The 2026 World Cup will be the biggest ever, having expanded to 48 teams, a 50% increase from the previous tournament. With two weeks until kickoff, the anticipation is building as teams get ready to play in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Realistically, no more than a dozen teams are expected to vie for the title, but with 8-of-12 third-place teams reaching the Round of 32, every nation will dream of advancing and maybe pulling an upset or two in the knockout stage. So who’s really expected to make some noise?
In Tier 1 (World Cup title favorites), France tops the list at the No. 1 spot in our World Cup power rankings:
After winning the 2018 title and finishing runner-up to Argentina in 2022, France seeks to be the second nation to reach three straight World Cup finals (Brazil has done it twice). The talent is obviously there. It’s cliché to say this by now, but a second squad from France could easily reach the quarterfinals or beyond.
The only question is about how much the conservative Didier Deschamps will open up his loaded offense in his final tournament as France’s head coach. If he unleashes any combination of Kylian Mbappé, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembélé, Rayan Cherki, Marcus Thuram and more, France can pile goals on anyone. But Deschamps might prefer to grind out 1-0 wins unless the occasion calls for more. France has the highest ceiling of any team.
Find out where your team landed in our World Cup power rankings here.