Hazey's Rankings

24) Algeria

23) Austria

So many close battles I foresee because this is like the 4th or 5th time I've had two nations ranked next to each other and they're in the same group. I really don't know how that match will go. On paper, you'd lean Austria which is why I have it ranked this way, but I think Algeria has slightly more attack. Austria is kind of coming out of a mini 'golden era' for them, for a country that hasn't been to a World Cup since 1998. Alot of the key players, Alaba, Sabitzer, and Arnautović are getting up there in age. The more I look at this group, the more I see Argentina just walking it, but these two are certainly capable in the right situation.

Edited Tuesday at 12:272 days by DJHazey

23. Sweden

Group F

UEFA (12/16)

World Ranking: 38

Best Result: Final (1958)

Fixtures:

Tunisia (15th June, 3AM)

Netherlands (20th June, 6PM)

Japan (26th June, 12AM)

It’s impressive to qualify for a World Cup without winning any of the standard qualifying matches but that’s exactly what Sweden have done. They had two draws with Slovenia and four defeats to Switzerland and Kosovo in their diabolical group stage where manager Jon Dahl Tomasson was accused of being a Danish agent sent to destroy Swedish football before his eventually sacking with two-games to spare. But his National League group victory the year before provided Sweden an extra opportunity in the play-offs which they certainly took full advantage of. A 3-1 victory against Ukraine and a 3-2 win over Poland saw them book their spot in the most unlikely of circumstances after beating two tough sides. One concern going into this tournament is the form of their key players. If this was played last summer, I think a lot of people would have had them as the top dark horses as Isak had just bagged 23 Premier League goals and earned a place in the PFA Team of the year, Gyökeres had banged in 39 league goals in Portugal, Elanga had fired Forest into Europe and Kulusevski and Bergvall had just won the Europa League. This season Isak has been injured for most of the season, Gyökeres has had a solid but not goal-heavy introduction into the Prem, Elanga has been a disaster at Newcastle, Bergvall has been part of a struggling Spurs side and Kulusevski is missing the tournament through injury. Can these key players re-find their form?

The Manager: Graham Potter

Potter did play in the Premier League for Southampton in his playing career but didn’t really make a name for himself until he joined fourth-tier Swedish side Östersunds. With them he won three promotions, the Swedish Cup and took them on their maiden Europe League campaign, reaching the knock-outs before an eventual defeat to AC Milan. This earned him a lot of interest at home and he eventually joined Swansea in the Championship before completely turning around the fortunes of Brighton. He introduced the flexible, attacking style they’ve kept to today. This led to a big-money move to Chelsea which only lasted seven months before spending the same length of time at West Ham. These last two roles have soured the opinions of him in the UK but he remains a national hero in Sweden. Especially after getting them this World Cup spot.

Key Player: Viktor Gyökeres (Arsenal)

It feels crazy not to pick their £125 million striker Isak, especially after the quality he shown at Newcastle but he simply hasn’t been able to play enough football at Liverpool and there has to be serious doubts about how fit he really is. With him out injured, Gyökeres really stepped up in the play-offs bagging a hat-trick against Ukraine and the late winner against Poland. His season at Arsenal hasn’t been as free-scoring as I think many were expecting but he still has all the attributes you need to be a top international striker and I think his country will be relying on him massively next month. His 14-goal debut season in the Premier League is nothing to be sniffed at. It’s just that his Gerd Müller Trophy from last year still lives in the memory.

Why they're actually going to win it: I don’t think anyone even expected them to be here after that dreadful qualifying campaign. If Potter can improve them that quickly to wint he Play-Offs, imagine what he can do with another 3-months in the role.

If ever there was a team completely DOA on paper, it's them.

I also think UEFA needs to take a look at playoffs going forward, not only to avoid Nations League teams that do dismal in the main qualifying, but if you're going to do that you need to make the home field teams decided by their World Cup qualifying standing, not random draw. That match should have been in Warsaw, not Solna.

