World Cup 2026 ultimate guide: Every squad, coach, star player and rising talent

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the biggest in football history. For the first time, 48 nations have gathered across the United States, Canada and Mexico, bringing together global superpowers, emerging forces and debutants dreaming of making history.

From Lionel Messi’s pursuit of another world title to Cristiano Ronaldo’s potential final appearance on football’s grandest stage, the tournament is packed with household names. Yet every World Cup creates new heroes. Alongside each nation’s established superstar is another player waiting to seize the spotlight.

Here’s our guide to every group, including the coach, star player and one player to watch.

Group A

Mexico – Coach: Javier Aguirre | Star Player: Santiago Giménez | Player to Watch: Gilberto Mora

South Africa – Coach: Hugo Broos | Star Player: Teboho Mokoena | Player to Watch: Oswin Appollis

South Korea – Coach: Hong Myung-bo | Star Player: Son Heung-min | Player to Watch: Bae Jun-ho

Czechia – Coach: Miroslav Koubek | Star Player: Patrik Schick | Player to Watch: Matěj Kovář

Mexico and South Korea appear favourites to progress, although South Africa and Czechia should not be underestimated.

Group B

Canada – Coach: Jesse Marsch | Star Player: Alphonso Davies | Player to Watch: Ismaël Koné

Bosnia and Herzegovina – Coach: Sergej Barbarez | Star Player: Edin Džeko | Player to Watch: Esmir Bajraktarević

Qatar – Coach: Julen Lopetegui | Star Player: Akram Afif | Player to Watch: Ibrahim Al-Hassan

Switzerland – Coach: Murat Yakin | Star Player: Granit Xhaka | Player to Watch: Ardon Jashari

Switzerland’s tournament experience may give them the edge, but co-hosts Canada could emerge as one of the surprise packages.

Group C

Brazil – Coach: Carlo Ancelotti | Star Player: Vinícius Júnior | Player to Watch: Endrick

Morocco – Coach: Walid Regragui | Star Player: Achraf Hakimi | Player to Watch: Bilal El Khannouss

Haiti – Coach: Sébastien Migné | Star Player: Duckens Nazon | Player to Watch: Alexandre Pierre

Scotland – Coach: Steve Clarke | Star Player: Scott McTominay | Player to Watch: Billy Gilmour

Brazil remain favourites to top the group, but the battle between Morocco and Scotland for second place could prove one of the most fascinating stories of the opening round.

Group D

United States – Coach: Mauricio Pochettino | Star Player: Christian Pulisic | Player to Watch: Malik Tillman

Paraguay – Coach: Gustavo Alfaro | Star Player: Julio Enciso | Player to Watch: Diego Gómez

Australia – Coach: Tony Popovic | Star Player: Mathew Ryan | Player to Watch: Nestory Irankunda

Turkey – Coach: Vincenzo Montella | Star Player: Hakan Çalhanoğlu | Player to Watch: Arda Güler

The United States and Turkey look best equipped to progress, although Paraguay are capable of upsetting the odds.

Group E

Germany – Coach: Julian Nagelsmann | Star Player: Jamal Musiala | Player to Watch: Florian Wirtz

Curaçao – Coach: Dick Advocaat | Star Player: Leandro Bacuna | Player to Watch: Livano Comenencia

Ivory Coast – Coach: Emerse Faé | Star Player: Simon Adingra | Player to Watch: Yan Diomande

Ecuador – Coach: Sebastián Beccacece | Star Player: Moisés Caicedo | Player to Watch: Kendry Páez

Germany should progress comfortably, but Ecuador and Ivory Coast could produce one of the tightest races for qualification.

Group F

Netherlands – Coach: Ronald Koeman | Star Player: Virgil van Dijk | Player to Watch: Xavi Simons

Japan – Coach: Hajime Moriyasu | Star Player: Kaoru Mitoma | Player to Watch: Zion Suzuki

Sweden – Coach: Jon Dahl Tomasson | Star Player: Alexander Isak | Player to Watch: Lucas Bergvall

Tunisia – Coach: Sami Trabelsi | Star Player: Ellyes Skhiri | Player to Watch: Hannibal Mejbri

This could be one of the tournament’s most entertaining groups, with Japan and Sweden both capable of challenging the Dutch.

