Football World Cup 2026™

The team that wins the World Cup gets all the glory, and rightfully so, since the journey to the trophy is long and difficult. This year, with more participants than ever, this journey will be particularly tiring.Runner-ups also get a spot in history, but so do the best players who demonstrate their best football during the tournament. So, who are the favourites for the individual accolades? What are the World Cup 2026 Golden Ball winner odds, and what are the Golden Boot winner odds?World Cup 2026 Golden Ball Odds: Who Are the Favourites?Not many bookmakers provide the odds for the Golden Ball winner just yet, even though the World Cup is very near. This year’s tournament will be full of the biggest stars of the game, but every previous one was also like that.The question is, who is going to shine the brightest this time around? Who is the favourite to win the Golden Ball according to the bookmakers? Let’s have a look at what the odds say.Harry Kane is one of the favourites to win the Golden Ball for the best player at the 2026 World Cup, with the odds ranging from 8.00 to 9.00.[BETTINGBONUS]Betvictor Sportsbook Bonus: up to £100 in Free Bets[BETTINGBONUS]Odds vary on Michael Olise to claim the trophy, from 7.00 at BetVictor to 11.00 at other operators, making him one of the favourites, alongside the British veteran. Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal are both priced between 9.00 and 11.00.We must not forget Lionel Messi here, as he is also among the favourites to win the Golden Ball, with the odds on him winning between 11.00 and 13.00.[BETTINGBONUS]Betandyou Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to €125, 1st Deposit[BETTINGBONUS]Golden Boot Winner Odds and FavouritesGolden Boot is a bit of a different story and a more popular market that bettors wager on, predicting which player will score the most goals. When we look at the club season that’s almost past us, the odds for top goalscorers make a lot of sense.As the top scorer in the Bundesliga and the second-best scorer in the Champions League, Harry Kane is again among the top favourites, along with the UCL top scorer, Kylian Mbappe. [BETTINGBONUS]BoyleSports Sportsbook Bonus: Bet £10 Get £40[BETTINGBONUS]The Frenchman also tends to put on his best game for major tournaments, so the odds of 7.00 for him to be the top scorer, compared to 8.00 on Harry Kane, are not so distant, and still give Mbappe a slight advantage.[BETTINGBONUS]Scored Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to €250[BETTINGBONUS]We must not again forget Lionel Messi since the bookmakers price him at 13.00 to win the Golden Boot again, while Erling Haaland and Lamine Yamal are both priced at 15.00.Apart from Lionel Messi being Argentina’s go-to man for all penalty kicks, the other reason for this is that Messi hasn’t lost any firepower in the MLS, and could continue like that at the World Cup. Also, Argentina is predicted to go far in this year’s tournament.Yamal’s season is not so efficient when it comes to goals, but Spain is expected to go all the way, potentially giving him more opportunities to score than Haaland and Norway.If you wish to claim some outright odds, now may be the right time, as there are only three weeks left before the World Cup begins.

