FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[Daniel91]

England is certainly a very strong team and one of the favorites to win the World Cup title, but there is still a long way to go. There are also many other strong teams like France, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, etc., who are also legitimate contenders for the title. England is always very close, twice finalists at the EURO, but something is always missing for that final step and to win the title, as if they lack confidence and a winning mentality, always losing crucial final and semifinal matches. Croatia and Ghana will be big challenges for England already in the group stage, and according to some projections of the draw, the path to the final could even be easier if they finish second in the group.

Talking about winning mentality actually England less having it, I remember at Euro 2020 final playing at home and support by fans not enough to be the winner and Italy success defeating England trough penalty kick. But now England manage by difference manager has much experienced winning trophy with club and Tuchel has winning mentality adopting by England at World Cup 2026. Look unbeaten performance of England in qualifier match by winning all 8 matches, England scored 22 goals of 8 matches in qualifier match and most success achievement in qualifying match not conceded one goal yet.
Its fantastic performance of England team in qualifying match and faced several top national teams like Serbia and Albania beside has Andorra and Latvia.

Yes, England is indeed a team lacking a champion mentality, as evidenced by their failure to win titles in several World Cups and European Championships. Even with a squad packed with star players, they have never won a title at international level. I believe this situation persists for England, even though Tuchel is currently the coach. This is his first time coaching a national team, and while Tuchel has won titles at club level, the national team is a different story. So, let's see how far Tuchel takes England in the upcoming World Cup. Will he be able to create history for the English public or will he be a failure, despite his current good performance?

It should be understood that the expectations of the English public before every competition are very high, which creates a lot of pressure on the players. With every new failure, the pressure increases, and it becomes harder for the players to perform. Yes, England was very good and convincing in the qualifiers this time and won all their matches, but I think that is 'very misleading' because the group was actually very weak. The real test for England will be the World Cup and matches against the best teams of today, France, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, etc.

[cande86]

England always be great when they were fighting at qualification stages but in the real tournament such as world cup they don't have any good achievement but for every world cup they have been counted as the favourite but some fans are doubt to Thomas Tuchel because he have no experience to coached national team but i can see the federation didn't set high target for Tuchel because they want Tuchel can bring England to passed group stage and if we see England upcoming opponents on group L i think this is a bit hard because Ghana or Croatia can be considered as strong teams and not easy to beat them

I don't know but the Inclesi despite having an excellent team and an excellent school of football and thought at the highest level never win, perhaps because they don't have that spirit different from the others.
They definitely need to become more united against the other national teams

[Yabani]

The 2026 world cup will be an interesting one, and one event can make this 2026 world cup unforgettable and that event is if Portugal lift the world cup, if that happens the argument between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will never end and the world of football we always talk about and argue about them when it comes to the greatest of all time, Portugal has every chance to lift the world cup just the same way Argentina did in the last world cup however they need to put more pressure in every match they play, but I'm sure it won't be easy for them because there are a lot of teams that are very strong and inform, teams like France, Argentina, Spain, Brazil, Germany and many more.

I think there are a lot of surprises in the World Cup, so it's hard to say "this team will definitely win" right now. Portugal is strong, but France, Argentina, Brazil, etc., aren't weak either.

Of course, if Ronaldo wins, it will be a whole different story, and the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry will flare up again. But once the tournament starts, whoever is in form will win. Honestly, I just want to watch for the enjoyment; I don't really have a favorite.

[maknyos]

The English national team has never lacked quality players, but their problem lies in the fact that the rivalries they bring from their clubs spill over into the national team, ultimately preventing them from performing at their best.

Yep, that's probably the reason why they didn't do anything when they had probably the best group of players. It was specially the problem between Arsenal and ManUre players who couldn't stand each other and brought that hatred into national team.

I don't follow the English national team very closely these days, so I'm not sure if this is still an issue for them, but the last time I did follow them, this rivalry was still very much a part of the team.

Nah, there's no issues anymore, and probably the reason why they achieved more with objectively worse players than they had in the 90s and 00s.

Players should indeed be professional; there is no need for them to bring their club rivalries to the national team.

It is not them who will suffer, but the national team. Don't players want to do something that makes their country proud? If they still bring their internal rivalries to the national level, then I doubt that they want to bring honor to their country.
I am well aware of how competitive the English Premier League is and how heated some derby matches can be. However, all of that must be put aside when they join the national team. They must work together to showcase their best performance.

