World Cup Rankings 2026

 

Welcome back to my listing of the best teams in World Cup 2026 after the completion after the Round of 32.  I am only evaluating the teams based on their Round of 32 matchup - ONLY.  How did the team look in its win.  Group stage and pre-World Cup rankings DO NOT MATTER!.

But before we get to the rankings, I wanted to share my Top 20 list of things to happen during the Round of 32 (and some things that occurred in the interim between the second game and the upcoming third games.) 

20.  Romelu Lukaku for Belgium - is he aging?  Yes.  Did he play 65 minutes total in Serie A this year?  Yes.  Does he make a difference when he comes in for Belgium in the second half?  HELL YES!  Another goal to bring the Senegal lead to 2-1 in the 85th minute - and begin Belgium's comeback.

19.  Kylian Mbappe with a brace - almost ho-hum - in France's annihilation of Sweden.

18.    Cristiano Ronaldo's 68th-minute penalty kick goal to become the oldest player to score in the Knockout Round of the World Cup, breaking former teammate Pepe's age by almost 2 years.  (Cameroon's Roger Milla is still the oldest overall).

17.  Erling Haaland's 84th-minute game-winning goal as Norway advances to the Round of 16 over Cote d'Ivoire.

16.  And because we can never have too much Viking-Row from the Norwegian fans, here is one in support of Viktor Hovland as he won the Travelers Championship.

15.  Moroccan Center Back Issa Diop with a game-winning header in the 90'+2 as Morocco advances.

14.  Canadia Captain Stephen Eustaquio with a game-winning 90'+3 goal over South Africa.

13.  Harry Kane with 2 goals late - after Egland fell behind 2-0 - to salvage the win over the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

12.  And speaking of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the US Administration cannot keep its hands out of this tournament - revoking the Visa for Lumumbu Vea in advance of the game against England.

11.  Lionel Messi scored a goal in his 8th consecutive World Cup game - the only player to do that.  Only not higher because this game was insane - with even better plays.

10.  Not everybody was happy with the Paraguayan shootout victory over Germany.  Check out this German Shepherd's Reaction.

9.  Gabriel Martinelli scored a 90'+6 game-winning goal for Brazil as they defeat Japan!!!

8.  Yes, Martinelli scored the game-winner, but Casemiro's game-tying header after picking up a very early yellow card and allowing the Japanese goal to Kaishu Sano was critical!!!

7.  Belgium defeats Senegal on an absolutely atrocious penalty call!!!

6.  The best fan moment of this round was this clip from the Argentinians, helping locate the owner of A WALLET!!!

5.  The referee awarding a red card to Folarin Balogun on a play in which a foul wasn't initially called.  (In all honesty, I thought this was a yellow card, but close.  Nevertheless, it stands to be very important as Balogun has to miss the Round of 16 match against Belgium.

4.  Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill saves 2 penalty kicks in a shootout win over Germany - who had MANUEL NUEUR in goal.  Seriously huge.  To quote Thierry Henry, "There is no favorite in a shootout!"

3.  Yes Argentina won, but the story was Cabo Verde.  Since I have already mentioned Keeper Vozinha before, I will give this shout out to left back Sidny Cabral - with an absolute banger to tie the match 2-2 in extra time, when Cabo Verde had every reason to fold after falling down 2-1 in the first extra time period. 

2.  Probably the most important play of the entire tournament so far, Igor Matanovic barely touching the ball with his hair which caused Mario Pasalic to be offsides as Pasalic played the ball to Gvardiol for what looked like a game-timing goal for Croatia against Portugal.  The only way to tell that Matanovic played the ball is because of the sensor in the ball that reacts to touches by the players.

1.  Even though the Matanovic play was important, my favorite play was Cody Gakpo of the Netherlands scoring the first goal in the 72nd-minute to give the Netherlands the lead just after learning that his partner had lost their baby that she was carrying.  The emotion in Gakpo as he looked skyward - and from his teammates as they absolutely surrounded him with cheers - and obviously affection - after the goal.  This is what it means to be part of a team!!!

And before I rank the remaining 16 teams, here were the best games from my standpoint of the round of 32.  This is based upon not only the quality of the win/winner, but also the excitement of the game and the quality of play of the losing team.