Hazey's Rankings

24) Algeria

23) Austria

22) Ivory Coast

While I think this ranking might be a tad too high for the Elephants. I think they can have some defensive lapses, but their athleticism and their ability on the counterattack can match anyone else's in the tournament. I'm kind of getting vibes going into this, like they're this year's Ghana/Morocco, maybe. Meaning they'll take the place of what those African teams did in previous World Cups because they are kind of coming under radar compared to other CAF teams.

22. Turkey

Group D

UEFA (11/16)

World Ranking: 22

Best Result: Third-Place (2002)

Fixtures:

Australia (14th June, 5AM)

Paraguay (20th June, 4AM)

USA (26th June, 3AM)

It feels crazy that this is only Turkey’s third ever appearance at the World Cup and their first since finishing third in 2002. They were very unfortunate to be placed with Spain in their qualifying group but still impressed in their matches and a heavy defeat against Spain early on was the only thing separating the sides. In the play-offs, they looked more nervy but successive 1-0 victories against Romania and Kosovo were enough to see them here. This feels like a really exciting time for Turkey though. They had a strong showing at the recent Euros and have plenty of young, exciting talent coming of age. They are one of those sides that everyone seems to hype up before they end up disappointing but maybe this time, they can live up to the expectations.

The Manager: Vincenzo Montella

A prolific goalscorer in his native Italy, Montella played for Empoli, Genoa and Sampdoria but it was his 10-year spell at Roma where he had the best times of his career, winning a Seria A title and eventually being welcomed in their Hall of Fame. He did also have a 10-game stint in England on loan at Fulham at the tail end of his playing career. As an international, he made 20 appearances for Italy and was in their 2002 World Cup squad. His first spell as a manager was as caretaker at Roma but he’s since had two spells at Fiorentina, Sampdoria, AC Milan and Sevilla. But it’s with Turkey were he’s really found a home. First by booking Adana Demirspor their first ever European qualification and since having great success with the national side. Turkey always have the flair but Montella has worked hard at making them more solid and being able to grind out results.

Key Player: Arda Güler (Real Madrid)

Still only 21 but already a Champions League winner, Güler is one of the most exciting young players in the World. A winger with a deadly left foot, his low centre-of-gravity makes him very tough to tackle and he has a great ability to make the right pass. He was a teenager in EURO 2024 but still was key to the Turkey side that reached the Quarter-Finals winning Man of the Match in his tournament debut after scoring a memorable worldie.

Why they're actually going to win it: Every time they qualify for a tournament, they are everyone’s dark horse but the finally look like they might have enough to actually follow-through with the hype this time.

As an American, I wholeheartedly think Turkey wins our group.

Also, I think Turkey will be one of the more entertaining teams in the tournament. They usually go for it offensively and as we saw in their first Spain match, it back fired.

Hazey's Rankings

24) Algeria

23) Austria

22) Ivory Coast

21) United States

Yup, that's right. Outside the Top 20 for my home team. Injuries and lineup questions galore, plus our form has been...inconsistent at best the past couple years. We don't really have a big 'home field' advantage because of how far down the list soccer is for importance in this country. It's either "soccer is boring" or racists who think it's a sport for non-Americans have conditioned us not to have as big a following as most other countries in the tournament. It's exhausting. At best the crowds will be split with the other nation's fans. I don't have a ton of faith, I don't know what else to say.