With the World Cup less than a month away, we already know so much about the event itself: three host nations, 48 participating countries, 16 stadiums, and crazy expensive tickets for fans from many countries.The favourites have been the same for months now, it’s only the odds that slightly change from time to time. If we look at the previous few editions, it was not always the bookmakers’ favourites that ended up winning the tournament.For example, Brazil were the favourites to win in Qatar in 2022, yet they were knocked out by Croatia in the quarter-finals. France was the third favourite for the trophy in 2018 behind Brazil and Germany, and ended up winning in the final against Croatia.And let’s not even get started on Croatia and their odds of finishing in the top four at World Cups. Let’s instead have a look at this year’s favourites and their odds.*Displayed odds are valid on 12 May 2026. Odds subject to change.Spain as Top FavouritesAs the winner of Euro 2024 and a team that went undefeated through the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, Spain is your number one favourite to win the tournament, according to the bookmakers. Spain has a very talented team and a versatile roster, with many players capable of playing at the highest level. Starting from the goalkeeper, where they have two strong options in Unai Simon and David Raya, moving to the strong defensive line with Laporte, Huijsen, Cubarsi, Porro, to name a few, no team will have an easy time scoring against them.With so much talent in the midfield, the team will not lack in creativity, and fans look to Rodri, Dani Olmo, Pedri, Fermin Lopez and others for some magic. Adding Yamal, Oyarzabal and Ferran Torres to the equation only adds more confidence to Spain’s firepower.The outright odds of Spain winning the World Cup are 5.60 at Boomerang Bet at the moment[BETTINGBONUS]Boomerang-bet Sportsbook: 100% up to €100[BETTINGBONUS]France Not So Far BehindFrance, as the runner-up from Qatar 2022 and the winner from the 2018 World Cup, must be one of the top favourites for this year’s tournament as well. Didier Deschamps will have a hard time selecting the 26 players for the World Cup, given the abundance of talent that the French have.Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Ibrahima Konaté, and Lucas Hernández are some of the players across the pitch that we all know, and we all know what we can expect from them, and so does Deschamps.If the French players play to their potential, the 6.6 odds at Betandyou on them winning the World Cup sound like a good catch if you believe they will go all the way.[BETTINGBONUS]Betandyou Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to €125, 1st Deposit[BETTINGBONUS]What About England’s Odds?England has won the World Cup once, and it was 60 years ago. Could this finally be the year this happens again? Well, the competition is fierce, and England will have a very tough job trying to finally win the title again.It appears that the English have finally found the right manager to lead the team in this quest, as Thomas Tuchel led the team through a flawless qualification cycle. England won all eight of its matches without conceding a single goal, so we have to assume it’s the track record at big events and extremely strong competition that leaves it only the third favourite to win the title.England is priced at 7.10 at 22Bet, and 6/1 at 247Bet, so check out their welcome offers:[BETTINGBONUS]22bet Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to €122[BETTINGBONUS][BETTINGBONUS]247Bet Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to £50[BETTINGBONUS]Brazil and Argentina With Similar OddsWe all know we can never dismiss Brazil and Argentina as contenders for the World Cup title, especially since Argentina is the defending champion. This will be Brazil’s first World Cup with Carlo Ancelotti in charge, which will be a very interesting thing to see.Argentina will try to defend the title won in Qatar four years ago in what will most likely be the last World Cup Leo Messi will play for the national team.Even if they are not among the top three favourites, Brazil and Argentina are priced just enough to give good value on the wager to all those who believe in them and get their bets right. Both have the odds of 9.00 of winning the World Cup, according to Opabet.[BETTINGBONUS]Opabet Sportsbook Bonus: 100% up to €200[BETTINGBONUS]Teams to Complete the Top 10When we look at other teams that could outrun their odds for winning the tournament, we are left with a few more options. If these seem too far-fetched for the title, you can look for odds of them qualifying for the next round, or reaching the QFs, for example.These are the teams that complete the Top 10 favourites for winning the World Cup and their odds for the trophy:Portugal 12.00Germany 13.00Netherlands 21.00Norway 26.50Belgium 34.00[BETTINGBONUS]Casimba Sportsbook Bonus: £20 Free Bet[BETTINGBONUS]If you wish to claim some of these outright odds, compare them at various bookmakers to ensure you get the best offer. Good luck!

