*Early* 2026 World Cup Dark Horse PREDICTIONS

The 2026 World Cup is roughly 2 years away, so today we will go through possible dark horses for the event.
Could it be the USMNT since the World Cup is hosted in the USA?
Could Japan shock the World in the 2026 World Cup?
Which National Team till be the Dark Horse of the 2026 World Cup?
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[@kimi3421]

Underdogs are teams expected to lose. A dark horse is a underdog that you think will do better than expected.

[@edbrown4800]

Exactly

[@brohdez8857]

Turkey was a dark horse and got grouped in euro 2020. Denmark were a dark horse in 2022 and got grouped.

[@dustinperez8248]

That James Rodríguez rise of fame moment at the 2014 World Cup can be the time to shine for an attacking midfielder like Kendry Paez for Ecuador or Gio Reyna for the US. Also kinda interesting to see how James Rodríguez didn’t hold the consistency of being a world class player because the #10 position is a position that is kinda dead. Now coaches ask their attacking midfielder to defend. Similar struggle Gio Reyna faces. Also all these players play better for their national team. Very interesting similarities

[@bryseisme2]

The second we go against a good team in knockouts we're going out.

[@bolasdefraile]

Are you referring to USA, Mexico, Ecuador or Japan?

[@bryseisme2]

@@bolasdefraile The USMNT.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@bryseisme2that logic applies to all the team mentioned

[@kageryu311]

@samplingmastersxlr8660 In order to be a dark horse you actually have to beat one or two good teams. Morocco made the Semi by beating Belgium, Spain and Portugal. One world Champion and two teams that made the world cup Semis more than once.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@kageryu311 it doesn’t matter what a team did last time , every word cup refreshes the odds of the teams

[@z0rO999]

The moroccan squad got even better since 2022, with a gem called Benseghir, and the goat Brahim Diaz. And other players, making the subs quality even better Speaking of adli,saibari,akhomach... By 2026, the team will definitely, grow accustomed with each other. Making them a good, solid team to make an other deep run, who knows even winning. But then do they fall into the contender or a tier below category 😅

[@Miguel-ps4ku]

No fire Gregg

[@peterallen2578]

😂😂😂 I love it and I agree, we need a different coach to give us a chance

[@Gnume2.0]

They did 😌

[@yddubbud8229]

fire Beerholder now to give USMNT a fighting chance in WC2026

[@fredinava-castro1549]

Underdog is those expected to lose based on talent. Dark horse is those that have the talent that are rated low but with talent to beat and compete against anyone on their best day.

[@victorfortunato]

Once the World Cup passes in 2026, the US will forget about soccer, just as it did after 1994

[@eavocado5890pppj]

Yeah at least in Qatar football is actually the main sport and the most popular one even if they didn't have a football history.

[@nathanieltyghe4526]

Clueless it made football so much more popular just look how the mls has grown

[@dcapitan7]

My Top 5 dark horses at the time I write this... 1. Japan - They really need to sort out their goalkeeper issues. When 🇯🇵 is at their best, they resemble 🇪🇸. 2. Senegal - In the "2023" AFCON group stage, outside of a 15 minute stretch in the third match 🇸🇳 were masterful. They were eliminated by the host nation 🇨🇮 via PKs. This team is more than Sadio Mane. 3. Ecuador - 🇪🇨 have a very good team. In the 2022 WC, they actually outplayed Holland but were only able to get a draw. I still can't get over the fact that in 2022 WC Qualifying they beat 🇨🇴 6-1! 4. Nigeria - 🇳🇬 were runners-up in the "2023" AFCON losing to hosts 🇨🇮 in the Finals. However, what was most impressive was they were generally well-organized defensively. Until the AFCON Finals, I believe they only allowed one goal in that tournament. Add to fact that Osimhen is a superstar at this point and we have a legitimate dark horse here. 5. USA - Only if Berhalter is no longer the coach.

[@samykiani944]

Where is UEFA 2nd tier?

