cavani, Luis Suarez, Diego Godin) sprinkled in with some very exciting young talent (Rodrigo Bentancur, Fede Valverde, Facundo Pellistri, Darwin Nunez, Giorgian De Arrascaeta). Valverde in particular has taken his game to another level — and should be considered a player with a ‘world class’ denotation.
Serbia is no pushover. The roster has a heavy Serie A influence — with many of its prominent players plying their trades in Italy’s top flight. Of course, the attack starts with Juve’s lead man Dusan Vlahovic. On the drop of a hat, he can create something out of nothing. Next to him up top include Fulham’s goal-scoring beast Aleksandar Mitrovic and Roma’s Luka Jovic. Dusan Tadic, Nemanja Gudelj, and Lazio’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic makes up a very capable midfield.
Based on past experience, we’ll give the slight edge to Uruguay in this match — though Serbia’s goal-scoring prowess very well could see them through to the Quarterfinals.
Winner: Uruguay
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Quarterfinals: Netherlands (1A) vs Argentina (1C)
Stylistically, the Netherland’s 3-4-3 alignment will aim to get its wingbacks up into the attack — overloading one of the sides in order to cause Argentina’s backline some issues. Depending on who’s slated to start for the South American giant, the Dutch will look to build through the wings. Much of their attacking prowess comes from wide positions. The centre-back pairing of de Ligt and van Dijk will also pose Argentina some major problems as it pertains to set pieces.
On the flip-side, Argentina’s relative quickness with the ball on the ground will test the Netherlands’ backline. The aim will be to draw the centre-backs out — creating space for their attackers to fill in behind. While this game could ultimately go either way, Argentina is playing with loads of confidence right now. Their bite in the final third will be the difference.
Winner: Argentina
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Quarterfinals: Spain (E1) vs Brazil (G1)
This would be a tantalizing matchup for more reasons than one. These two footballing nations arguably play the most aesthetically pleasing styles of anyone traditionally-speaking. However, this does seem like a rather straightforward match in which Brazil has a clear advantage.
Spain’s backline — if it does indeed include Jordi Alba and Sergio Ramos — will struggle with the pace and athleticism of Brazil (particularly on the counter and in transition). Additionally, it’s asking an awful lot of two teens (Gavi, Pedri) and an aging Busquets to potentially try and corral Neymar in space. For as gifted as those three are with the ball, asking them to defend is exactly what they don’t want to do for long stretches (where instead they’d rather ping the ball back and forth with each other). Spain may be a cycle too early. If everything goes to plan, it should be the favorite in 2026.
Winner: Brazil
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Quarterfinals: England (B1) vs Denmark (D1)
Denmark will not fear England in the slightest. Many of its players hail from the EPL — and thus are more than familiar with the ‘big names’ England will bring to the table. On paper, England appear to be a better side. With that said, Denmark has been playing at a higher level. There’s more confidence within the group, more conviction in the final third, and the Danes don’t rely on one player (a la Harry Kane with the English) to provide them with goal-scoring chances.
While it may appear to be an upset to some, we think Denmark is a more complete unit. It should be able to advance from this game.
Winner: Denmark
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Quarterfinals: Uruguay (H1) vs Croatia (F1)
These are two similar sides with class all over the pitch. It also in all likelihood represents the last hurrah for Suarez, Godin, Cavani, and Modric — all of whom were considered to be ‘world class’ talents at one point or another.
Collectively, Uruguay will have the edge here. It’s young talent is superior to Croatia’s — where it can bring on a number of game-changers off the bench to tilt the match in its favor. Darwin Nunez clearly gets a lot of hype based upon his pedigree as a goal scorer. Fede Valverde rightfully is also receiving praise for his breakout season with Real Madrid. However, don’t sleep on Flamengo’s Giorgian de Arrascaeta or Facundo Pellistri. Both have the class to impact the game upon entry.
Winner: Uruguay
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Semifinals: Argentina (C1) vs Brazil (G1)
This would be a dream matchup. You’ve got the two best teams from South America — and perhaps the tournament’s top-two favorites — squaring off in the Semifinals. The narratives emanating from this match would be endless, as it’ll likely be Messi’s last shot at winning a World Cup. Of course, he’ll be tasked with trying to slay the proverbial dragon which has spat fiery clouds of fury upon his national team for over a decade.
When looking at this game, Brazil clearly is the side with more talent. Duly, it appears to have a decided edge in the midfield — where Neymar will likely pair with Bruno Guimaraes and the magisterial Casemiro. The pace of Vinicius and Raphinha should also give Argentina’s backline some issues in the process.
Winner: Brazil
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Semifinals: Denmark (D1) vs Uruguay (H1)
Why not Denmark?
Something wacky is going to happen in this tournament. Based upon the circumstances surrounding the event — coupled with the decision to move it to the winter — there will be one team likely coming out of nowhere to surprise everyone (similar to what Croatia did in 2018).
The Danes are chock-full of talent at all levels of their team. Duly, they’re battle-tested having qualified from UEFA — and they’ve beaten the reigning world champions France in back-to-back matches over the last calendar year.
Winner: Denmark
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World Cup Final: Brazil (G1) vs Denmark (D1)
The Cinderella story that is Denmark will soon see all of the hygge disappear courtesy of the boys in blue, yellow, and green.
This will be the culmination of a spectacular cycle for Brazil. Here in front of the fans, we’ll get to see the Brazilian expression explode on the pitch. The team is always at its best when playing with a free-flowing — almost care-free attitude. The Danes won’t be able to matchup with the attacking power Brazil brings to the table. As such, it’ll be another world title for the most prolific footballing country.
Winner: Brazil
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A Final Look…
This is our final projection as it pertains to each of the groups. As you can see, these all appear to be hotly contested clusters of teams — and it really wouldn’t be a surprise to see a number of these heavyweights making it to the final in Doha.
Here’s the Round of 16 — which clearly shows each matchup along with the projected winner…
From here, we have the quarterfinals and the semifinals neatly laid out…
Of course, you’re then left with the final matchup between Brazil and Denmark.
Image Source: Friday the 13th/Warner Brothers/Paramount Pictures