2026 FIFA World Cup: Europe Prepares for Tournament Across 16 Venues

With the biggest World Cup in history approaching, European teams, fans, and sponsors gear up for a summer of football across three continents.

The World's Game, Bigger Than Ever: Europe Eyes World Cup Glory

The 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico across 16 venues, promises to be the most expansive edition of the tournament in history. With the field expanded from 32 to 48 teams and the number of matches increasing from 64 to 104, European football federations have navigated a demanding qualifying campaign to secure their expanded allocations and are now preparing their squads for what will be a uniquely challenging competition schedule.

European football's leading nations enter the tournament with a mixture of confidence and anxiety. Spain, the defending European champions following Euro 2024, are installed as joint-favourites alongside France according to statistical models, with England and Germany also considered serious contenders. The Spanish model — built around positional play, technical excellence, and a seemingly bottomless supply of world-class midfielders — has proven resilient across multiple generations and coaching changes, and manager Luis de la Fuente has assembled a squad that combines tournament experience with fresh attacking talent.

France, meanwhile, has rebuilt around a younger generation of players following the retirement of several veterans from the 2018 and 2022 World Cup squads. Kylian Mbappé, now in his prime and settled at Real Madrid, leads the attack with a supporting cast that includes several of European football's most exciting talents. France's tactical depth and defensive organisation give them the balance required for a long tournament campaign.

England carry the weight of expectation that comes with three consecutive major final appearances, having won Euro 2020, reached the 2022 World Cup final, and narrowly lost Euro 2024. The squad is settled, experienced, and plays with an intensity and tactical clarity that has erased the painful memories of earlier tournament failures. Manager Gareth Southgate, if he can guide England to a first World Cup triumph since 1966, would secure an unparalleled legacy in English football history.