17.  Portugal 0-0 Croatia (First Half)

16.  Switzerland over Algeria

15.  France over Sweden

14.  Colombia over Ghana (Should probably be higher but it followed Argentina over Cabo Verde)

13.  Spain over Austria

12.  United States over Bosnia-Herzegovina

11.  Egypt over Australia

10.  Belgium over Senegal

9.  Mexico over Ecuador

8.  Canada over South Africa

7.  Brazil over Japan

6.  Norway over Cote d’Ivoire

5.  England over DR Congo

4.  Paraguay over Germany

3.  Morrocco The Netherlands

2.  Argentina over Cabo Verde

1.  Portugal over Croatia (Second Half)

Now onto the rankings.  Once again, just based upon the Round of 32 matchup.  Previous ranking in parentheses.

1.  France (1)

2.  Spain (7)

3.  Brazil (2-1)

4.  Colombia (1-0) (6)

5.  Mexico (2-0) (3)

6.  Morocco (15)

7.  Argentina (2)

8.  Portugal (17)

9.  United States (13)

10.  Norway (11)

11.  Egypt (19)

12.  Switzerland (17)

13.  Canada (22)

14.  England (8)

15.  Paraguay (30)

16.  Belgium (16)

WORLD CUP 2026 RANKINGS

 

Here is my listing of the best teams in World Cup 2026 after the first round of Group matches.  In completing these rankings I take nothing from the historical traditions of the countries and their respective teams, nor FIFA's pre-tournament rankings.  I only rank based upon what I have seen on-the-field.  And since outcomes are paramount, all teams that are 1-0 will be ranked ahead of all teams that drew, and subsequently those teams will be ranked ahead of all of the teams that lost their first games.  Record matters.  So, as the games progress, this will be an incredibly fluid ranking system.  After round 1, here are the best performing teams in the World Cup.

But before we get to the rankings, I wanted to share my Top 15 list of things to happen during the first set of group games. 

15.  Japan's team and fans cleaning their own locker rooms and stadiums after the games.  This would have been A LOT higher if we haven't seen it before at EVERY Olympics, World Cup, World Baseball Classic, and literally EVERYTHING!  Still deserves a spot in this list. 

14.    Europeans and others Christopher Columbusing America on social media - Costco, Buccee's, Waffle House, Whattaburger, Chipotle, WalMart, Chick-fil-A, KFC and Raisin' Cane's, etc.  Freddie from Germany is the most well-known but you can just look up anybody!

13.  Tyler and Jenny Bindon.  Tyler, a defender for New Zealand and Nottingham Forest, may not have the world clout of teammate Chris Wood, but he - along with his mother Jenny - became the first Mother-Son Duo to appear in the World Cup, after Jenny manned the pipes as the goalkeeper for New Zealand in 2007 and 2011.

12.  Gio Reyna's goal for the United States.  If the goal was more important - say to tie the game or take the lead - this would be A LOT higher.  But as it is, it is very important given Reyna's history with the USMNT and what happened last World Cup.  Sports Illustrated encapsulates that history HERE.  

11.  The Scotland traveling fan base - The Tartan Army - DRANK BOSTON BARS OUT OF BEER!!!  Well, not Bud Light, but all of Sam Adams Boston Lager and many other better beers!!!  Scotland plays agains tomorrow at Foxborough Stadium.  Hope there was a re-stock!!!

10.  And speaking of the Tartan Army, one member joined this Boston street performer for a Cross-Cultural Duet that Just Slaps!

9.  Other fan bases have also taken over the cities where their teams are playing, but some of them have targets other than their team's opponents.  I wonder who is the target of Australia's chants?  "He's fat.  He's old.  He likes them 12-years old"!  "Aussie blokes are on a bender.  Donald Trump is a sex offender!"  And not to be outdone by their younger brother, Great Britain's fans have chimed in with, "He's fat, with piles.  He's in the Epstein files.  Trump the cuuuunt, Trump the cuuuunt!"

8.  "Where in the World Cup is Jameis Winston" is a fantastic segment during this World Cup.  He has been spotted with Croatian fans calling himself Jameisovic Winstonivic; cleaning the stadium with Japanese fans (See #15), bringing a Goat dressed as Lionel Messi to the Argentina game, and marching the Oranje Walk with the Dutch fans!  Jameis Winston is a National Treasure!