[@dcapitan7]

​@@samykiani944 What darkhorse UEFA 2nd-tier teams you have in mind?

[@adeolaolaiya3449]

USA 🇺🇸 sadly I disagree they aren't really on form rn but you never know they could improve but rn no

[@timoncellobar]

What about Canada? Were very unlucky during the last WC, played better than Belgium, young talented squad, have already got the World Cup experience as opposed to last time and got home field advantage

[@Woojamchun]

Canada is horrible. Their soccer iq is hockey level

[@jonathonedwardmiller]

I'm really surprised Norway isn't on your list.

[@captainfalconmain6576]

how can i team that won’t even qualify from the world cup be a dark horse make it make sense

[@jonathonedwardmiller]

@@captainfalconmain6576 Wait Norway's out? I actually didn't know that lol. Surprised with Odegaard and Haaland there!

[@captainfalconmain6576]

@@jonathonedwardmillerno but norway didn’t make it to the euros 2024 an 2022 world cup they didn’t even qualify i doubt it

[@captainfalconmain6576]

@@jonathonedwardmiller2026 qualifiers for europe’s still have to be played im just saying what i think will happen

[@jonathonedwardmiller]

@@captainfalconmain6576 doesn’t Norway have haaland and odegaard

[@allalbenadam]

My prediction is Morocco vs Germany or Morocco vs France in 2026 World Cup Final, both Germany and France defeated Morocco, so perfect revenge will be great especially France vs Morocco in 2026 World Cup Finals.

[@z0rO999]

Morocco - france final, why not

[@ianc2601]

brother i wish. but what's the last time we did well against a european team, tying england at wc 2022? only reason was because southgate's a moron, and we've got our own southgate with gregg berhalter. we have absolutely no ability to play better than the sum of our parts, and while we're better on paper than we've ever been, it never shows. losing 3-1 to germany while they're weaker than ever before? losing 2-1 to fucking Trinidad and Tobago? no way we perform at 2026, even with a homefield advantage. no crowd hype can overcome subpar strategy

[@JamesCM86]

What about player quality? Do you believe you have the quality to compete with the top nations?

[@AgentWinterz]

My dark horse picks: 1. Japan 2. Norway 3. Senegal 4. Italy

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

why these teams exactly?

[@kageryu311]

Italy is always in contention. They are 4 time world cup winners

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@kageryu311 they also missed 2 World cups in a row

[@Woojamchun]

​​@@kageryu311they are always in contention as fifa is controlled by italy😂

[@richardthompson3346]

Just my two cents. Uruguay is currently second in CONMEBOL qualifying. They soundly defeated Argentina in Buenos Aires and Brazil in Montevideo. Their midfield options are enviable (Valverde, De La Cruz, Ugarte, Bentancur, DeArrascaeta, Nandez, Vecino), and they have speed to spare. They are the youngest by average age of all the South American teams. They won the 2023 U20 World Cup and not one of these U20's have yet to make it to the senior team. By 2026 this team could be scary good.

[@auadisian]

Maybe a team that reaches the finals for the first time ever, or the first time in decades, taking advantage of the expansion?

[@samarthbagwe1736]

Tactical manager: USA will get to semifinals 😂😂😂

[@MrJAV1987]

By the way the other stupidly of it all was giving games to cities that are not considered Fútbol aficionados. Even the final is in a non fútbol city.

[@cgdimension]

Reckon it depends on whether the stadiums are sufficiently air conditioned or not, teams from Europe aren't used to playing in the temperatures of the summer in North America which can reach comparable levels of Qatar which is why they moved it date wise. Could well be walking football.

