The 2026 World Cup is drawing near, with the outline of next summer’s tournament taking shape with 28 of the 48 teams now confirmed.
The likes of Argentina, Brazil and England have all booked their places, and the October international break gave a chance to have a closer look at the contenders. The field looks relatively open with no clear frontrunner to lift the trophy, meaning that we could see a first-time winner for the first time since Spain in 2010.
Legendary former Arsenal and Barcelona forward Thierry Henry was a part of the France team that lifted the trophy in 1998. In his new role as an analyst on CBS Sports Golazo, Henry has picked two new names as potential ‘dark horses’ for the 2026 tournament.
“Don’t sleep on Morocco. Morocco is doing very well at the moment; they won the Under-20 World Cup. And many teams could surprise people,” Henry said.
He continued: “Portugal with Nuno Mendes and the great man [Cristiano Ronaldo] up front. I’m sure they’ll try to emulate what Leo [Messi] did before in Qatar,” he added.
Neither Morocco nor Portugal has won the World Cup before. But both boast exceptionally talented generations of players and will be looking to take full advantage next summer.
France’s 1998 World Cup triumph was won on home soil, an advantage that the United States will have for next year’s competition.
However, there is greater pressure that comes with hosting, and the added complication of having no competitive games in the build-up to the tournament.
Nevertheless, Henry was optimistic about the USMNT’s progression under Mauricio Pochettino in recent months.
“It looks a bit better now. They weren’t looking good,” Henry explained. “It’s just a progression they need to make at the end of the day. They need to be good in the tournament.”
“In ’98, when we had the World Cup at home, we weren’t great in the friendlies. We weren’t that good in the group stage, and we managed to win it. So what you want and need is to perform when it matters.”