7.  After about 10 to 15 minutes of complete build-up, where it seemed like Ghana was destined to score a goal, with seemingly its only opponent being the clock, Caleb Yirenkyi, who had been playing most of the game on a yellow card earned in the 16th minute, scored in the 90 +6th minute of the game to cause Toronto Stadium to just explode as the Black Stars defeated Panama 1-0.  The tension, anticipation of what seemed like a pre-destined goal, and then the exuberance when it happened was simply palpable. 

6.  The Tartan Army is back here again, this time taking over Fenway Park with their own chants and songs, like Super John McGinn, Yes Sir I Can Boogie and 5000 Miles, as well as Baseball Classics like Take Me Out to the Ball Game, and Fenway staple Sweet Caroline.  And I just found out Scotland's last group stage game is against Brazil in the Artist Formerly Known as Hard Rock Stadium, Formerly Known as Sun Life Stadium, Formerly Known as Land Shark Stadium, Formerly Known as Dolphin Stadium, Formerly Known as Dolphins Stadium, Formerly Known as Pro Player Stadium and Formerly Known as Joe Robbie Stadium.  LONG LIVE THE TARTAN ARMY!!!

5.  Stars Shine.  Lionel Messi with a hat trick.  Braces from Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane and Erling Haaland, a goal and an assist from Luis Diaz.  Even defender Virgil van Dijk scored a goal.  The stars showed out in the first set of games.  Except for Cristiano Ronaldo, who failed to score as Portugal drew with the Democratic Republic of the Congo 1-1.

4.  And speaking of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - Portugal game, a watch party was held in Praca do Comercio, the main plaza in Lisbon, Portugal (a place which is amazing by the way).  Watch what happens when YOANE WISSA ties the game up 1-1 just before halftime after Jaoa Neves shot the Portuguese into an early lead at the 6th minute.

3.  No fan base can outdo Norway's, especially when they perform the VIKING ROW!!!

2.  Except maybe the Tartan Army, that collects donations for every location to which they travel for Scotland's games.  They have donated over $10,000 to Hasbro's Children's Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, $10,000 for grassroots soccer programs for underprivileged children in the Providence area, $6500 to the Rhode Island Highlanders Pipe Band to teach children to play the bagpipes, and $1,300 to Horizons for Homeless Children - a Boston based charity.  This is actually number 1, except I had to have number 1 actually be about on the field play.

1.  And the number 1 spot goes to Vozinha Dias, the goalkeeper for Cabo Verde, who at age 40 and after a journeyman professional career, made 7 saves - many of them of the spectacular variety - to preserve a 0-0 draw with one of the World Cup favorites Spain.  His Instagram page went from 40,000 followers to over 12.1 million!!!!  Well-earned Vozinha.  Well-earned.

And now to the team rankings!

1.  Germany 1-0

2.  Argentina 1-0

3.  Sweden 1-0

4.  England 1-0

5.  France 1-0

6.  Norway 1-0

7.  United States 1-0

8.  Colombia 1-0

9.  Austria 1-0

10.  Mexico 1-0

11.  Ghana 1-0

12.  Australia 1-0

13.  Cote d'Ivoire 1-0

14.  South Korea 1-0

15.  Scotland 1-0

16.  Spain 0-0-1

17.  Uruguay 0-0-1

18.  Netherlands 0-0-1

19.  Brazil 0-0-1

20.  Morocco 0-0-1

21.  Belgium 0-0-1

22.  Switzerland 0-0-1

23.  Egypt 0-0-1

24.  Iran 0-0-1

25.  Canada 0-0-1

26.  Japan 0-0-1

27.  Portugal 0-0-1

28.  New Zealand 0-0-1

29.  Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-0-1

30.  Saudi Arabia 0-0-1

31.  Qatar 0-0-1

32.  Democratic Republic of the Congo 0-0-1

33.  Cabo Verde 0-0-1

34.  Senegal 0-1

35.  Ecuador 0-1

36.  Croatia 0-1

37.  Haiti 0-1

38.  Czechia 0-1

39.  Turkiye 0-1

40.  Paraguay 0-1

41.  South Africa 0-1

42.  Iraq 0-1

43.  Panama 0-1

44.  Tunisia 0-1

45.  Uzbekistan 0-1

46.  Jordan 0-0

47.  Algeria 0-1

48.  Curacao 0-1