Edited 8 hours ago8 hr by DJHazey

21. Uruguay

Group H

CONMEBOL (5/6)

World Ranking: 17

Best Result: Winners (1930, 1950)

Fixtures:

Saudi Arabia (15th June, 11PM)

Cape Verde (21st June, 11PM)

Spain (27th June, 1AM)

Uruguay won their first two appearances at the World Cup and, while they have never quite reached those heights again, they are constantly in that second-tier of sides who always have the potential to reach the later stages. However, they go into this tournament with more questions surrounding them than ever. Their qualifying campaign was completely up-and-down. They had early wins against Brazil and Argentina and looked to be cruising at the mid-way point, but then things started to fall apart. Their form dipped massively and as Suárez retired in September 2024, he publicly slammed the manager describing him as causing a toxic environment which was backed by other key players. Public opinion seemed to turn on the manager too with many feeling like he’s not getting the best out of the side. In November, Bielsa hosted a 105-minute post-match press conference after a 5-1 defeat to the USA where defended his role. Two draws in March against England and Algeria in March haven’t really changed their fortunes but they certainly have the talent to turn things around.

The Manager: Marcelo Bielsa

As I’ve already said, he’s facing a lot of pressure in Uruguay currently by Bielsa remains, without a doubt, one of the most influential and respected managers in world football. He retired from his playing career at 25 to focus on management. He had spells in Argentina, Mexico and Spain before being awarded the Argentina national team job in 1998. He led them to a disappointing World Cup in 2002 but won Olympic gold in 2004. He then took over at Chile and saw them reach the Quarter-Finals of World Cup 2010 but resigned after Segovia became the FA’s president. At Athletic Bilbao, he leaded the side to the UEFA Cup semi-final after knocking-out Manchester United with a performance that shocked Sir Alex Ferguson and seemed to instantly make him a cult-favourite in the UK. This was only enhanced when he joined Leeds United in 2018 and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League for the first time in 16-years. His high-tempo, hard-working, all-out-attack style has become iconic and has helped his sides punch well above their weight.

Key Player: Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)

The vice-captain of Real Madrid, Valverde has faced some stick recently, especially after the details of his fight with teammate Tchouaméni were made public. Despite this he has been a key midfielder in a very successful Madrid side for years now and his performances against Man City recently show just how special he can be. A very versatile player, he has played full-back many a time for Madrid and has the ability to fit in wherever Uruguay need this summer.

Why they're actually going to win it: When everyone buys into his methods, Bielsa makes Kalvin Phillips and Jack Harrison look like world-beaters. If he can get the players on side for 8 weeks, they are more than capable of doing something special.

Uruguay outside the top 20 10 year-old me decided that they were my favourite country ahead of the 2010 World Cup having never heard of them before - a good year to pick to support them! But they haven't quite lived up to that since, especially with not making it out of the groups last time round.

I think they could be very much a dark horse!

On 13/05/2026 at 19:21, DJHazey said:

That's for sure, but I don't think any of the hosts nations this time have been sublime going in. I was also going to add that the Davies injury puts more concerns on Canada. Before that, I would have had Canada as tops, but in reality I think Mexico's home field advantage is more impactful so I would have them as the CONCACAF nation with the most expectations. USA...the less said about what they've been putting up for results the last year or two, the better (the dismantling of Uruguay in a friendly aside).

Have USA not got a decent squad of players though? Mexico seem a bit lacking in experience Jimenez aside.

Because we don't have a thread for it yet, I'll post it here but, my god, I thought England had a legit chance this year but this squad Tuchel's announcing tomorrow is horrendous.

Dan Burn, Jordan Henderson, Noni Madueke, Jarell Quansah, John Stones and Ivan Toney should be nowhere near the side.

Harry Maguire, Morgan Gibbs-White, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luke Shaw, Adam Wharton are all more deserving and Cole Palmer mightn't be deserving but it a lot better than Madueke at least.

Personally, I would have went with:

Pickford, Henderson, Trafford

Shaw, Maguire, James, Guehi, Konsa, Hall, O'Reilly, Alexander-Arnold

Rice, Bellingham, Palmer, Mainoo, Wharton, Gibbs-White, Rogers, Anderson

Kane, Rashford, Saka, Watkins, Bowen, Eze, Gordon

Maguire has taken it personally!

1 hour ago, Dobbo said:

I think they could be very much a dark horse!

Love Uruguay, in the game they get eliminated from you can guarantee there will be a row!