[GiftedMAN]

England always be great when they were fighting at qualification stages but in the real tournament such as world cup they don't have any good achievement but for every world cup they have been counted as the favourite but some fans are doubt to Thomas Tuchel because he have no experience to coached national team but i can see the federation didn't set high target for Tuchel because they want Tuchel can bring England to passed group stage and if we see England upcoming opponents on group L i think this is a bit hard because Ghana or Croatia can be considered as strong teams and not easy to beat them

I don't know but the Inclesi despite having an excellent team and an excellent school of football and thought at the highest level never win, perhaps because they don't have that spirit different from the others.
They definitely need to become more united against the other national teams

One of the biggest challenges of the England team whenever they're playing major tournaments is their media. They're the loudest of a national teams and in many occasions, they'll want to use the media to force the manager in making selections of his team. Being the coach of the England national team is one of the hardest jobs in world football because you literally get to see the  starting VI of your team in the media a day or two days before your game and you'll be expected to stick to what you see in the media. Failure to name the same team will cause serious bashing from the same media if you ever lose the game. It's time the English media allow the manager of the Three Lions do his job so they'll have a better outing in next year's FIFA World Cup tournament.

[Lucius]

England maybe a very strong team. But ever since I started watching the FIFA World Cup in 1998, I can't recall England being the favourite team to lift the trophy in any of the editions. At times other European teams such as France, Germany and even Italy received that honour. But England never reached quite there. But one thing that I would admit is that England has been very successful in maintaining the quality. At least that has been the case when compared to teams such as Italy and Belgium. And this time they have Croatia, Ghana and Panama for company.

If we look at the successes at the last two World Cups, then Croatia is the favorite in the group, and the conceited English who underestimate everyone may once again leave the field with their heads bowed. People should get used to not looking at national teams by the country they come from, but by what they achieve in competitions.

[IceLincoln]

The 2026 world cup will be an interesting one, and one event can make this 2026 world cup unforgettable and that event is if Portugal lift the world cup, if that happens the argument between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will never end and the world of football we always talk about and argue about them when it comes to the greatest of all time, Portugal has every chance to lift the world cup just the same way Argentina did in the last world cup however they need to put more pressure in every match they play, but I'm sure it won't be easy for them because there are a lot of teams that are very strong and inform, teams like France, Argentina, Spain, Brazil, Germany and many more.

I think there are a lot of surprises in the World Cup, so it's hard to say "this team will definitely win" right now. Portugal is strong, but France, Argentina, Brazil, etc., aren't weak either.

Of course, if Ronaldo wins, it will be a whole different story, and the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry will flare up again. But once the tournament starts, whoever is in form will win. Honestly, I just want to watch for the enjoyment; I don't really have a favorite.

Yeah of a truth if Portugal and C. Ronaldo wins the 2026 World Cup, there will be more debates on this Messi and Ronaldo talk cos of the fans, but I see no debate no matter what Ronaldo does now, he’s not Messi Level he’s a great footballer but no one is as close to Messi, it’s fans and Ronaldo himself that keeps putting himself on that pedestal.

The World Cup is the greatest and biggest stage in the world of Football, sometimes the team that will win you might not know from the beginning as seen in the cases of Spain and Argentina.

[KTChampions]

In my opinion, England has never been a bad team. They’ve always had elite players and were often among the favorites to win. Croatia knocked them out in the 2018 semifinals, Italy beat them in the euro final, and France eliminated them in Qatar in 2022. When you look at their squad, it’s full of top class players who play for the best clubs, but the chemistry and the coach’s choices have never really worked well together. They are still a quality team, but whether they can prove themselves now  we’ll see. They are the favorites in the group, but i still think Croatia will be a tough challenge for them.

The problem with England is not that they are or were weak (they always had a good team) but that their strength never translates into titles. It has become as much of a meme (even more powerful, but no one really pays attention to national teams compared to clubs) as Arsenal's trophylessness.
As for the group, it doesn't really matter which team takes first place and which takes second - the value will only appear once the results in the other groups are clear and it will be possible to calculate which path to a potential final is more advantageous.

[Emitdama]

In my opinion, England has never been a bad team. They’ve always had elite players and were often among the favorites to win. Croatia knocked them out in the 2018 semifinals, Italy beat them in the euro final, and France eliminated them in Qatar in 2022. When you look at their squad, it’s full of top class players who play for the best clubs, but the chemistry and the coach’s choices have never really worked well together. They are still a quality team, but whether they can prove themselves now  we’ll see. They are the favorites in the group, but i still think Croatia will be a tough challenge for them.

England is always one of the best soccer team with back up by good system and strategy, but sadly they have never been capable of winning in big event, this is always dilemma for them and their fans. England produce too many big names, but they have never been ideal as a whole team which can bring good moment for them.

Upcoming world cup is going to be impressive because they are having good chance, with their recent performance giving them good favour for achieving good results but their chances are still looking not good after having spot into even top 4. Because they always choke and lost in these matches, their morality is never been good for having big win, this has been a problem with them in last few years despite having great players on board.

