Now that we know which teams who will play one another in the 2026 World Cup group stage, it’s time to predict who will make it through to the knockout rounds.
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Of course, it’s still very early and we still don’t know the final six teams who will qualify via the playoff routes, but we have a pretty good idea of who will be the favorites and underdogs in each group.
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Remember: due to the expanded format of this World Cup the top two nations from all 12 groups will automatically qualify for the Round of 32 in the knockout rounds. The eight third-place teams with the best record will join them in the last 32.
Based on that, here’s our 2026 World Cup group stage predictions below.
2026 World Cup predictions for the Group Stage
Group A
1. Mexico
2. UEFA playoff D winner (Denmark, Czechia, Republic of Ireland, North Macedonia)
3. South Korea - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. South Africa
Group B
1. UEFA playoff A winner (Italy, Wales, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Northern Ireland)
2. Switzerland
3. Canada - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Qatar
Group C
1. Morocco
2. Brazil
3. Scotland - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Haiti
Group D
1. USA
2. UEFA playoff C winner (Turkey, Slovakia, Kosovo, Romania)
3. Australia - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Paraguay
Group E
1. Germany
2. Ecuador
3. Curacao - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Ivory Coast
Group F
1. Netherlands
2. Japan
3. UEFA playoff B winner (Ukraine, Poland, Albania, Sweden) - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Tunisia
Group G
1. Belgium
2. Egypt
3. Iran
4. New Zealand
Group H
1. Spain
2. Uruguay
3. Cape Verde - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Saudi Arabia
Group I
1. France
2. Norway
3. Senegal - Qualify as one of best third-place teams
4. Inter-confederation playoff 2 (Iraq, Bolivia, Suriname)
Group J
1. Argentina
2. Austria
3. Algeria
4. Jordan
Group K
1. Portugal
2. Colombia
3. Uzbekistan
4. Inter-confederation playoff 1 (DR Congo, Jamaica, New Caledonia)
Group L
1. England
2. Croatia
3. Panama
4. Ghana