Group G

Belgium – Coach: Rudi Garcia | Star Player: Kevin De Bruyne | Player to Watch: Jérémy Doku

Egypt – Coach: Hossam Hassan | Star Player: Mohamed Salah | Player to Watch: Omar Marmoush

Iran – Coach: Amir Ghalenoei | Star Player: Mehdi Taremi | Player to Watch: Aria Yousefi

New Zealand – Coach: Darren Bazeley | Star Player: Chris Wood | Player to Watch: Marko Stamenic

Belgium’s experience makes them favourites, but Egypt’s attacking quality means they should not be overlooked.

Group H

Spain – Coach: Luis de la Fuente | Star Player: Lamine Yamal | Player to Watch: Pau Cubarsí

Cape Verde – Coach: Bubista | Star Player: Ryan Mendes | Player to Watch: Livramento

Saudi Arabia – Coach: Georgios Donis | Star Player: Salem Al-Dawsari | Player to Watch: Marwan Al-Sahafi

Uruguay – Coach: Marcelo Bielsa | Star Player: Federico Valverde | Player to Watch: Facundo Pellistri

Spain and Uruguay appear strongest on paper, but Saudi Arabia have previous experience of producing World Cup shocks.

Group I

France – Coach: Didier Deschamps | Star Player: Kylian Mbappé | Player to Watch: Désiré Doué

Senegal – Coach: Pape Thiaw | Star Player: Sadio Mané | Player to Watch: Ibrahima Mbaye

Iraq – Coach: Graham Arnold | Star Player: Aymen Hussein | Player to Watch: Zidane Iqbal

Norway – Coach: Ståle Solbakken | Star Player: Erling Haaland | Player to Watch: Antonio Nusa

France remain among the favourites to lift the trophy, although Norway and Senegal could battle fiercely for second place.

Group J

Argentina – Coach: Lionel Scaloni | Star Player: Lionel Messi | Player to Watch: Nico Paz

Algeria – Coach: Vladimir Petković | Star Player: Riyad Mahrez | Player to Watch: Farès Chaïbi

Austria – Coach: Ralf Rangnick | Star Player: Marcel Sabitzer | Player to Watch: Carney Chukwuemeka

Jordan – Coach: Jamal Sellami | Star Player: Mousa Al-Tamari | Player to Watch: Odeh Fakhouri

Can Messi inspire Argentina to back-to-back World Cups? Austria may have something to say about that.

Group K

Portugal – Coach: Roberto Martínez | Star Player: Cristiano Ronaldo | Player to Watch: João Neves

DR Congo – Coach: Sébastien Desabre | Star Player: Chancel Mbemba | Player to Watch: Samuel Essende

Uzbekistan – Coach: Fabio Cannavaro | Star Player: Eldor Shomurodov | Player to Watch: Abdukodir Khusanov

Colombia – Coach: Néstor Lorenzo | Star Player: Luis Díaz | Player to Watch: Jhon Durán

Portugal and Colombia appear the strongest sides, but Uzbekistan’s debut under Cannavaro adds an intriguing subplot.

Group L

England – Coach: Thomas Tuchel | Star Player: Jude Bellingham | Player to Watch: Elliot Anderson

Croatia – Coach: Zlatko Dalić | Star Player: Joško Gvardiol | Player to Watch: Martin Baturina

Ghana – Coach: Carlos Queiroz | Star Player: Mohammed Kudus | Player to Watch: Issahaku Fatawu

Panama – Coach: Thomas Christiansen | Star Player: Adalberto Carrasquilla | Player to Watch: José Córdoba

England arrive as genuine contenders, but Croatia’s tournament pedigree and Ghana’s unpredictability ensure that nothing can be taken for granted.

Who Will Shine?

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup gets underway, the familiar faces of Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappé, Salah and Vinícius Júnior will dominate the headlines. Yet history teaches us that every World Cup produces unexpected stars.

Could Endrick announce himself as Brazil’s next icon? Will Arda Güler lead Turkey on a memorable run? Can Billy Gilmour help Scotland finally break their World Cup curse? Or will youngsters such as Désiré Doué, Kendry Páez and Nico Paz become the names everyone remembers?

One thing is certain: over the coming weeks, football fans around the world are in for another unforgettable World Cup.