[@adeolaolaiya3449]

My predictions for a darkhorse Nigeria after a golden gen forming slowly + plus veterans and Afcon run Japan already good but a golden gen also blooming Hot take Canada I feel bcuz there hosts and have a decent team Ecuador bcuz they are firing right now in qualifications even though having point deduction

[@derekkatz2875]

Mexico will play in high altitude so it’s not a crazy take to see Mexico go a bit far this World Cup

[@HubertofLiege]

Their brains do not require oxygen

[@MrJAV1987]

Nope. As long as Berhalter has the team it is going to not even make it out of group stage. If the federation does get rid of him it will be too late. By that time he will have damaged the IS team beyond repair. We can already see it happening.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

The 8 best 3rd place teams go through so we are making the round of 32

[@samykiani944]

Hmm. None of your choices are terrible but your list looks slightly biased. Leaving out Africa altogether and not nominating a single 2nd tier UEFA nation is exclusionary.

[@lagronemikal]

It's just so disheartening. If we immediately get eliminated I believe there's zero chance GGG gets fired. They don't care about winning they only care about GGG. We're squandering the best collection of talent we've ever had. I'll still watch and I still want to win every match, every friendly, all of it, but I have zero faith in USS to do anything in our best interest. Apparently that makes me "toxic". What a joke.

[@calc1657]

I would consider a dark horse to be a team outside the established powers. This team would nevertheless be considered a favorite to advance far in the tournament. For the US to be considered a dark hourse, elements of the following would be needed. 1. win Nations League: Mexico and Jamaica have improved 2. do well in friendlies against the elite teams: getting embarrassed by an out of form Germany was inexcusable. 3. make Finals of the Copa: this would really help to establish the team's credentials 4. win the Olympics: it's mainly a youth tournament, but the US are still highly reliant on the young players. 5. The players need to be in form with their club teams

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

Mexico didn't do anything either against them even if they drew the game

[@sabirsal]

Japan might be the favorite to be the first non EUFA/CONMEBOL country to win the world cup if their Demographics weren't so dire. Their talent pool is literally getting smaller by the decade. If they don't win it soon (2026, 2030, 2034) they never will. Same with South Korea

[@4liferssslockedin]

Dear Filipino, Thanks for not “partnering” w/ US Soccer, profiting immensely & becoming their shill. We need to have places like this where fans get unbiased info & can share their views. Keep up the good work, Champ!!

[@victorfortunato]

Nice sarcasm

[@imanaliraza4084]

After thier rn in copa america holding uruguay back till stopage time

[@georgeobrien1682]

We will be dark horses if we fired Gregg and a in-form Turner

[@nickbuis3307]

According to The Simpsons, Portugal and Mexico make it the final and they have a track record of getting predictions right. Fun Fact... If Memo Ochoa plays in 2026 he'll be the 1st player ever to participate in 6 World Cups effectively beating Messi and Ronaldo to it because Mexico has the opening match.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

both players may join that list

[@nickbuis3307]

@@samplingmastersxlr8660 Correct, but Ochoa would be first since Mexico has the opening match, as I stated.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@nickbuis3307 that would not look good for Mexico

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@nickbuis3307 he better not start the next match

[@ProRel4MLSUSL]

I believe the whole Simpson predicting stuff is bologna

[@captainfalconmain6576]

my dark horse is number 1 ivory coast 2 japan number 3 sengal 4 colombia 5th turkey

[@Freshnewz10]

Mexico has a better coach than the US but we won’t know about it until the US faces Mexico in the nations league

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

Not better Mexico aren’t that good either you know

[@arronpeterson7508]

Mauritania 🇲🇷 Mark my word!

[@chrishenderson1262]

I don't know if "pragmatic" is the word I'd use for Berhalter and his system. When I think of pragmatism, I think of a willingness to do whatever is practically necessary to get results, and a tendency to look for simple solutions. I view Berharlter's approach as the opposite. My biggest criticism of him is that he uses needlessly complicated tactics and is rigid and resistant to changing his approach. Pragmatic solutions deal in applying practical approaches which have prior evidence of working. Non-pragmatic solutions remain fixated on the hypothetical and theoretical, and that's where I see Berhalter in terms of his mindset.