The long qualifying cycle is now over, and we finally know all 48 teams that will be playing in this year’s World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the USA.The qualifiers' playoff matches brought so much excitement, and maybe a few surprises to someone, but every team that qualified deserved its spot in the greatest football event in the world.Italy Missing Another World CupThe playoff finals on 31 March decided the final four teams from Europe that qualified for the tournament, and the biggest surprise for many is Bosnia and Herzegovina. After eliminating Wales in the semi-finals after a penalty shoot-out, they did the same with Italy.That means that Italy won’t be playing yet another World Cup after missing the previous two events in Russia and Qatar.Sweden is also through after beating Poland 3-2 with a late goal by Viktor Gyökeres. Türkiye managed to eliminate Kosovo with a 1-0 away victory, repeating the score from the semis when they won 1-0 at home against Romania.Czechia secured its place in the 2026 World Cup by winning a penalty shoot-out against Denmark after the result was 2-2 after overtime.When we look at the rest of the world, Iraq defeated Bolivia to make it to the group stage, and DR Congo eliminated Jamaica.If you wish to snatch some outright odds and bet on the future World Cup winner, here's a bonus you can claim:[BETTINGBONUS]bet365 Sportsbook: Bet £10 Get £30[BETTINGBONUS]A Look at the World Cup GroupsWith a little over two months left before the tournament begins, the groups are now finally complete, and so are the upcoming World Cup fixtures for the group stage.Group AMexicoSouth AfricaKorea RepublicCzechiaGroup BCanadaBosnia-HerzegovinaQatarSwitzerlandGroup CBrazilMoroccoHaitiScotlandGroup DUSAParaguayAustraliaTürkiyeGroup EGermanyCuraçaoCôte D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)EcuadorGroup FNetherlandsJapanSwedenTunisiaGroup GBelgiumEgyptIranNew ZealandGroup HSpainCabo VerdeSaudi ArabiaUruguayGroup IFranceSenegalIraqNorwayGroup JArgentinaAlgeriaAustriaJordanGroup KPortugalDR CongoUzbekistanColombiaGroup LEnglandCroatiaGhanaPanamaWe expect some great matches during the group stage and even more excitement once the knockout stage begins. And now is the time for newly qualified teams’ fans to celebrate and potentially purchase their tickets for the largest World Cup in history.

We are slowly getting to the end of the World Cup qualifiers, with only four matches left to be played in the UEFA qualifiers before we get the names of the last four European participants in the 2026 World Cup.The semi-finals brought many exciting matches, with a couple of them decided only after penalty shoot-outs. Here’s a brief overview, with a glimpse of what comes next.The Semi-Finals: Who’s Through?The new qualifiers' playoff format means that teams play one match in the semi-finals and then one in the finals, with no return fixtures. We saw eight semi-final matches on Thursday, with eight winners now through to face each other in the finals:Türkiye 1-0 RomaniaKosovo 4-3 SlovakiaItaly 2-0 Northern IrelandWales 1-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-4 after penalty shoot-out)Sweden 3-1 UkrainePoland 2-1 AlbaniaDenmark 4-0 North MacedoniaCzechia 2-2 Ireland (4-3 after penalty shoot-out)Finals Fixtures and OddsThe four matches in the finals will be played on Tuesday, 31 March, which will mark the conclusion of the European qualifiers. Let’s have a look at the fixtures and the odds the bookmakers are giving each team to qualify for the World Cup.Bosnia and Herzegovina - ItalySweden - PolandKosovo - TürkiyeCzechia - DenmarkLet's start with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy. Italy is the clear favourite with bookmakers in Path A, with the average odds around 1.60. If you wish to back Bosnia and Herzegovina, the average odds there are around 5.50.[BETTINGBONUS]BetPlays Sportsbook Bonus: 200% on Deposit + 20% Free Bet[BETTINGBONUS]The match between Sweden and Poland is expected to be more of a close game, with a slight advantage given to Sweden. The Scandinavian team is priced at around 2.00, while the odds on Poland winning this final match are around 3.60.This match could also be a great opportunity to bet on goal scorers, with Viktor Gyokeres on one side and Robert Lewandowski on the other. Both of them scored in the semi-final, Gyokeres three times, and Lewandowski once.The odds for Gyokeres scoring at any time are around 2.50, and for Lewandowski, 2.75.