The World Cup 2026 will be the biggest edition of the tournament so far, with 48 countries, but which of them will probably win?
After each qualifying round, we rank the 10 parties that look in the best form to rule Supreme in the United States, Canada and Mexico based on their shape and power of their team.
Here is how things are going with a year:
10. Norway
Norway has something of a golden generation in the hands of Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard and Alexander Sorloth among those who can call them, and they have realized the hype so far in qualifying.
They have won each of their first four games and scored 13 goals in the process, with the striking result being a 3-0 thrashing from Italy.
Questions remain about their defensive power and their most important tournament pharmacy, but they have the firepower to hurt someone.
9. Ecuador
Ecuador made an impression on qualifying glass score
Ecuador may not seem like top 10 contenders if you look at their team, but their competitive record in the past year tells a different story.
They brought Argentina to penalties last summer in the Copa America Quarte finals, demonstrably deserve to win, and have since lost only two of their 16 world cup qualifications that Uruguay defeated and went to Brazil.
Under the leadership of Piero Hincapie by PSG's Willian Pacho and Bayer Leverkusen, their backline has only admitted five goals in those matches, and in Moises Caicedo they have one of the best midfield enforcers in football.
8. The Netherlands
An injury struggling the Netherlands stumbled its way to the semi-final of the Euro 2024, but a year later they are in much better form.
They have long had one of the best backlines in international football and the same can now be said for their midfield with Ryan Gravenberch, Xavi Simons and Justin Kluivert, fight it to join Frenkie de Jong and Tijjani Reijni in the start XI after enjoying excellent seasons.
The lack of a top striker and the shortcomings of manager Ronald Koeman are great worries, but with the Orange early 2025 with two exciting treks with Spain in the quarterfinals of the Nations League – predictably they lost fines – and a 8-0 dripping by Malta in qualifying, things seem to move in the right direction.
7. England
After losing the final of the euros for the second time in a row, England brought Thomas Tuchel in the hope that the German would turn out to be successful in international football as at club level and ultimately win another trophy, but the early signs are not great.
They may have won their first three qualifications among him, but that victories 2-0 against Albania, 3-0 against Latvia and 1-0 against Andorra goods hardly convincing and they were followed by a 3-1 defeat against Senegal.
Whether a largely pragmatic manager fits best with a team with an abundance of attacking talent from world class and there is no elite centerbacks yet, although he is ultimately one of the best managers in the world, and they have one of the best squadrons in the world. If the two can click, they are a force to take into account.
6. Germany
The most recent matches flash score in Germany
The home country of Tuchel is better in shape than the one he manages, although they don't look as good as with the euros, where they were generally considered the second serious side.
They have won only one of their last five, draw to Hungary and losses from Portugal and France, with their lack of a world -class striker clearly in those competitions.
Nevertheless, they have an abundance of young talent, both on the field and in the dugout, and both Julian Nagelsmann and his many exciting prospects will probably only get better the following year.
5. Brazil
Usually one side with only two victories in their last five and a manager who has just taken over, not in the top five in such a list, but Brazil is no ordinary Kant and Carlo Ancelotti is no ordinary manager.
The first two games of the Italians, a 0-0 draw with Ecuador and a 1-0 win over Paraguay, were far from spectacular but good enough to close the qualification. However, they have made it clear that forming an elite side of an unbalanced and so far dysfunctional team will not be easy.
However, if it is about getting the best out of such a team and navigating by knockout football, there are no better than the Italian. As long as he has some talent in his ranks, he can let things work, and with Alisson, Gabriel, Raphinha, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo among those to choose from, he certainly does that.
4. Portugal
Roberto Martinez's first tournament with Portugal was hardly one to remember that they were scraping on Penes along Slovenia before they were beaten by France in the last eight in a shooting. However, since then things are doing much better.
They won the Nations League with a convincing victory over Germany and a penalty shootout triumph over Spain, and they also put five past Poland and Denmark on their way to the title.
Whether they can win a World Cup with a 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo who leads the line is very up for discussion, but with their quality in every other part of the field, CR7 stays in with a real chance to finally win the biggest prize of football.
3. France
France has been one of the favorites for every major tournament since 2018 with the frightening amount of talent they have, and that remains the case for the next.
Their team is demonstrably more exciting than ever after stunning seasons by Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Done and Rayan Cherki. Oh, and Kylian Mbappe is not half bad either.
They are not as exciting if they can be under Didier Deschamps, but the departing manager knows how to get results and will be more motivated than ever because it is his last tournament that is in charge of Les Blues.
2. Spain
Under Luis de la Fuente, Spain has not only become the European champions, but also the most exciting side in international football.
Under the leadership of Lamine Yamal, they have scored three or more goals in five of their 10 games since the euro, and their only defeat has been in a Nations League final of Portugal they deserved to win.
They are shaky at the back, even with the rise of Dean Huijsen, but you would support them to beat the most sides that they would prevent.
1. Argentina
Since he finally won Lionel Messi his first world cup in Qatar, his reigning champions Argentina only got better.
In the process winning another Copa America, they have become less dependent on the Inter Miami man, as is apparent when they will put four past Brazil in March without him.
They are a coherent unit with quality all over the field and a capacity to pick up victories, whatever happens, and they probably still have the greatest player of all time in their arsenal. In short, they are the team to beat.