World Cup 2026 will be here before you know it.
The World Cup kicks off on Thursday, June 11 next year, meaning the countdown to next summer’s action can soon begin in earnest.
Argentina will be looking to defend their crown following their epic penalty shootout win over France in the 2022 final, but how are each of the leading contenders looking a year out? FourFourTwo ranks each of the big boys.
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World Cup 2026 Power Rankings
All odds from Betfair.
10. Italy
We kick off this top ten with Italy, who need to get their house in order quickly if they are to even qualify for the tournament. Luciano Spalletti revealed he had been sacked following last week’s 3-0 defeat to Norway as their quest to reach a first World Cup since 2014 started badly.
A poor Euro 2024 campaign was followed up by some promising Nations League performances, but they are very much on the back foot as things stand. Remarkably, Italy’s last World Cup knockout game was the 2006 final, meaning next summer will mark a full two decades since the Azzurri made a dent on the world’s biggest tournament.
Odds: 22/1
9. Netherlands
A tough team to call, with Ronald Koeman’s side as frustrating as they are talented. Euro 2024 was a case in point, as they toiled to get out of their group before pushing England all the way in the semi-final.
It was a similar story in the Nations League, where they lost an entertaining two-legged quarter-final against Spain on penalties.
Koeman is able to utilise some very talented players. If Virgil van Dijk is still at the top of his game in 12 months’ time and Tijjani Reijnders hits the ground running at Manchester City, they will have a solid foundation.
The big question mark will be up front, with Memphis Depay not the most reliable forward, while Joshua Zirkzee has endured a tough season at Manchester United.
Odds: 18/1
8. Uruguay
Uruguay will be many fans’ dark horse next summer, and not just in West Yorkshire, where Leeds United fans who are the latest set of supporters to dub themselves the ‘widows of Bielsa’ will be backing their former boss.
The former Elland Road chief has got his side playing a typically high-octane style of attacking football that dispatched Brazil on the way to the semi-finals of last year’s Copa America.
Marcelo Bielsa is an expert at getting the most out of his players, with Darwin Nunez’s international form a case in point.
Odds: 25/1
7. Brazil
Carlo Ancelotti has a job on his hands over the next 12 months as he bids to turn a very middling Brazil side into world beaters in his first stint as an international manager.
Last summer’s disappointing Copa America has been followed up by more uninspiring performances in World Cup qualifying, including a 4-1 defeat to Argentina in March, but they remain well-placed to continue their streak of qualifying for every tournament since the competition began in 1930.
If Ancelotti can get the most out of his big-name players, such as Endrick, Vinicius Jr and Raphinha, then the naysayers could be silenced very quickly.
Odds: 6/1
6. Germany
Germany will still be stewing on their Euro 2024 quarter-final defeat to Spain, as the hosts looked capable of winning the tournament before their late defeat to eventual champions Spain.
A young, hungry generation has now replaced the likes of Manuel Neuer, Ilkay Gundogan, Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller, with the likes of Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz capable of performing on the biggest of all stages.
Tim Kleindienst will turn 30 later this summer, but the Borussia Mönchengladbach striker has made a fine start to his international career and could be a real option up top for Julian Nagelsmann next summer.
Odds: 9/1
5. England
Thomas Tuchel will be hoping that the 1–0 win over Andorra will be as bad as it gets in what is set to be an 18-month sprint to World Cup glory next summer.
We’ve not been able to learn much from the German’s first matches in charge, but the former Chelsea boss’s biggest issue to solve is a familiar one – how to turn a core of world-class individuals into a team that beats the very best.
Time and the international calendar are perhaps Tuchel’s biggest obstacles, as he will only have four more meet-ups with his squad after the current break and several of his key players will have played a lot of football in the two years leading up to next summer’s tournament.
Odds: 13/2
4. Portugal
Portugal’s Nations League victory has served as a timely reminder not to write off a side that have not reached the last-four of a major tournament since their Euro 2016 victory. Cristiano Ronaldo remains the main man, even after a poor Euro 2024 outing that would see players with lesser egos questioning their ability to do it on the biggest stage.
Rafael Leao’s performance against Spain in the Nations League final was a reminder of what he is capable of, while the likes of Joao Neves, Nuno Mendes and Vitinha show that Roberto Martinez has both quality and depth to play with next summer.
Odds: 12/1
3. France
Talking of quality and depth, may I introduce to you the France squad? Didier Deschamps’ pool of centre-backs is the envy of any other team in the world and at the other end of the pitch, Ousmane Dembele is back to his best, while Paris Saint-Germain’s pivot away from the Galacticos to young talent will benefit the national side no end.
Should Kylian Mbappe enjoy a more fruitful second season at Real Madrid and return to his explosive best, France should be able to put in a significant improvement on their pedestrian display at the Euros last summer.
Odds: 11/2
2. Spain
Perhaps the key reason why Spain won Euro 2024 was the balanced nature of their squad, who could combine exciting attacking talents with pragmatism at the back. Since then, Luis de la Fuente has tipped the scales to a more attacking set-up which has been great for the neutral (23 goals have been shared in their four games so far in 2025).
Rodri’s return should offset this slightly next season and the likes of Pedri, Gavi, Pau Cubarasi, Alejandro Balde and Samu Omorodion will hopefully also be available after missing Euro 2024. And after the strides he has made forward in the previous 12 months, who knows just how good Lamine Yamal will be by next summer?
Odds: 11/2
1. Argentina
The current champions, who added the 2024 Copa America to their list of honours last summer – will remain top of our list – for now, at least.
There still remains a question mark over whether or not Lionel Messi will lead the Albiceleste into next summer’s tournament, but Lionel Scaloni’s side has proven in recent months that they’re not a one-man team.
Argentina had just secured a place in the World Cup before they took on Brazil in March and proceeded to dismantle their neighbours 4-1, with Julian Alvarez and Enzo Fernandez running riot in the absence of their veteran skipper.
Odds: 8/1