[BETTINGBONUS]bet365 Sportsbook: Bet £10 Get £30[BETTINGBONUS]Türkiye is considered a favourite in the match against Kosovo, with odds of around 1.85. On the other hand, their opponents are sitting at odds of around 4.00 to win this match.[BETTINGBONUS]Kikobet Sportsbook: 100% up to €200, 1st Deposit Bonus[BETTINGBONUS]Finally, the match between Czechia and Denmark is also expected to be a closer one, with the two opponents not so far apart in terms of match-winner odds. Denmark is priced at around 2.00, while you can snatch some lucrative odds around 4.00 if you wish to back Czechia to win.[BETTINGBONUS]Svenbet Sportsbook: 100% up to €100 Welcome Bonus[BETTINGBONUS]

Last Friday, 5 December 2025, brought us the draw for the largest World Cup in the competition's history. The 42 teams that have already qualified for the main draw know their groups and opponents. However, the final spots will be filled after the playoffs in March next year.World Cup 2026 GroupsThe draw is now complete, and even though we don’t know all the participants just yet, we know which group each playoff winner is in and what opponents they will face.All teams know their schedules for the group stage matches, and so do fans who might need to set their alarms or prepare plenty of coffee to stay up late enough to watch their teams play.Here’s what all the groups look like:Group A: Mexico, South Africa, Korea Republic, UEFA Playoff D Winner (DEN/MKD/CZE/IRL)Group B: Canada, UEFA Playoff A Winner (ITA/NRL/WAL/BIH), Qatar, SwitzerlandGroup C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, ScotlandGroup D: USA, Paraguay, Australia, UEFA Playoff C Winner (TUR/ROU/SVK/KOS)Group E: Germany, Curaçao, Côte D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), EcuadorGroup F: Netherlands, Japan, UEFA Playoff B Winner (UKR/SWE/POL/ALB), TunisiaGroup G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New ZealandGroup H: Spain, Cabo Verde, Saudi Arabia, UruguayGroup I: France, Senegal, FIFA Playoff 2 Winner (BOL/SUR/IRQ), NorwayGroup J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, JordanGroup K: Portugal, FIFA Playoff 1 Winner (NCL/JAM/COD), Uzbekistan, ColombiaGroup L: England, Croatia, Ghana, PanamaAn interesting fact about the draw is that we will see the replay of the England-Croatia match in the first round, just as in the first round of Euro 2021.The 48-team format makes it less likely to have the famous “groups of death”, like the ones we had in the previous editions. Neutral football fans will maybe have only a few more matches that draw attention just by the teams’ names.One of those matches is definitely the duel between Spain and Uruguay, and we can also expect the match between France and Norway to be a feast. Who doesn’t want to see two top goalscorers, Kylian Mbappe on one, and Erling Haaland on the other side, right?Too Early to Talk About the Knockout StageWhile we already know what the fixtures look like for the knockout stage, in terms of who and where the winners of Group A will face (the C/E/F/H/I group third-placed team), it is too early to talk about all this.However, we can expect some interesting matches from the start of this phase, like the road the reigning champions, Argentina, could have, should they win their group.In the meantime, Spain remains a favourite to win the World Cup 2026, with the odds ranging from 5.0 to 6.0. Unibet has Spain at the odds of 6.0 to win the World Cup, so check it out:[BETTINGBONUS]Unibet Sportsbook Bonus: Bet £10 Get £40[BETTINGBONUS]Second favourite is England, looking at Tomas Tuchel to deliver what Gareth Southgate couldn’t in Qatar. The outright odds of England winning the World Cup at Betfred are 7.0.[BETTINGBONUS]Betfred Sportsbook: Bet £10 Get £50 in Free Bets[BETTINGBONUS]Brazil, Argentina and France are all given similar chances of winning the tournament, and they all sit at the odds of 9.0 with bet365.[BETTINGBONUS]bet365 Sportsbook: Bet €10 Get €30[BETTINGBONUS]If you are a fan of betting on the World Cup, now may be your chance to snatch the outright odds you like.