[giorgione]

Portugal is one of the teams to win the world cup but we can't say for now. Their matches in the Qualifiers Stage were not bad. Even at that everyone has their favorite team to win the World Cup. Probably you are from Portugal and you want them to win. My country didn't qualify to play or participate in the world cup so I have to support another team/country but it should be from my heart. When the tournament starts, we will know which team to support.

It's too early to say who can win the championship and who can't, these are teams that will surely be very strong and will give it their all, especially Portugal who with Cristiano Ronaldo at the last chance to win will surely do it, it's the last chance

[Franctoshi]

The 2026 world cup will be an interesting one, and one event can make this 2026 world cup unforgettable and that event is if Portugal lift the world cup, if that happens the argument between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will never end and the world of football we always talk about and argue about them when it comes to the greatest of all time, Portugal has every chance to lift the world cup just the same way Argentina did in the last world cup however they need to put more pressure in every match they play, but I'm sure it won't be easy for them because there are a lot of teams that are very strong and inform, teams like France, Argentina, Spain, Brazil, Germany and many more.

The World Cup format has changed, the number of participants has also increased, and naturally, the competitive level will be different. Of course, many people hope Ronaldo can win the 2026 World Cup trophy with Portugal, which will automatically build the narrative of who is better between Ronaldo and Messi. However, regardless of those two mega stars, I only hope that many young players shine in the upcoming World Cup. So far, it is still a big question mark whether Ronaldo and Messi will actually participate in the upcoming 2026 World Cup.

During the 1 decade plus reign of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the two has raised the bar for player in the world of football, where if you are a player and you're not playing up to the Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's standard of football, then you won't likely get much attention, because of what we've watched Messi and Cristiano do, so what the football lovers are looking is someone who can perform like this duo or even raise the bar. But from my perspective, they quality of we have right has drastically dropped as compared to players in the past.

[m4r1o]

What do you really mean when you say "It's true that England will probably not be that great"? The England national team at the moment is one of the most talented in world football so saying that they'll not be great I think is very disrespectful to the Three Lions. They've not been able to win the FIFA World Cup again since the won in 1966 but they've got the players with the potentials to help them break the deadlock next year. It's okay not to be a fan of the England national team but that shouldn't make you say they're not good enough to conquer the world.

I don't know, she seems to have many talents, but she doesn't seem incisive to me and above all she doesn't seem hungry to me.

I see that there are other teams that are very hungry and eager to show themselves, let's say emerging teams.
I guess i am negative because Italy is really awful.

[Agbe]

It's too early to say who can win the championship and who can't, these are teams that will surely be very strong and will give it their all, especially Portugal who with Cristiano Ronaldo at the last chance to win will surely do it, it's the last chance

Yes it is still early but prediction is something we do at any stage of the tournament or the league. Those are words fans used to encourage themselves. If I am not mistaken, Portugal was beaten by Morocco in the quarter-final and that was a surprised for many fans. Cristiano Ronaldo reigning time is also fading. As you said we can't say which club will win for now and all are a mere prediction.

[Mihaylovic]

Arent ticket prices extremely high? FIFA supposedly claims that even the worst tickets are sold for $60 but in today’s general sale i couldn't find a single ticket available with that price. category 3 tickets are $140. Category 1 ticket for the final match is $8680.

[Ale88]

In my opinion, England has never been a bad team. They’ve always had elite players and were often among the favorites to win. Croatia knocked them out in the 2018 semifinals, Italy beat them in the euro final, and France eliminated them in Qatar in 2022. When you look at their squad, it’s full of top class players who play for the best clubs, but the chemistry and the coach’s choices have never really worked well together. They are still a quality team, but whether they can prove themselves now  we’ll see. They are the favorites in the group, but i still think Croatia will be a tough challenge for them.

England maybe a very strong team. But ever since I started watching the FIFA World Cup in 1998, I can't recall England being the favourite team to lift the trophy in any of the editions. At times other European teams such as France, Germany and even Italy received that honour. But England never reached quite there. But one thing that I would admit is that England has been very successful in maintaining the quality. At least that has been the case when compared to teams such as Italy and Belgium. And this time they have Croatia, Ghana and Panama for company.

That is because the quality bar was extremely high at that time. And there were a lot of teams that could actually win the World Cup: Brazil of course, France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands are the other main competitors, then there were Argentina and England but also Croatia and Uruguay, without forgetting Portugal and Spain. It was really difficult to predict who could win because there were so many good teams!

Now we only have Spain, France and Argentina. And if I had to bet on the winner Spain would be my first choice, France the second. I don't think Argentina can win again playing with a 39-year-old Messi.

