Ranking 2026 World Cup Groups
- Zak Drapeau
- Jun 10
- 7 min read
by Zak Drapeau
Sportz Nation - 6/10/2026
Strongest Groups
1. Group K
Portugal, Columbia,
Uzbekistan, DR Congo
No other group in the World Cup has 2 stronger sides than Group K and Portugal and Colombia. Both teams could be considered Top-15 in the entire tournament with high hopes of going far including Portugal having the 4th best odds to win it all.
Uzbekistan and DR Congo are clearly the weaker sides of the group but neither are some of the worst teams of the tournament. Uzbekistan is probably the stronger of the two and is probably in line to be one of the 8, 3rd place teams to qualify for the Knockout Stage.
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2. Group I
France, Senegal,
Norway, Iraq
If you look at FIFA Rankings and other ranking lists like Reddit, etc., Group I is at the top of the list. France is doing A LOT of the heavy lifting as either the favorites or 2nd best team in the tournament. The rest of the group is pretty good too with Senegal mostly considered as the 2nd best.
Norway is another team that will likely make the Knockout Stage as a 3rd place finish as well. This group is very strong when considering it's Top-3 but like I said, France is clearly the reason this group is around the top of this list and no disrespect to Senegal, but without a similarly strong number 2 in the group, I put it just below the top spot.
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3. Group F
Netherlands, Japan,
Sweden, Tunisia
I am much higher on this group than most I believe because of how high I consider Japan. While I'll say Netherlands is probably the better team on paper and maybe a Top-10 team, I think Japan is the best Nation in the world at unselfish soccer and teamwork and my dark horse for the entire World Cup.
Netherlands and Japan are clearly going to top their group in my opinion with Sweden likely being one of the first teams out of the Knockout Stage only because of the matchups it'll face. Sweden is a Top-30 team in the World Cup but likely will only get 3 or MAYBE 4 points in group play.
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4. Group J
Argentina, Austria,
Algeria, Jordan
This group may as well be called the Messi-group because it's a clear one horse race. Argentina has the 6th best odds of the tournament and I predict will be one of only 2 or 3 teams to earn 9 points in group play.
All that being praised for Argentina, while the rest of Group J isn't elite they should all be good teams in an intense battle for 2nd and 3rd place. I think Austria is the best of the 3 but I could reasonably see any of the 3 making the tournament at 2nd place and even could see both Austria and Algeria earning 4 points to both make the Knockout Stage.
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5. Group H
Spain, Uruguay,
Saudia Arabia, Cape Verde
When I said Group K has the best 1-2 punch of elite teams in their group, Group H is a close 2nd. Spain is the favorites to win it all and the best team in the world right now and Uruguay isn't quite as elite but still very good and a Top-16 team easily.
The reason they're so much lower from the top is the remaining two teams. Props to the Saudis and Cape Verde but they're quality of soccer just isn't close to the other nations in their group. There is no other group where the 2 teams advancing are so clearly predictable.
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6. Group L
England, Croatia,
Panama, Ghana
The only group that can compare to the predictability of the last group's outcome is Group L, with England clearly being the favorites and Croatia being the likely 2nd place finish. While the other 2 teams in Group L aren't as weak as Group H, their frontrunners are inferior as well.
While Ghana is one of the worst-considered teams in the entire World Cup, Panama is a sneaky wildcard to make a 3rd place finish to qualify for the Knockout Stage. After drawing Bosnia and beating Dominican republic this week and also beating the United States three months ago, I wouldn't be shocked to see them put it to both England and Croatia and maybe even escaping one of those matchups with a point.
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Middle of the Pack
7. Group C
Brazil, Morocco,
Scotland, Haiti
With only 3 Groups being in this tier, I gave Group C the edge because they have BY FAR the best single nation with Brazil being 5th in odds to win it all. Morocco is a pretty decent side as well with a recent tie against Norway and a high-powered offense.
Scotland is another decent side that has shown to be scrappy in the last year but with long odds to make the tournament and Haiti is just happy to be here. Still, Brazil is the best team of the World Cup not to make the "Strongest Teams" tier.
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8. Group G
Belgium, Iran,
Egypt, New Zealand
I look at this group and believe it's outcome is the hardest to predict of any group. Belgium is the favorites to finish 1st and New Zealand has the longest odds but honestly, I could even see the exact opposite happening. New Zeland is another one of those teams who's teamwork is phenomenal and are getting in from at the perfect time.
I can even see Egypt making a push with Mo Salah at the end of his career and making one of his final appearances for them. This group will likely be one of the closest finishes but that doesn't always means it's a strong group, with likely none of the teams from this group to even make the Round of 16.
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9. Group D
Turkye, United States,
Australia, Paraguay
You could swap Group D and Group G for the number 8 spot on this list any time as they have essentially the exact same mold. The United States is the home country but are just as likely to miss the tournament as they are to win their group. Turkye is the favorites to win the group but anyone will tell you they're far from a favorite in the tournament.
Australia has some serious clout going for them after soundly beating Mexico 3-1 just yesterday and are looking very in form. Paraguay has the longest odds but has a distinct tempo difference in their defense that could throw any team off their game and gather points. They certainly don't have a Brazil, but all of these teams are decently strong and will make for a race to the finish even if none of them likely win a Round of 32 matchup.
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Weakest Groups
10. Group E
Germany, Ecuador,
Ivory Coast, Curacao
Germany is the only other team besides Argentina I feel very comfortable winning all 3 of their group play games because look at the teams around them. Ecuador is... maybe the 2nd best in the group but not by much?
Ivory Coast is a solid team but without much in their attack which makes me very hesitant in picking them to win any games that aren't 1-0. Curacao in my opinion, is by far the worst team to make the World Cup and while they should go 0-3 in group play, they might also lose 5-0 against Germany alone.
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11. Group A
Mexico, South Korea,
Czechia, South Africa
Group A has both Mexico and Czechia who should battle for 1st and 2nd in their group but without a leader like Germany, they are just a mess with middling and below average nations.
South Africa will take on host country Mexico in the first game of the World Cup tomorrow at 3 pm EST and that honestly may be the last we hear about this group. The Mexico-Czechia matchup that will conclude this group should be interesting but I expect Mexico safely earns the top spot even before the game starts.
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12. Group B
Switzerland, Canada,
Bosnia & Herzegovina, Qatar
Not only do I have this group in the last spot on this list but from what I've seen, everyone else does as well. Switzerland is just a fine team with average play as of late and they're still another one of the team I could see earning 9 points at this stage.
Canada is the only side that could give them trouble and that may only be because they are a host country. Both Bosnia & Herzegovina and Qatar are teams in the "just happy to be here" tier of nations and likely will only earn points against each other, which I wouldn't doubt coming from a 0-0 tie.
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Make sure to stay tuned as we continue coverage of th3 2026 World Cup and USMNT.
-Z.D.
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