[@Argenswiss]

I feel like calling yourself USMNT instead of just the name of your country like everyone else contributes to people not taking you seriously

[@SoloWarz]

Inshalla Jordan will be WC 2026 CHAMPIONS

[@calvinhosworld]

Nah. The U.S....... assuming they even qualify (still questionable) are far more likely to get Grouped then they are to win an elimination game.

[@Jonathanfootball144]

Nigeria Norway Sweden Ivory Coast Egypt Australia Venezuela Hungary are good shouts

[@valenciafantv]

Nigeria, their talent is great

[@chinafriends]

They are a Center Forward factory

[@KenP741]

USMNT? No GK. Shaky backline and a joke of a manager. Come on.

[@itslife1399]

I wouldn't say shaky, but as a whole yeah I agree to an extent.

[@davidday2373]

Mexico 🇲🇽 = The consummate Underdog

[@paullayer4152]

Not if berhalter is the coach

[@daca_star4life599]

Unfortunately the U.S. doesn’t have a strong back line. Which is essential to be a dark horse.

[@logiclust]

USMNT out in group stage

[@Jaco059]

0%

[@robbienl8176]

Austria maybe

[@Bellwall_fan]

no matter what , I am sure Poland is gonna suprise everyone by going out of the group.

[@user-bc5rz8fx1x]

ronald or messie

[@mrmr5580]

As an outsider (im English) you guys should at least make the quarters, if not semis, but you guys have a similar problem to us, Gareth Southgate isn't a good coach, we have a very good generation and we've got Southgate as coach, it's similar to you guys having Berhalter, im wishing you guys the best, but I fear your coach is an absolute clown

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

Focus on England

[@brianbunker2150]

You are correct both our coaches are hindering our teams. We both suffer the same issue but in a different way. England plays to prove they are the top footballing nation in the world and the USMNT plays to prove that soccer is a top sport in the US. To help ease the pressure both Southgate and GGG try to play a calm cool character and it costs us in major tournaments.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@brianbunker2150 England has always had this problem though

[@mrmr5580]

@@brianbunker2150 i agree, in terms of players we've got a brilliant squad, but we won't win anything as long as Southgate is there, you lot have potentially the best generation you've ever had, but Berhalter is your coach, which will hold you back

[@BALOGUN2026]

Gregg needs to go if we wanna have a deep run at the world cup

[@josepheads5589]

Yes, the USA could be the dark horse in 2026 IF we had a coach who could get the most out of the roster. Unfortunately . . .

[@classicofutbol]

Nice

[@markrubio1286]

Ecuador should go deep this World Cup. They only need a striker

[@loganmapes2307]

The difference between dark horse and underdog is the USA is a dark horse and Mexico is an underdog

[@AD744]

I agree with your 4 dark horse nations as of now.

[@RRaymer]

I think England or Germany are more of a dark horse than any of these teams.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

Why exactly?

[@pretty_shashi]

England is definitely not a dark horse, they are a contender

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@pretty_shashi they have to be

[@pretty_shashi]

@@samplingmastersxlr8660 yup yup

[@Aelexito]

Germany just tied Mexico 🇲🇽

[@bkbaughn]

The face I made when you said Mexico... I mean I get the home field stuff but still... This is for sure one of the worst Mexican teams in a long time...

[@jonathonedwardmiller]

Is Germany considered a dark horse or favorite?

[@z0rO999]

Favorites

[@ZainAli-n6d]

Pakistan Portugal

[@regueling]

Mexico and Portugal finals!

[@billgates4490]

Morocco and Croatia are no longer Dark horses

[@itslife1399]

Croatia hasn't been a dark horse for a while now lol

[@XabzintheNBAGuru]

Can RSA please just qualify just this once

[@zeeqayum4834]

What about Senegal?

[@luvhandles90210]

On paper it's definitely a dark horse and should compete for top four Biggest question marks I have, goalkeeper, ream is aged more, who replaces Adams, who is the starting striker

[@Vickzq]

USMNT has nothing much impressive on paper. Nothing any CONMEBOL or UEFA team won't bring along, too.