[Distraction]

England maybe a very strong team. But ever since I started watching the FIFA World Cup in 1998, I can't recall England being the favourite team to lift the trophy in any of the editions. At times other European teams such as France, Germany and even Italy received that honour. But England never reached quite there. But one thing that I would admit is that England has been very successful in maintaining the quality. At least that has been the case when compared to teams such as Italy and Belgium. And this time they have Croatia, Ghana and Panama for company.

England have one of the best squads in the world in fact. But the problem is that they just can't find the manager who will make them champions finally. The only trophy is the 1966 World Cup which is really bad for them. 

They have a great pool of players. How come they still can't lift a trophy? It's really hard to understand. I'm not sure about if Tuchel is the one for them either. Let's see him in the main competition.

But truthfully England would never be the No 1 contender for now while there are a few much better teams.

[SUPERSAIAN]

England maybe a very strong team. But ever since I started watching the FIFA World Cup in 1998, I can't recall England being the favourite team to lift the trophy in any of the editions. At times other European teams such as France, Germany and even Italy received that honour. But England never reached quite there. But one thing that I would admit is that England has been very successful in maintaining the quality. At least that has been the case when compared to teams such as Italy and Belgium. And this time they have Croatia, Ghana and Panama for company.

England have one of the best squads in the world in fact. But the problem is that they just can't find the manager who will make them champions finally. The only trophy is the 1966 World Cup which is really bad for them. 

They have a great pool of players. How come they still can't lift a trophy? It's really hard to understand. I'm not sure about if Tuchel is the one for them either. Let's see him in the main competition.

But truthfully England would never be the No 1 contender for now while there are a few much better teams.

England never comes to mind as a favorite. They have fantastic teams and players. England is the country that invests and promotes itself the most in the world. It's also very interesting that they last won the World Cup in 1966. Currently, England's squad is among the top three national teams. Even their 1966 World Cup victory was difficult, the match went to extra time, and they beat Germany in extra time to win their only World Cup to date.

[katanic97]

In my opinion, England has never been a bad team. They’ve always had elite players and were often among the favorites to win. Croatia knocked them out in the 2018 semifinals, Italy beat them in the euro final, and France eliminated them in Qatar in 2022. When you look at their squad, it’s full of top class players who play for the best clubs, but the chemistry and the coach’s choices have never really worked well together. They are still a quality team, but whether they can prove themselves now  we’ll see. They are the favorites in the group, but i still think Croatia will be a tough challenge for them.

England maybe a very strong team. But ever since I started watching the FIFA World Cup in 1998, I can't recall England being the favourite team to lift the trophy in any of the editions. At times other European teams such as France, Germany and even Italy received that honour. But England never reached quite there. But one thing that I would admit is that England has been very successful in maintaining the quality. At least that has been the case when compared to teams such as Italy and Belgium. And this time they have Croatia, Ghana and Panama for company.

In 2018, some well known sports media at the time declared them favorites, and then they were eliminated by Croatia in extra time. As i said, they have a problem with team chemistry and the coach. Big names have always worn the England shirt , it’s enough to mention Lampard and Stevie G.As for the group, i think they will get through it easily, but whether they finish first or second is hard to say, because Croatia is still a strong team. I don’t want to underestimate Ghana and Panama, but i think England and Croatia are far better teams

[Fiatless]

England never comes to mind as a favorite. They have fantastic teams and players. England is the country that invests and promotes itself the most in the world. It's also very interesting that they last won the World Cup in 1966. Currently, England's squad is among the top three national teams. Even their 1966 World Cup victory was difficult, the match went to extra time, and they beat Germany in extra time to win their only World Cup to date.

The Three Lions always have the best players on the team since the EPL is the most influential league.  At the end, they wouldn't even get to the finals in the recent editions. Since they won the World Cup in 1966 they have reached the finals twice in 1990 and 2018. They have been one of the countries that have always changed coaches due to inconsistent performance.

They will be hoping that Thomas Tuchel will do something extraordinary in the next World Cup because the country has been trophyless for a long time.

[changaa]

In my opinion, England has never been a bad team. They?ve always had elite players and were often among the favorites to win. Croatia knocked them out in the 2018 semifinals, Italy beat them in the euro final, and France eliminated them in Qatar in 2022. When you look at their squad, it?s full of top class players who play for the best clubs, but the chemistry and the coach?s choices have never really worked well together. They are still a quality team, but whether they can prove themselves now  we?ll see. They are the favorites in the group, but i still think Croatia will be a tough challenge for them.

It's tru and they are always there despite everything they always have the team that can win the championship, now there are new players who can really make the difference supported by the old players who are always present, they can do well and can also think about winning a championship that has been missing for a very long time.