The group stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers is now complete across all conferences, and we have the list of teams that have qualified directly for the competition's group stage.While there haven’t been any major surprises, some teams that played in Qatar in 2022 won’t be in the Americas next year, while others managed to sign their countries’ names on the participants list for the first time.The 2026 World Cup will be the first to feature 48 teams, some of them qualifying through their respective groups in the conference qualifiers, others through the playoffs. The European playoffs will give us another four teams that qualify for the main tournament, and the rest of the world two more, to complete the list of participants.Who’s in the Playoffs?At this point, we know all the participants in the 2026 World Cup playoffs, which will be played in March 2026.The inter-confederation draw has only six participants, out of which two (Congo and Iraq) have already qualified for the finals of their respective playoff paths. Here’s what the draw looks like: Playoffs Group A:Semi-final: New Caledonia vs JamaicaFinal: New Caledonia or Jamaica vs CongoPlayoffs Group B:Semi-final: Bolivia vs SurinameFinal: Bolivia or Suriname vs IraqThere were two ways for European teams to qualify for the playoffs: by finishing the group stage as runner-ups or through the Nations League. Here’s who made it to the playoffs in the European qualifiers:By finishing second in the group: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Türkiye, Ukraine, WalesThrough the Nations League: Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, North MacedoniaAnd here’s what the draw looks like for the European playoffs:Group A semi-finals:Italy vs Northern IrelandWales vs Bosnia and HerzegovinaThe final match will be hosted by the winner of the Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina game.Group B semi-finals:Ukraine vs SwedenPoland vs AlbaniaThe final will be hosted by either Ukraine or Sweden.Group C semi-finals:Türkiye vs RomaniaSlovakia vs KosovoThe final match of the group will be hosted by the winner of the Slovakia vs Kosovo match.Group D semi-finals:Denmark vs North MacedoniaCzech Republic vs IrelandThe Czech Republic or the Republic of Ireland will host the final match for the Group D playoffs.Who Is Through So Far?The playoffs will give us the remaining six teams that will compete in the 2026 World Cup, which means that 42 teams have already secured their spots in the main draw.Let’s look at those teams by the conferences:Europe (UEFA): Austria, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, SwitzerlandSpain is considered the no. 1 favourite to win the competition at the moment, with the outright odds of 5.5 at the Winnerz sportsbook. England has odds of 7.0 to win the trophy, and France has 7.5.[BETTINGBONUS]Winnerz Sportsbook: 100% up to €200 Welcome Bonus[BETTINGBONUS]South America (CONMEBOL): Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, UruguayBrazil and Argentina are also considered to be among the top favourites to win the tournament, with the odds of 9.20 at Campeonbet sportsbook.[BETTINGBONUS]Campeonbet Sportsbook Bonus: Deposit €25 and get €25 Welcome Sports Free Bet[BETTINGBONUS]North and Central America (CONCACAF): Curaçao, Haiti and Panama, plus the three host nations: Canada, Mexico and the USA.Africa (CAF): Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, TunisiaAsia (AFC): Australia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, UzbekistanOceania: New ZealandThe list of participating countries will be complete after the two playoff tournaments that will be played during the March 2026 international window.

The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup will be the first time the international football tournament will incorporate entertainment within a football match.As announced by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, the next World Cup will have Super Bowl-like halftime shows in the opening, semi-final, and final matches.Party in the USAWhile the idea of merging sports and entertainment in football is novel, it comes as almost no surprise considering the tournament will be hosted in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.The finals will be held at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, rebranded to New York New Jersey Stadium during the duration of the World Cup, on 19 July 2026.Infantino revealed some of the plans for the halftime show, but also a Times Square takeover in his Instagram announcement:These two incredible matches will feature some of the best players in the world, and what better way to celebrate them than in the historic Times Square in New York City.A FIFA spokesperson added that the intention is to extend the World Cup experience beyond football, citing how the Super Bowl has become an international event exactly due to the halftime show. So, FIFA is looking to simulate this in pursuit of even bigger viewership, attracting the audience that doesn’t watch the sport regularly.Not Like Us: Part 2?Unlike the NFL and other American sports, football doesn’t really have a tradition of long breaks between the two halves of the match to incorporate music and entertainment. Although still unconfirmed, it’s highly likely that the standard 15-minute break will be extended to provide enough time for the performances.Speaking of music, Infantino has hinted that FIFA has a list of artists in mind, with the band Coldplay helping them narrow down the selection:I also want to thank Chris Martin and Phil Harvey of Coldplay, who will be working with us at FIFA to finalise the list of artists...Who will perform at the 2026 FIFA World Cup? Fans have expressed the desire to see Kendrick Lamar, Shakira (whose song 'Waka Waka' was the 2010 FIFA World Cup anthem), Taylor Swift, and Lady Gaga. Some even believe Drake could take the stage as a counterpoint to Kendrick Lamar’s performance at the 2025 Super Bowl.FIFA World Cup 2026 starts on 11 June 2026 and will have 48 international teams compete for the title of the best in the world. If you’re betting on football, keep an eye out for early outright betting offers as bookies prepare for this big event.