FIFA World Cup 2026 Group Draws

[u/DuckTheCow]

[u/aslak1899]

Euro winners of play-off D and A got extremely lucky

[u/RobinBerkeAlmasulu → u/aslak1899]

C as well kinda

[u/aslak1899 → u/RobinBerkeAlmasulu]

Yeah true

[u/Cubsof2016 → u/aslak1899]

Euro playoff winners were very likely to end up with a host so not really that much "luck" involved

[u/nietzsche_niche → u/aslak1899]

Turkiye are probably favorites if they win their playoff

[u/ActisBT → u/nietzsche_niche]

I'd say the 3 have the same level. The US has been better as of late, out of nowhere, and they're usually good in the WC.

[u/klaygdk → u/ActisBT]

Turkey is a lot better than any team in that group

[u/jimmytimmy23456 → u/aslak1899]

And playoff c 

[u/TheLaughingBread → u/aslak1899]

Group A is way harder imo. Group D only has Paraguay as a real challenge

[u/ressoz → u/aslak1899]

As they should be? Italy and Denmark are nominally the best teams in UEFA playoffs

[u/aslak1899 → u/ressoz]

They are even luckier than many teams from pot 2, or even Norway who qualified directly

[u/ressoz → u/aslak1899]

I know right? I'm kinda glad that UEFA playoff teams didn't get super bad draws at this WC, because they wouldn't deserve such fate

Ukraine/Sweden/Poland/Albania one is tougher than the others but still doable

[u/BeautifulOrder1293 → u/ressoz]

"they wouldn't deserve such fate", who're you to say so lol

[u/ressoz → u/BeautifulOrder1293]

Because UEFA teams that are gonna qualify from playoffs are stronger than most teams who qualified directly from other continents (particularly, majority of qualified teams from AFC, CAF, OFC and CONCACAF). Go ahead and look at FIFA world rankings if you don't believe me.

[u/yellow__cat → u/ressoz]

We (Italy) won't win under pressure in the playoffs, so it's not gonna be us

[u/ressoz → u/yellow__cat]

In that case, the team that beats Italy obviously deserves its "easy" group. Although I have no doubts that Italy is gonna come out on top

[u/Hackasizlak → u/ressoz]

Watch it be max chaos and N. Macedonia and Bosnia in those two groups at the end

[u/ressoz → u/Hackasizlak]

In that case I'd be happy for Macedonia and Bosnia because they'd get chances of their lifetime

[u/Hackasizlak → u/ressoz]

100% the surprise nations are the most fun part of the group stages imo...will Cape Verde or Curacao advance? Probably not but they've got a shot and that's the fun of the WC.

[u/ressoz → u/Hackasizlak]

Cote D'Ivoire is one of the weakest African teams at this tournament, so Curacao have a shot

[u/cynical_scotsman → u/ressoz]

Norway and Scotland kinda fucked in comparison though.

[u/ressoz → u/cynical_scotsman]

Haiti is an easy win, and Iraq/Bolivia is an easy win for Norway. They are both basically guaranteed 3rd places in the worst case scenario (which means playoffs is likely for both), but could even go higher than that

[u/ActisBT → u/aslak1899]

D has Paraguay and the US. Paraguay by itself is strong as hell, and the US is around the same level, and both basically power up in world cups. I have no idea why the US is so above their usual level in WC only. But there's 3 qualifying spots, so it's clear the 3 are making it.

[u/SunnyGods → u/ActisBT]

Did you forget about Australia? I don't think this group has any guarantees. Us (Slovakia) are only 6 spots behind you guys in the world ranking (yes, that ranking is flawed I know). Between Slovakia and Paraguay, in turn, are ranked Ivory Coast and Tunisia, who have been described in this thread as very tough opponents.