Whale.io 🐳 | ⚽ FIFA World Cup 2026: Tournament Discussion Thread

[JollyGood]

self-moderated to keep this thread clean from trolls, attention-seekers and signature spammers

- check for results and fixtures

- to chat about their teams

- to chat about the players

- as well as general chat about the FIFA World Cup 2026




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[JollyGood]

edited:

Mexico, USA and Canada have already qualified for the tournament by virtue of being host nations. This is going to be the biggest tournament ever arranged by FIFA.

Here is what we know: The United Bid consisted of Mexico, USA and Canada (all considered North America) to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The tournament will take place between: 8th June 2026 and 3rd July 2026

The 2026 World Cup will be the first tournament that has 48 teams competing instead of 32 teams. There will be 16 groups of 3 teams and the top two teams will qualify for the next round of 32. After that the teams will be playing knockout games until the final.

There will be a total 80 games played throughout the tournament

Mexico will host 10 games
Canada will host 10 games
USA will host 60 games

In total, the games will be played across 16 cities and 16 stadiums. The final seven games of the tournament will all take place in the USA. (That means all four quarter-finals, both semi-finals and the final):

USA
Atlanta – Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Boston – Gillette Stadium
Dallas – AT&T Stadium
Houston – NRG Stadium
Kansas City – Arrowhead Stadium
Los Angeles – SoFi Stadium
Miami – Hard Rock Stadium
New York/New Jersey – MetLife Stadium
Philadelphia – Lincoln Financial Field
San Francisco – Levi’s Stadium
Seattle – Lumen Field

Canada
Toronto – BMO Field
Vancouver – BC Place

Mexico
Guadalajara – Estadio Akron
Mexico City – Estadio Azteca
Monterrey – Estadio BBVA

[JollyGood]

There will be 16 nations from UEFA that will qualify for the FIFA 2026 World Cup. That means 12 group winners automatically qualify and the other 4 nations are decided by entering a play-off involving all 12 second placed teams.

Group A
Germany or Italy (Nations League QF winner), Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg

Group B
Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo

Group C
Portugal or Denmark (Nations League QF loser), Greece, Scotland, Belarus

Group D
France or Croatia (Nations League QF winner), Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan

Group E
Spain or Netherlands (Nations League QF winner), Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria

Group F
Portugal or Denmark (Nations League QF winner), Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Armenia

Group G
Spain or Netherlands (Nations League QF loser), Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta

Group H
Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino

Group I
Germany or Italy (Nations League QF loser), Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova

Group J
Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein

Group K
England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra

Group L
France or Croatia (Nations League QF loser), Czech Republic, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar

[JollyGood]

edited:

This thread should have been updated after Mauricio Pochettino was appointed USA manager.

Now that the USA have an experienced manager with European football background across Spain as a player and both England and France as a manager, it could be catalyst they needed to make the players believe they can achieve something big when their world cup games are played at home.

If the USA team reach the quarter-final stage in the 2026 world cup it will be an achievement for them and step in the right direction too.

[Dump3er]

edited:

This thread should have been updated after Mauricio Pochettino was appointed USA manager.

Now that the USA have an experienced manager with European football background across Spain as a player and both England and France as a manager, it could be catalyst they needed to make the players believe they can achieve something big when their world cup games are played at home.

If the USA team reach the quarter-final stage in the 2026 world cup it will be an achievement for them and step in the right direction too.

While I think that Pochettino is not good and respected enough to enhance European top teams, I agree that his experience and CV in European football could indeed take effect and bring the USA team to the next level.

I was trying to find information about potential opponents of USA at the World Cup. Is there any information available that allows to put together their potential group?

What I found is that they are in group D according to the FIFA website.

[JollyGood]

Maybe that is exactly what the USA needed as manager. They have a name that is known around the world but he never reached his best with Tottenham or PSG therefore giving Pochettino the USA manager job could be what both parties need.

The draw to determine the groups where the countries will be placed in should take place in December 2025. At the moment the teams that have qualified for the tournament are: USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Iran, Argentina, New Zealand.