[@TheSL29]

Mexico?

[@Canev821]

I’m begging the usmnt to let me coach them

[@jamesvass737]

The non-UEFA teams will find it more difficult to reach the semifinals because of the additional knockout stage round of 32; I can forsee the semifinals resembling the EURO.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

That goes for European teams as well especially the not so good ones Upsets are going to happen

[@kageryu311]

More upsets will happen. We are seeing this at every confederation cup tournament and even in the World Cup. We had the format not change and in 2022 had 3 Asian teams, 2 African teams and 1 north American team advance to the round of 16 and fine margins prevent us from seeing another Asian team fail to make it to the quarters. Teams around the world are getting better which will make it hard for 2nd and 3rd tier European teams to advance.

[@jamesvass737]

@@kageryu311Tier 2 and 3 UEFA teams are also improving, very likely at a quicker rate than teams from elsewhere. There are several reasons for this, not least the fact that they play more competitive games more regularly following the introduction of the UEFA Nations League in 2018/19. Also with more clubs participating in UEFA club competitions following the introduction of the Conference League in 2021/22 and the expansion of all three competitions to a total of 108 clubs from 2024/25, more players from across Europe play continental competition games. It is difficult for me to envisage more than a handful of teams from outside Europe surviving the group stage and the round of 32.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

@@jamesvass737 you realize that players from other countries are playing in Europe as well right , like come on now To be fair I could see some favorites getting knocked out before the semis, the round of 32 and 16 could see some favorites knocked out sooner

[@jamesvass737]

@@samplingmastersxlr8660 While that's true, still significantly more European players are and will be playing UEFA club competition games than players from elsewhere.

[@CertainlyCeramic]

Tactical jinx mexico

[@bruli101]

Ecuador!!!!

[@wuxiagamescentral]

Dark horses are underdogs that way over achieve. Morocco is the perfect example. I don't think many expected then to even make it out of the group but they made it to the semifinal. For the USMNT to be a Dark Horse Quarterfinal is a minimum.

[@anthonymcken6050]

It is far too soon to say a lot can happen between now and then. Come 2026 you will completely forget this video. An underdog/dark horse will not win the WC.

[@greggberhalter8781]

I am a good coach.

[@Elijeff]

Iran is a dark horse and US is underdog :)

[@danimorales6453]

Mexico will flop and not make it out their group unless they have an easy group

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

there wont be a r\easy group

[@americanautotransportllc]

Hey I was the 300th like 😂😂😂

[@phithegod8470]

I not trying to be bad but USA is not a dark horse and will never be, its easy to say they will be on they’re primes but none are being relevant in good teams just getting stuck in bench like Pulisic. For Ecuador yeah they have good young players that are in top teams but here in South America we call them “The eternal promise Ecuador” because they always say they will be great but just disappoint. Mexico…yeah they are definitely not going to be the dark horses by the corruption they are managing and the awful game they have, they are just going downhill, yeah I know they tied against Germany but Germany now a day loses 4-0 against Uruguay or Argentina.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

you clearly don't know anything then , why don't you wait and see of you are right or wrong

[@FutFiles]

Only Japan will go far

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

why

[@samarthbagwe1736]

Uruguay making a deep run can be consider an darkhor run Uruguay don't have that good players Ronald arajuao , Valvedre , Nunez are great but Others are wood Filippo knows nothing bro , How is USA even better than ivory coast Bro I wouldn't be surprised if USA gets grouped and completely fails

[@jcorona5457]

USA is not a Darkhurst… they are my favorites to win it. By then the Aronson Brother will have taken Europe by storm plus Johnny will prob be playing for Real Madrid!

[@victorfortunato]

WTFFFF????

