With each group, you get a mix of teams and how much they’ve achieved in the past. Two teams of Group F have been finalists, one has only made it as far as the Round Of 16 and one has never made it out of the Group Stage. We’ll see what this World Cup has in store for them. Here’s my review of the teams for Group F:
-Netherlands (7): Event though this will be their twelfth World Cup, the World Cup does not feel complete if Oranje is not present. Known for finishing runner-up at the World Cup three times and known for having beloved players like Cruyff, Bergkamp and Rijkaard, Oranje have become beloved around the world. Recent play in the last ten years have shown difficulties in creating a new Dutch team. They failed to qualify for Euro 2016 and World Cup 2018. Also in the past twenty years, they appeared to make a move from graceful play to overly aggressive play. That’s been noticed as they gave played in the three most carded World Cup games including the 2010 Final: the most carded final in World Cup history. A recent third-place at the 2024 Euro has improved their reputation.
The Netherlands’ coaching staff is completely Dutch and their head coach is Ronald Koeman who has coached the team since their 2022 World Cup quarterfinals defeat. Most of the team plays in teams for the Premier League. Star players include goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen who plays for Brighton & Hove Albion, defender and captain Virgil van Dijk who plays for Liverpool, midfielder Marten de Roon who plays for Atalanta, and striker Memphis Depay who plays for Brazil’s Corinthians. The team’s last defeat was against Germany in October 2024. In the past twelve months, they’ve had wins against Malta, Finland, Lithuania and Norway. They’ve drawn against Ecuador and both games against Poland. Chances are Clockwork Orange can deliver a winning performance for the Cup if they all do things right.
-Japan (18): Samurai Blue made their first World Cup appearance in 1998 and they haven’t missed since. Their first World Cup appearance would lead to a boom in football in Japan. The unfortunate thing is that they have not been able to make it past the Round Of 16: something they’ve done four times. To their achievement, they have won the Asian Cup four times. Their last win being in 2011. Japan comes to the Americas with something to prove.
Japan’s coaching staff is completely Japanese and their head coach Hajime Moriyasu once played for the Japanese team, but retired from the national team before their first-ever World Cup appearance (1996). Star players include goalkeeper Zion Suzuki who plays for Italy’s Parma, defender Yuto Nagatomo who plays for FC Tokyo, midfielder and captain Wataru Endo who plays for Liverpool and striker Ayase Ueda who plays for the Netherlands’ Feyenoord. Their play in the last twelve months have mostly been wins and their most notable have been against England, Scotland, Brazil and South Korea. They’ve endured draws against Paraguay and Mexico, and losses against the United States and Australia. If there’s one team that can pull a surprise at United 2026, it’s Japan. Only the tournament will tell.
-Sweden (38): Sweden are an on-again, off-again nation in football. This is the thirteenth World Cup for the Blagult and their best finish is finalists when they hosted in 1958. Unfortunately they have missed qualifying for the last World Cup and the last Euro. Just as they did for qualifying in 2018, they know how to luck out in qualifying this time around too. They didn’t win a single game in their qualifying play but their UEFA status helped them qualify for the playoff rounds. What happened next? It was there when they finally started winning, beating Ukraine and Poland to qualify.
The Swedish coaching staff is made up of Swedish coaches except for the head coach, Graham Potter, who is from England. Most of the team plays in teams from all over Europe but are most common with England’s Premier League. Star players include goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeld who plays for Sweden’s AIK, defender Viktor Lindelof who plays for Aston Villa, midfielder Mattias Svanberg who plays for VfL Wolfsburg and striker Alexander Isak who plays for Liverpool. Their play in the last twelve months has been a case of mixed results. They won their playoff games against Ukraine and Poland as well as against Hungary and Algeria. They drew twice against Slovenia and also lost to Norway, Kosovo and Switzerland. It’s very possible their play at the World Cup can prove their naysayers wrong.
-Tunisia (44): One team that seems to have one of the most frustrating World Cup careers happen to be the Eagles Of Carthage. It’s easy to see why. Six previous World Cup participations starting in 1978 and never qualifying for the next round. The 21st Century has given them feats to be proud of like winning the 2004 African Cup of Nations and finalists for the 2021 Arab Cup but they have a record of inconsistency. There’s no doubt Tunisia is hoping this will be their breakthrough year.
Tunisia’s coaching staff is a mix of Tunisian and French coaches and their head coach Sabri Lamouchi was born in France to Tunisian parents. Top players include goalkeeper Aymen Dahmen, defender Montassar Talbi who plays for France’s Lorient, midfielder Ellyes Skhiri who plays for Eintracht Frankfurt and striker Elias Achouri who plays for FC Copenhagen. For their play in the last twelve months, most of their wins have been to African teams but they also won against Haiti, Qatar and Jordan. They’ve had draws to Canada, Palestine and Brazil, and they’ve had notable losses to Nigeria, Syria and Austria. 2026 could finally be the breakthrough year Tunisia has been waiting for.
My Qualifier Predictions: Predicting the Top 2 is easy. I think Netherlands will top it with Japan second. However, I feel my third-place pick, Tunisia, will not be a wildcard qualifier.
FUN FACT: The June 20th game of Tunisia vs. Japan at Estadio BBVA in Guadalupe will be the 1000th World Cup match ever.
And there you go. That’s my look at World Cup Group F. Hard to believe I’ve done six blogs of this and I’m only half-finished! Did they have to expand to 48 teams?
-Belgium (3)- The Red Devils sure have been ranking very high these past few years. You can attribute that to brilliant play within UEFA matches and world Cup qualifying. However they’re hoping to make a big impression on the world stage. Before the last World Cup, they had a high ranking back then but got as far as the quarterfinals. That’s actually a respectable achievement since it’s their best finish since their fourth place in 1986. However Belgium feels they have more to prove.
-Panama (55)- So you may wonder how did a team with an outside shot like Panama qualify for the World Cup? Simple. With just the final game in World Cup qualifying, the US needed to simply tie Trinidad and Tobago to join Mexico and Costa Rica in qualifying. Instead the US lost 2-1 while Honduras beat Mexico 3-2 and Panama beat Costa Rica 2-1. That’s sport. What’s rightfully yours will go to someone else if you’re not there. And Los Canaleros are the ones laughing!
-England (12)- England has had a reputation of being a top team that excels in underachieving. However it was the last World Cup where they took it to a new low by failing to advance past the group stage for the first time since 1958. A Round-of-16 elimination at Euro 2016 did not help much either. After Euro 2016, they have been coached by Gareth Southgate who played at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups. His experience is expected to help the team do much better this time, if not win.
Jon The Blogcentric 