Spain
At EURO 2024, the Spanish team under Luis de la Fuente created one of the most impressive campaigns in recent international tournaments.
La Roja were almost unhampered, winning six of their 90 games in seven games and only needed extra time to leave host Germany in the quarter-finals. They have scored 15 goals - 4 more than any other team in the tournament.
Notably, that form is still maintained. Spain is currently unbeaten in 31 consecutive official matches (won 25, drew 6, not counting penalty shootouts), surpassing the 30-match record under Vicente del Bosque in 2010 2013 - a streak that brought them to the throne at the World Cup and EURO.
It is no surprise that Spain is considered a leading candidate for the 2026 World Cup championship. If La Roja wants to step up to the top of the world, Lamine Yamal will almost certainly play a key role.
Spain's EURO 2024 championship comes just a day after Yamal's 17th birthday, when he surpassed Pele (World Cup 1958, aged 17 years and 249 days) to become the youngest player to ever feature in a World Cup or EURO final.
France
The 2026 World Cup will end an era for French football, with Didier Deschamps set to leave head coach Les Bleus after 14 years in charge. He is expected to leave in glory and consolidate his position as the greatest coach in the history of the national team.
After a painful 11m defeat to Argentina in Qatar, Deschamps has another chance to become only the second coach in history to win more than one World Cup title, after Vittorio Pozzo (1934 and 1938).
The 2026 World Cup will also be the first major tournament that Kylian Mbappe will participate as captain of the French team. The Real Madrid star is approaching Olivier Giroud's Les Bleus record of 57 goals with 55 goals in 93 matches.
In addition, Mbappe is also aiming for Miroslav Klose's World Cup record of 16 goals, as he has 12 goals after two World Cups (4 goals in 2018 and 8 goals in 2022).
Anh
The England team is eagerly concluding its 60-year journey waiting for a big title.
The "Three Lions" will enter their first and perhaps last tournament under Thomas Tuchel as the third leading candidate for the championship.
Tuchel's task is simple: to bring one of the strongest generations of players in English football history to the brink of the times. If successful, he will become the third coach to win both the UEFA Champions League and the World Cup, after Marcello Lippi (Juventus - Italy) and Vicente del Bosque (Real Madrid - Spain).
Tuchel's reign started quite strugglingly. He beat Albania 3-0, Latvia 2-0, Andorra 1-0 and 2-0, but lost to Senegal 1-3 in a friendly in June. However, the resounding 5-0 victory over Serbia in September showed the true potential of the "Three Lions".
In the end, England ended the qualifying campaign with 8 wins and 8 clean sheets, becoming the second team in history to win all of the European World Cup qualifiers without conceding, after Nam Tu in 1954.
Tuchel is expected to bring a more entertaining face to England than under Gareth Southgate. With quality personnel, he can completely build a more explosive England team in terms of playing style.
Argentina
Lionel Messi has struggled to escape the huge shadow of Diego Maradona until the 2022 World Cup.
In Qatar, the Barcelona legend created one of the greatest individual World Cup campaigns in history. He scored 7 goals, made three assists and became the first player to score in every round - from the group stage, round 16 of the team, quarter-finals, semi-finals to the final match.
Messi also leads all players in the tournament in shots (32), chances created from live balls (17) and fouls (22). In the history of the World Cup, there has only been one other person who has led all three statistics - Maradona in 1986 (30 shots, 19 chances, 53 fouls).
Now, Messi has the opportunity to do something that even Maradona could not do: win the World Cup for the second time.
Portugal
When Cristiano Ronaldo left Manchester United to move to Al-Nassr after the 2022 World Cup, many people thought that his peak period would gradually fall into forgetfulness.
However, the owner of 5 Golden Balls still continues to attract attention. Recently, FIFA confirmed that Ronaldo will not have to accept a 3-match suspension as usual after his red card in Portugal's loss to the Republic of Ireland. This is a decision that will qualify him for the 2026 World Cup opening match.
Now, after Messi won the World Cup in Qatar, Ronaldo will definitely want to create his own glorious moment.
In theory, Portugal has one of the strongest squads in the tournament. PSG's trio of Vitinha, Joao Neves and Nuno Mendes are all in excellent form. In addition, there are experienced Premier League pillars such as Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes.