[@chemblumscrum5612]

Lol you made a whole video just so you could say the US is a 2026 World Cup dark horse😭

[@etiennedeleage6804]

I definitely think Mexico can be a dark horse. Heck if history repeats itself then they’ll win it. Since the 2010 World Cup every champion has beaten the next champion in the previous World Cup stage in the next world cups 2010 Spain beats Germany in the semi final and wins the World Cup 2014 Germany beats France in the quarterfinals and wins the World Cup 2018 France beats Argentina in the round of 16 and wins the World Cup 2022 Argentina beats Mexico in the group stage and wins the World Cup. Mexico are also hosting the World Cup and every time they’ve hosted they always make the quarterfinals Surly they are destined to have a deep run. Plus even the simpsons show that has predicted the future many times predicts them to be in the final of this World Cup

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

lets see how copa goes for them first

[@victorfortunato]

Hahahahahahahaha

[@brianbunker2150]

Is Brazil an under dog and the rude Canadians a dark horse?

[@dustinperez8248]

The US should be the dark horse at the 2026 World Cup.

[@TheDjcarter1966]

I think one thing eveyone is forgetting is you need to win an EXTRA game, USMNT could win two knockout games and would just be in quarterfinals...im not picking USMNT to win three straight game against quality international teams...so best we could hope for is quarter finals exit which i think is our expected outcome.

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

For me there’s going to upsets in the knockout rounds The tournament truly starts in round of 32

[@captainfalconmain6576]

usa in dark horse is stuphic

[@LetterSignedBy51SpiesWasA-Coup]

How can u be a dark horse with the LeBron James of soccer?

[@nerychristian]

True. Berhalter is Lebron James

[@eye_straindigital]

We just need Marsch to coach our boys to Victory

[@Cojoal]

saying 2014 costa rica dark horse is crazy lmao this guy has some really awful takes

[@Orrei]

Bro dont hate but you have absoluty no idea about Football. You can talk about rugby 🏉 or Something like this but let football to us europeans

[@TacticalManager]

Learn to how to properly put a sentence together. You can barely write.

[@Orrei]

@@TacticalManager OK how many lenguages do you speak ?

[@EdwardEscobar-oi4vc]

What do you mean lenguages? Lol it’s called languages work on your grammar lol also he never asked how many languages you know you know tell me how many you know

[@Orrei]

@@EdwardEscobar-oi4vc me está atacando por no escribir bien en inglés. Pero yo al menos hablo 4 lenguas y él seguramente solo inglés como todos los americanos 😉

[@malchir4036]

What a load of crap this is.

[@Josh-xy3td]

USA aint making it out the group stage

[@samplingmastersxlr8660]

you know the best 3rd place team goes on right so they are making it

[@samarthbagwe1736]

Japan winning a world cup is soo damn dumb leaving his Ecuador prediction others are just crap

[@anlerden4851]

Our Beautiful USA Men Team should get rid of Gregg Berhalter Dear Filippo, Gregg is so awful coach he does not have any game plan and he can not read the game.😞❤❤❤🤍🤍🤍💙💙💙💯

[@eye_straindigital]

Well said, Mr. President.

[@bolasdefraile]

I thought that the USMNT should have chosen Bielsa. He is mad, and he may break a few players, but he is the best in turning medium quality players into beasts. Under Berhakter USA wins the easy match but is not really threatening for the big names.

[@Orrei]

USA will be knocked out in the groupe stage 😂😂😂😂. You really think that Ur country has a cuance against France or England pls dont compare Ur burger Squad with Europe

[@WLW-hh7hh]

Pulisic is carrying u, no wonder hes croatian

[@WLW-hh7hh]

Pulisic is carrying u no wonder hes croatian

[@DerekLangdon]

I think the usmnt has a good chance. They will of course be playing at home and eating decent food like hot dogs and hamburgers, yeah, real Yankee Doodle Dandy food. Not the crap that foreigners eat..usa usa usa.

[@Ronaldoluiznazario]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Nope!!😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@tacticalmanagervlogs]

w