While I think that Pochettino is not good and respected enough to enhance European top teams, I agree that his experience and CV in European football could indeed take effect and bring the USA team to the next level.

I was trying to find information about potential opponents of USA at the World Cup. Is there any information available that allows to put together their potential group?

What I found is that they are in group D according to the FIFA website.

[Dump3er]

Maybe that is exactly what the USA needed as manager. They have a name that is known around the world but he never reached his best with Tottenham or PSG therefore giving Pochettino the USA manager job could be what both parties need.

The draw to determine the groups where the countries will be placed in should take place in December 2025. At the moment the teams that have qualified for the tournament are: USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Iran, Argentina, New Zealand.

I thought about your perspective for a second and I agree, Pochettino could be the best choice because both the USA team and he can only win at that World Cup unless they take a lot of punishment during the group stage. But if they get past it, Pochettino can make a name for himself without winning the whole cup. This is usually what he has done with the clubs he was working for so far, but for PSG and Chelsea and Tottenham, second places or vice champion titles don't count. The further they make it into the final stages of the World Cup, the more he will get back into the football limelight.

If Pochettino had been a title winning coach for years now, the expectations and the pressure wouldn't match the quality that the USA team brings to the table. I think that is what you meant? I know I rephrased somehow what you said, but the point is an important one.

What I also think is that the national coach positions have gained popularity and are becoming more and more desirable. The times that national coaches earn a fraction of the average player salaries are over. More free time, many privileges, a lot of money and the most exciting football events on the planet every few years. There is not much more a professional football coach can ask for.

[JollyGood]

I think had Pochettino been a title winning manager he could have approached the USA job with a different mindset. Had they hired a serial winner they would have had extremely high expectations therefore having a coach such as Pochettino works to their advantage.

Given a choice between managing week in week out in a fiercely competitive football league and taking charge of a national team knockout tournament, many would like to experience the national team tournament. Whether it is the Euros or the World Cup, the pressure is on the manager for the duration of the tournament and there is almost zero chance he will be sacked while the competition is running.

National team coaches are paid very well, they have all the perks of free travel to watch games in executive boxes and have many benefits and privileges. In the case of Pochettino, regardless of what happens with the USA team in the World Cup, I think he will return to European football immediately once the competition has ended.

[JollyGood]

The moment many football fans from around the world have been waiting for is almost here. The FIFA World Cup opening ceremonies are going to take place and the competition will begin in Mexico, USA and Canada.

Both Ronaldo and Messi are probably playing in their last World Cup therefore this is final chance to see them in action for their respective nations in the biggest football competition in the world 

[tokeweed]

Hello boys...  I'm forcing myself to watch and follow this World Cup as I mostly ignore it from a betting and fan perspective.  Dunno but I just like club football more.

But for this one, I'm betting on the managers.  Bielsa, Tuchel, Ancoletti, Poch, Nagelsmann and well for Argentina, not really.  Is Messi even playing?  I totally have no idea. 

[JollyGood]

Club football has something different to international competitions. For me, there are too many team and too many games and the tournament will go on for too long. Having said that, it is still the World Cup 

Somehow I missed the opening ceremony (I will have to find it on online and watch parts of it) and watched some of the opening match, Mexico vs South Africa. Obviously Mexico as one of the host nations had all of the support behind them as they beat South Africa 2-0. I suppose South Africa receiving three red cards helped Mexico along the way.

Hello boys...  I'm forcing myself to watch and follow this World Cup as I mostly ignore it from a betting and fan perspective.  Dunno but I just like club football more.

But for this one, I'm betting on the managers.  Bielsa, Tuchel, Ancoletti, Poch, Nagelsmann and well for Argentina, not really.  Is Messi even playing?  I totally have no idea. 

[tokeweed]

^  Have you been betting on the matches?  I've been betting on almost all of them except for Germany and Spain as the lines on those have no value...  But yeah, lost all of them except for my USA bet and Sweden.  Lolol.

