“In a World Cup,” former England manager Steve McClaren once said, “more or less you get a crisis every three days.”
There have been precious few sides spared any sort of turmoil during a chaotic opening few weeks to the 2026 tournament. While the nations already eliminated have been besieged by managerial upheaval, internal fighting and a myriad of logistical nightmares, those preparing for the knockouts have suffered through plenty of struggles themselves.
As the World Cup gears up for its first ever round of 32, giving the greatest sporting spectacle on the planet a distinct Europa League flavor, there’s a brief window of opportunity to take stock of what’s gone before and the carnage which will invariably lie ahead.
Ranking Criteria
- The goal : This is primarily a judge of which teams are most likely to go the furthest in the remainder of the tournament.
- Quality : Naturally the sides which have been most convincing will be ranked higher.
- Fixtures : Now we have a concrete idea of the knockout bracket, teams with a tougher run to the showpiece fixture will get penalized.
32. Cabo Verde
What Cabo Verde has pulled off is miraculous. As manager Bubista beamed: “We have shown that nothing is impossible.” Quite how the African minnow managed it doesn’t exactly bode well for future outings: Cabo Verde faced more shots than this pitiful iteration of Tunisia, yet still kept two clean sheets.
Lionel Messi and Argentina are unlikely to be quite so wasteful.
31. DR Congo
Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together? “We told ourselves that for the first match, we had to do everything just to take a single point and then in the third match, to take all three points to qualify,” DR Congo's Fiston Mayele would reflect at the conclusion of a group stage which played out just as it was planned.
Whether those schemes can be stuck to in the knockouts is another matter.
30. South Africa
After a humbling World Cup opener against Mexico, Hugo Broos recounted a conversation he’d had with a friend once qualification for the tournament had been confirmed. They should erect a statue of you, Broos was excitedly told. “Make it out of wood,” he snapped back, “that way it will burn more easily.”
South Africa’s tournament has swung from histrionics to historic qualification. What lies ahead is uncertain, but Broos is right: It will all end in ashes.
29. Algeria
Algeria fell behind in every group stage game. There was no way back against Argentina, Jordan eventually wilted but Austria provided a sting in the tail at the end of a dizzying first round finale. A crisis of confidence in Vladimir Petković’s selected goalkeepers paints an ominous picture going forward.
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28. Paraguay
A side which scored 14 goals in 18 World Cup qualifiers was never going to light the tournament on fire. Paraguay has done a surprisingly thorough job of snuffing out any spark during a battling and bruising progression to the knockouts.
27. Bosnia & Herzegovina
“The Bosnians fans have already won the World Cup,” reflected Zlatan Ibrahimović, the legendary Swedish striker whose father Šefik was Bosnian.
Qualifying for the tournament was a feat to savor but getting to the knockouts is a remarkable achievement for a nation six years younger than its captain, Edin Džeko.
26. Austria
The disruption of Austria’s World Cup buildup appears to have bled into the competition. After losing star forward Christoph Baumgartner to injury, there was the real risk manager Ralf Rangnick would also be depart as AC Milan circled with intent. The German coach penned a new contract to provide some clarity, but there has been scant cohesion on the pitch.
25. Ghana
“We work in the entertainment business,” Ghana’s Carlos Queiroz claimed, not a drop of sarcasm in his voice, “and our job is to make people happy.” Given the war of attrition served up by the Black Stars this summer, it begs the question of what the Portuguese manager considers “entertainment”?
24. Canada
Canada will do well to avoid this becoming a summer of ‘what could have been.’ How far could the Canucks have gone with all their players fit; what difference would an opening day win over Bosnia & Herzegovina have had; where might they end the competition if home advantage had been secured for the knockout stages?
23. Egypt
Egypt had never previously recorded a single World Cup win. Now the record African champion is preparing for a maiden knockout game. That alone should be considered a success, although there could still be more to come.
22. Australia
There have been countless parallels drawn between the current generation of Australian upstarts and the legendary vintage of 2006. Both sides 20 years apart recorded a surprising win to begin the campaign, a defeat to the group winner which brought everyone back down to Earth followed by a draw to qualify in second place.
The side which Tony Popovic played in got narrowly knocked out in the second round to the eventual champion. With all due respect to Egypt, this is a glorious chance for Australia to go one better with Popovic now in the dugout.
21. Ecuador
If only Ecuador’s frontline was as engaging as its manager Sebastián Beccacece. “We never feel like we’re in hell, nor do we feel like we’re in heaven,” the loquacious Argentine explained. “Our feet are on the ground on earth. And on earth you feel.”
20. Switzerland
“We can beat major teams,” Murat Yakin declared on the eve of the tournament. Well, Switzerland couldn’t beat Qatar. Whether a side without a single World Cup knockout win in its history can beat anyone outside the group stage still remains to be seen.
19. Sweden
Graham Potter is a forgiving manager. The former Brighton, Chelsea and West Ham boss once gave one of his players a book by the Dalai Lama in an effort to help him stop beating himself up about making mistakes. That forgiving mindset will have been useful for Sweden during a bizarre group stage riddled with errors—and moments of excellence.
