World Cup 2026: Winners and losers in a game of chance

(NLDO) - The recent 2026 World Cup draw has somewhat changed the situation of the championship race.

On the morning of December 6, the draw for the 2026 World Cup finals took place in Washington DC. Besides the excited faces because of being in the group stage, many teams will have to face a difficult journey right from the group stage.

When luck smiles

The early advantages clearly belong to the co-hosts USA. After a rough start to his tenure, coach Mauricio Pochettino is gradually getting his team back on track with a 5-match unbeaten streak, including a devastating 5-1 victory over Uruguay.

World Cup 2026 draw ceremony - the biggest football festival on the planet

Currently, entering Group D with Australia, Paraguay and the team that won the World Cup from the European playoffs is considered "easy" for the North American representative. Both Australia and Paraguay are having problems scoring goals, while the remaining opponent of the co-hosts comes from the weakest playoff bracket. If they continue to maintain the stability of the past months, coach Mauricio Pochettino and his team can completely reach the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 2002.

In Group G, Belgium are expected to qualify after a disastrous campaign in Qatar in 2022. Although many Belgian stars retired after the last World Cup, the remnants of the "golden generation" such as Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Axel Witsel and Thibaut Courtois can help coach Rudi Garcia's team easily get through a group with Iran, Egypt and New Zealand.

Meanwhile, Spain's group stage draw results also showed positive signs. After winning the Euro 2024 championship in Germany, "La Roja" still showed stability and was considered one of the top candidates for the championship at the biggest football festival on the planet.

Coach Mauricio Pochettino and his team hope to go far in the tournament right on their home field.

Having to face only Uruguay, Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde in Group H helps them minimize the risk in the early stages of the tournament. In addition, if Spain reaches the quarterfinals, their opponents will come from the group of the United States or Belgium. This will be a very good opportunity for the representative of the land of bulls to aim for the second Euro - World Cup double in the history of the team.

Spain has many opportunities to aim for a double Euro - World Cup title

Regret from the lucky draw!

On the other hand, despite being one of the seeded teams at next year's World Cup, France is facing an unpredictable challenge. "Les Bleus" will have to find a way to stop Erling Haaland and the Norwegian team to win the top spot in Group I. In addition, the remaining opponent of the current world runner-up, Senegal, also showed formidable strength when defeating England in a friendly match last June. In the worst case scenario, France is even at risk of repeating the sad memory of 2002 when they were eliminated right from the group stage after a 0-1 defeat to Senegal in the opening match.

Kylian Mbappé and the French team fell into an unpredictable group

Scotland are once again in the same group as Brazil and Morocco for the first time since their last World Cup appearance in 1998. With a 13-match unbeaten run heading into the USA, Canada and Mexico next year, Morocco are Africa's best hope for World Cup glory.

Meanwhile, Brazil, although not as strong as before, are showing signs of revival under coach Carlo Ancelotti. To continue the fairy tale, Scotland will need to fight with all their might as they did in their historic victory over Denmark in the qualifying round.

The biggest disappointment after the draw ceremony ended was perhaps the prospect of a final between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo not being able to take place.

The dream final between Messi and Ronaldo will not take place

However, Argentina's presence in Group J (with Algeria, Austria and Jordan) and Portugal's presence in Group K (with Colombia, Uzbekistan and the winner of the Intercontinental Play-off 1) are seen as opportunities for this superstar duo to go far in this year's tournament.

In the event that both teams top their groups and advance to the knockout stages, Messi will face Ronaldo in the quarter-finals.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/world-cup-2026-ke-thang-nguoi-thua-trong-cuoc-choi-may-rui-196251206134510841.htm