The Athletic has re-ranked all 48 teams qualified for the 2026 World Cup, producing a full pre-tournament ordering as fans and bettors count down to the June 11 kickoff in Canada, Mexico and the United States of America. The publication updated its soccer world rankings from an April version to reflect managerial changes, key injuries and other factors.
At the top of the list, The Athletic put Spain and France where the conversation has already settled: as the teams that look to have the strongest XIs on paper. Spain arrives on the back of winning Euro 2024, and the only clear question noted against them was the fitness of Lamine Yamal. France’s depth in attack—Kylian Mbappe, Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Rayan Cherki—earned high marks, though the piece also flagged that at least one of those five will not be in France’s first-choice team.
The ranking treats Argentina, Brazil and Germany as major contenders as well. Argentina enter with continuity: the same manager, Lionel Scaloni, and the same captain, Lionel Messi, who will turn 39 during the tournament. Brazil’s squad lists Neymar among its leaders. Germany’s announcement included the returning presence of Manuel Neuer and a relatively friendly group draw, all factors that pushed them up the list.
England’s selection notes produced headlines of their own in the review: Thomas Tuchel had a squad deep enough to omit Phil Foden and Cole Palmer, while Harry Kane finished the season with successive hat-tricks and Ollie Watkins closed strong with six goals in five games—form that the ranking treats as relevant to late-tournament expectations.
The Athletic’s re-ranking was compiled after qualifiers closed in April and revised to account for late developments that mattered to selection and matchday XIs. That follow-up came after FIFA’s latest world rankings were published on April 1; the new ordering serves a different purpose than FIFA’s list, offering an evaluative, squad-by-squad look at the 48-team field rather than a pure points table.
For readers wanting a single pre-tournament baseline, the list is useful because it covers every team that will travel to North America. It sets explicit expectations about who should be favored to progress deep and which teams enter with lower external belief. The scope—48 teams—means the ranking functions as both primer and scoreboard of perceived strengths before the first whistle.
The Athletic did not ignore uncertainty. The note that one of France’s leading attackers will not be a first-choice option underlines a recurrent weakness of all preseason lists: depth can be a strength on paper but a selection dilemma in practice. Spain’s reliance on Yamal’s fitness is another narrow, tangible vulnerability that could tilt a close group or knockout match.
These re-ranked soccer world rankings now sit as the most recent public assessment fans will cite as the tournament opens. The Athletic’s ordering will be tested immediately: group-stage fixtures begin with the June 11 kickoff, and early results will force quick reappraisals of squads that arrive over- or under-ranked. The list gives readers a clear wager on expectations; the 2026 World Cup will provide the ultimate measure.