18. Croatia
“We are in trouble,” Zlatko Dalić fretted back in December. Yet, his Croatia team seem to thrive in times of crisis. A side which still plays to the metronome set by Luka Modrić’s passing didn’t click into gear throughout the group stage, but still somehow emerged with a pair of wins.
17. Belgium
Can one thrashing of New Zealand, the lowest ranked nation in the entire tournament, really wash away the sins of two blisteringly listless draws with Egypt and Iran? No, is the answer for anyone unfortunate enough to have suffered through those stalemates.
16. Senegal
To emerge from a group with France and Norway after giving both sides scares is no mean feat. Especially for a team whose manager almost refused to get on the plane to the States amid tensions with the federation.
15. Cote d’Ivoire
“Celebrate this historic qualification, like we should,” Côte d’Ivoire boss Emerse Faé declared after setting up the nation’s inaugural World Cup knockout tie. “Once we’re done celebrating, we want to go as far as possible in this competition.”
With the likes of Yan Diomande, Amad Diallo and the burgeoning talent of Christ Inao Oulaï, who knows how far that could be?
14. Portugal
In what other team would a mercurial 41-year-old striker not only continue to start, but play the full 90 minutes, in a team which also just so happens to include a No. 9 for the reigning European champion who is set to become the most expensive transfer in AC Milan’s history?
13. USMNT
“If I dream of touching the moon, of being up on the moon, maybe I can get close to the moon,” Mauricio Pochettino explained. “If I only dream of getting close to it, I’ll stay on Earth.”
Few in the U.S. will put limits on this exciting team’s ambitions but the hopes of a stratospheric summer may be quashed by the quarterfinals.
12. Mexico
No side enjoyed a better group stage campaign than Mexico. Three games, three wins, six goals and zero conceded.
Yet, there were whistles from the home crowd in both those matches, which underscores some underlying concerns in Javier Aguirre’s pragmatic outfit (and the unrelenting demands of a Mexican crowd).
11. Norway
When Ståle Solbakken bothers to field his full strength team, this Norway side can mix it with anyone. As the divisive manager admitted after benching Erling Haaland and Martin Ødegaard for the group stage finale with France: “We are a good team when we play to our best.”
10. Germany
One of many weird teams in this tournament. Julian Nagelsmann’s most impactful player is not a starter, the goalkeeper he surprisingly recalled is wobbling badly and the specter of Jürgen Klopp looms over every game.
If Germany find a way into the quarterfinals (which will almost certainly require victory over France) it would be a major shock.
9. Morocco
It says plenty about the quality of this Morocco side that it was disappointed to finish second behind Brazil. Mohamed Ouahbi has even loftier ambitions.
“We have the best ingredients that are needed to become the best nation,” the freshly appointed coach declared heading into the knockouts, “and we believe we can do it.” He may not be alone in that optimistic stance.
8. Japan
“Many people underestimate Japan,” Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman fretted after narrowly escaping with a 1–1 draw from a group-stage encounter with this wonderful collection of cohesive, ego-less, teammates, “but for the 100,000th time, if you underestimate them, that’s your problem.” No underestimation here, Ron.
7. Brazil
It’s tough to judge a Brazil side which was so conveniently gift-wrapped both of its group stage wins. The one time the opponent didn’t prostrate itself for the five-time champion, Morocco emerged as the better side in a 1–1 draw.
6. Colombia
Backed by a fervent fanbase which reflects the crackling style of play conjured by the likes of Luis Díaz, Daniel Muñoz and even the waning figure of James Rodríguez, Colombia could easily find its way to a quarterfinal before playing a genuine title challenger.
5. England
After a thrilling opening win against Croatia, Thomas Tuchel thought to himself: “People in the pubs will like this.” Everyone watching the rest of England’s group stage campaign may very well have fallen asleep at the bar.
It remains to be seen if Tuchel’s plan to build a roster for the knockout stages pays off.
4. Spain
Spain’s problem is easily diagnosed but harder to cure. Luis de la Fuente’s success at Euro 2024 was predicated on making La Roja more direct, more exciting—more Basque.
The penetrative approach from northern Spain was defined by Lamine Yamal, yes, but also Athletic Club de Bilbao’s Nico Williams. The fleet-footed winger wasn’t fit enough to start a single group game, the last of which he called “one of the worst days of my life” after getting injured in a reckless lunge from Uruguay’s Nicolás de la Cruz.
3. Netherlands
For a manager who has been forced to fiercely defend his substitutions after almost every game this summer, Ronald Koeman hasn’t exactly had a bad tournament thus far. Topping a desperately difficult group with Japan and Sweden could look even more impressive in a few weeks' time.
2. Argentina
Somehow Argentina looks even better than when it won the competition four years ago, even if the vast majority of the players who triumphed in Qatar are back. “We have a solid foundation,” Lionel Scaloni rightly pointed out.
“We have many players, I’d say 60–70%, who are always the same. And that helps when you get together, all those doubts dissipate: getting to know each other, understanding how we play, what we want, helps minimize any issues that might arise.”
As long as one of those players is wearing the No. 10 shirt, those issues are minimal.
1. France
For all the talk of France’s frightening attack, a backline anchored by William Saliba and Dayot Upamecano is perhaps even more impressive. As Norway’s Erling Haaland shrugged: “They’re probably going to win the whole tournament.” He may have a point.
