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World Cup Qualifying for 2026

Ed H in Pasadena

Ed H in Pasadena

Well-known member
Surprised I didn't find a thread for this one already. Didn't see much of any of the matches, but was glad to see that Mo helped Egypt qualify for only the fourth time, the first since Russia 2018. And that England qualified (the first UEFA team to do so) without too much trouble.

In any case, here's the list of qualifiers through the October 2025 international window
 

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Not too surprising. Potter cut his teeth as a manager in Sweden and is still highly regarded there. He needs something positive to happen if he wants another bite at the top English leagues, so hey ... why not? I kind of figured he might follow Dean Smith to MLS next season, but there's little chance of coming back from that. Smith was a fast riser in England not too long ago before he crashed on the rocks at Villa and lost his way. He's been very, very good for Charlotte in MLS though.
 
Has a home there, still, so the feelings are mutual. Hope it works out for him there. Not sure why they've struggled but you figure he's gotta do better than two goals in four matches with a squad that includes Isak, Gyokeres and Elanga.
 
Ed H in Pasadena said:
Surprised I didn't find a thread for this one already. Didn't see much of any of the matches, but was glad to see that Mo helped Egypt qualify for only the fourth time, the first since Russia 2018. And that England qualified (the first UEFA team to do so) without too much trouble.

In any case, here's the list of qualifiers through the October 2025 international window
Click to expand...
3 debutantes so far, Jordan, Uzbekistan and little Cape Verde.
 
Insane that Troy Parrott scored five goals in the last two matches against THAT competition.

Insane how Scotland won today, sending them through for the first time since 1998
 
The Scots join Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, Austria, Norway, Belgium, England and Croatia as automatic qualifiers. Second place finishers Slovakia, Kosovo, Denmark, Ukraine, Turkey, Ireland, Poland, Bosnia, Italy, Wales, Albania and Czechia, along with Nations League qualifiers Northern Ireland, Sweden, Romania and North Macedonia will be drawn into 4 groups of 4 with the group winners advancing.
 
CONCACAF qualifying is complete and there is another debutante. Curaçao, with about 160,000 people qualified. And not a single player on the roster was born in Curaçao, they were all born in the Netherlands. Curaçao is officially part of the Kingdom of The Netherlands. They’re coached by Dick Advocaat.

Joining Curaçao are Haiti and Panama. Jamaica and Suriname head to the Intercontinental playoffs with Bolivia, New Caledonia, DR Congo and Iraq with 2 spots available.

www.marca.com

The reason behind Curacao's miracle: on the verge of the World Cup without a single player born in the country

Curacao was part of what was geopolitically known as the Netherlands Antilles between 1954 and 2010, along with Aruba, Bonaire, Saba, St Eustatius and St Maarten. However, for the
www.marca.com www.marca.com
 
Ed H in Pasadena said:
Insane that Troy Parrott scored five goals in the last two matches against THAT competition.

Insane how Scotland won today, sending them through for the first time since 1998
Click to expand...
I'm so happy for the Scots. That program has been right on the fringe for a while now and really needed to convert on the chance given by the increased size of the field, but it was a struggle. In the end, Scott McTominay is just too much of a beauty to let them disappoint yet again. My old Granny would have been thrilled
 
Fox has added Rebecca Lowe and Thierry Henry to their studio team for the World Cup. No word on how they’ll be deployed, if they’re replacing Rob Stone and the useless Alexi Lalas, Warren Barton and Carli Lloyd as the main hosts or will be shunted off to a secondary studio for the matches not broadcast on main Fox.
 
I wouldn't think they'd spend the money to get Rebecca Lowe and then shuffle her off to a secondary role ... but this IS Fox, so you never know.
 
The draw was today ... despite still having a bunch of playoffs to resolve. Here's the results ...

Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Winner Playoff D

Group B: Canada, Winner Playoff A, Qatar, Switzerland

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland

Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Winner Playoff C

Group E: Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Winner Playoff B, Tunisia

Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand

Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay

Group I: France, Senegal, Winner Playoff 2, Norway

Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan

Group K: Portugal, Winner Playoff 1, Colombia, Uzbekistan

Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama

SOFT draw for the US, especially if Turkey doesn't win that playoff spot. Canada got the toughest of the host draws, I think. Presuming that Qatar can carry forward their form better than they did last time, at least. The so-called Group of Death is, well, dead with the expanded field. Now it's just a variation between medium and soft for the higher seeds.
 
Charmin soft draw for the US. The USMNT beat both Paraguay and Australia in the last few months. They should easily escape that group.
 
True, but they also got out-classed by Turkey fairly recently and they're the most likely team to fill that wildcard slot. This US team will be such that everything will have to be hard earned. And that's fine. At least the group gives them a fighting chance.
 
Even when FIFA tries to do the right thing, they screw it up. They designated a match in Seattle on June 26 for a “once-in-a-lifetime moment to showcase and celebrate LGBTQIA+ communities in Washington.” But…the only match in Seattle that day is Egypt v. Iran, 2 nations that are openly hostile to that community. Egypt has also responded to FIFA “categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match.”

apnews.com

Egypt and Iran complain about planned World Cup 'Pride' match in Seattle

Egypt and Iran, two Middle East nations that target gays and lesbians, have complained to FIFA over the scheduling of a World Cup soccer match in Seattle that’s expected to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride.
apnews.com apnews.com
 
Last edited:
andyt said:
Even when FIFA tries to do the right thing, they screw it up. They designated a match in Seattle on June 26 for a “once-in-a-lifetime moment to showcase and celebrate LGBTQIA+ communities in Washington.” But…the only match in Seattle that day is Egypt v. Iran, 2 nations that are openly hostile to that community. Egypt has also responded to FIFA “categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match.”

apnews.com

Egypt and Iran complain about planned World Cup 'Pride' match in Seattle

Egypt and Iran, two Middle East nations that target gays and lesbians, have complained to FIFA over the scheduling of a World Cup soccer match in Seattle that’s expected to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride.
apnews.com apnews.com
Click to expand...

Counterpoint: Fuck em.
 
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