England’s dreams and worst-case scenarios for today’s 2026 World Cup draw | Football

England will enter the 2026 World Cup as one of the competition’s favorites with the group stage to be announced today.

The group stage draw for next summer’s games will be held in Washington DC this afternoon where the 48 teams will find out the dates.

With the exception of Belgium in 2018, the Three Lions have avoided stiff competition in the international group stages in recent years.

With Thomas Tuchel’s side playing in Pot 1, they will avoid the likes of Spain, France and world champions Argentina.

Given the expanded format, there are several options that will make England fans very happy this afternoon.

But there is always the possibility that the dreaded ‘Group of Death’ is ready to cast doubt on Tuchel’s big plans next summer.

The British dream and its worst-case scenario

It will be 60 years of pain and suffering for England when the finals arrive, with the Three Lions’ World Cup failures dating back to Sir Geoff Hurst’s heroic hat-trick against West Germany in 1966.

But a perfect qualifying campaign has undoubtedly made England one of the most feared teams in the draw, alongside the likes of Spain, France, Brazil and reigning champions Argentina.

The FA appointed Tuchel with the clear aim of achieving victory in next year’s tournament and the German team is expected to progress to the knockout phase, regardless of which group they are in.

However, there are a number of tricky scenarios and permutations that Harry Kane and company could face, with a star-studded squad, serial winners and potential dark horses dotted throughout the draw.

England could only draw with one other UEFA-eligible nation in their group. Based on the FIFA rankings alone, this makes Croatia (ranked 11th) the least favored UEFA opponent for the Three Lions.

However, many long-suffering England fans are already viewing Pot 3 and, in particular, Norway, with some trepidation given the team’s excellent performance in Group I.

Stale Solbakken’s men, who boast two genuine Premier League stars in Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard, won eight of their eight games in qualifying, scoring 37 goals and conceding just five in the process.

Remarkably, Manchester City’s Haaland scored 16 goals in his eight UEFA qualifying appearances – double the number scored by his closest rivals Memphis Depay, Marko Arnautovic and Kane (eight in all).

A quick look at Pot 4 and there is one country that has qualified, namely Italy. Gli Azzurri – winners in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006 – were forced to qualify via the play-offs, having finished second in their group behind Norway.

New Caledonia is the lowest-ranked team (150th) who can still qualify for the finals, but they still have to qualify for the play-offs, semifinals and final to make World Cup history.

If they succeed, the South Pacific nation, with a population roughly the size of Derby, will become the lowest-ranked nation ever to compete in a World Cup.

How does World Cup seeding actually work?

Ahead of today’s eagerly awaited draw, the 48 competing teams have been divided into four pots consisting of 12 countries and each group will have one team drawn from each pot.

Pot 1 contains the three host countries, the United States, Mexico and Canada, plus the top nine countries – who qualified – in the FIFA world rankings.

The next highest ranked teams will be placed in Pots 2, 3, and 4, while the six play-off winners are placed in Pot 4.

It is important to note that no more than two UEFA countries can be placed in the same group. Outside UEFA, no two teams from the same confederation can be grouped together.

2026 World Cup draw pot

World Cup Schedule

England will learn about their opponents today – but official confirmation of the match date and venue will follow at a separate ceremony on Saturday.

Until then, here are some important dates for your diary.

What Tuchel said after England’s final qualifying match

The England squad will have to wait four months before they are reunited, at which point Tuchel may hope to have a clearer picture of his favorite squad and starting XI.

‘To be honest it hurts me, I said to the players, I have to say “Merry Christmas” and “Happy New Year” now,’ said the England boss after his side lost 2-0 to Albania to cap a perfect qualifying campaign on Sunday.

“I can’t believe it and in my heart, everything in me wants to be with you guys on another Wednesday on the sidelines and fighting and another Saturday and they’re dragging me into all of this. It’s just amazing. It’s going to be really hard for me not to fight until March.”

“They’re incredible. The level of detail isn’t always right. But the commitment to accept mistakes, the commitment after losing the ball… keep your head down, just run; run it.

“It’s been great over the last camps and I think you can feel it. This is what I’m talking about and I hope we can make you watch this team and feel like, ‘Wow. They really mean it!”‘

He added: ‘It’s an honor to work with these players because I like their character and their attitude and how they are shaped, so I know this and today I can say everything went perfectly because from the first camp, I could feel the energy.

‘Then we had a bit of a downturn in the summer, but the way we reacted and built from there in all three camps was incredible, so it’s a privilege every day, so full credit to the players for their commitment and of course that makes me very happy and very proud.’

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