Oh and if you guys could make your bets at Hyperliquid's outcome markets then I suggest you do.  You never know, you might get an airdrop or something. 

[JollyGood]

I expected the USA to win their first match even though there would have been a lot of pressure on them. Where we have different views was on Sweden. I expected Tunisia to maybe take a point but not to suffer a heavy defeat as they did. As for Germany and Spain, it was always going to be a headline making score from the Germans against a weak nation but Spain drew their match.

There will definitely be more surprises to come 

^  Have you been betting on the matches?  I've been betting on almost all of them except for Germany and Spain as the lines on those have no value...  But yeah, lost all of them except for my USA bet and Sweden.  Lolol.

Oh and if you guys could make your bets at Hyperliquid's outcome markets then I suggest you do.  You never know, you might get an airdrop or something. 

[tokeweed]

^  I think the US football team will go deep in the tourney in this WC now that they have Poch managing them.  Poch tends to elevate his squads and have them play up to their full potential just like he did with his Tottenham squad.  This will be fun to watch...  USA USA USA. 

The other team I'm hopeful for is of course England, esp this England squad under Tuchel.    Other teams that could be interesting to watch are Uruguay under Bielsa and Brazil under Ancelotti.

[JollyGood]

It would be great for the sport in the US if the USA team were to get to at least the quarter-final or semi-final, Football has grown immensely in the US ever since Beckham left Real Madrid and signed for LA Galaxy but it was the 1994 World Cup in the US that really helped bring attention.

Keeping that aside, after the way Morocco dominated against Brazil I cannot see Brazil going far however Morocco could find themselves going on a successful run.

[tokeweed]

^  Don't know about 'Brazil not getting far'..  It's just one match.  Let's wait for the next fixtures and how they go before we judge. 

Anyway, what do you think of the Mexico vs South Korea and the Turkey vs Paraguay matches?  I'm thinking of going for South Korea +.5 at around even money and straight up betting on Turkey for almost the same odds.

And btw, where's Ige..?

[JollyGood]

Mexico are one of the host nations, I cannot see them dropping points against South Korea. Keeping that in mind, I am going for Mexico and Turkey to win their respective games.

I only stated Brazil will no go far because based on the fact that not only did Morocco dominate when they played but they were also semi-finalists in the previous World Cup.

As for igebotz, I hope he finds his way here  

[igebotz]

I'm participating in many World Cup paid pools and also playing WC fantasy and I completely forgot about this thread.

It's been some crazy round of football and some great performance from some African countries although we didn't get the results we wanted but it's been a great performance all round- Cape Verde and Dr. Congo all napping a point from less than 5% possibilities.

I watched Mexico but couldn't watch S. Korea due to my timezones but I did see some highlights - it's a close call but Mexico on home turf with the whole country behind them is a huge advantage in the one.

[tokeweed]

^  Damn, I overlooked that one.  I didn't look at where the fixture was at and assumed it was somewhere in the US.  Lolol.  I pulled the trigger on South Korea +0.5. 

Hope that one works out...  And I made the same bet for Paraguay.  I feel like Turkey is gonna play it safe after getting a loss against the Socceroos.  Paraguay on the other hand are gonna go all out after losing against USA, a way better squad than them.

[igebotz]

^  Damn, I overlooked that one.  I didn't look at where the fixture was at and assumed it was somewhere in the US.  Lolol.  I pulled the trigger on South Korea +0.5. 

Hope that one works out...  And I made the same bet for Paraguay.  I feel like Turkey is gonna play it safe after getting a loss against the Socceroos.  Paraguay on the other hand are gonna go all out after losing against USA, a way better squad than them.

It's always risky to bet against the host teams as they always get some kind of leverage from the refs to help them qualify out of the group - a kind of " thank you for hosting us" gesture.

South Korea +0.5 is a decent bet; both could be out for blood to top the group- we could see a 2-2 tie here.

I won a decent x15 odds parlay in the first round, I hope to replicate another one this round.