Hello and welcome back to another edition of The Full 90. This week, we will be discussing my predictions for the 2026 World Cup Awards. To break this down, I will predict the winner of the World Cup, dark horse teams, Player of the Tournament, Young Player of the Tournament and top goal scorer. Before we jump into it, I will preface this by saying that these are strictly predictions, and since World Cup qualification isn’t finished yet, these may change depending on how teams do in qualification.
Predicting the winner is a tough task with many teams looking strong heading into the tournament. I would imagine it’s a three-horse race between favorites Argentina, England and Spain. The reigning champions, Argentina, are coming off the back of another Copa America win in the summer of 2024 and have looked brilliant through qualification. There will be question marks regarding whether they can compete with Europe’s best; however, I think during the last World Cup they proved that they could go toe-to-toe with European giants. In what could potentially be Messi’s last major international tournament, this Argentine squad has all the pieces to make it very far in this tournament.
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Similarly, England has looked exceptionally good in World Cup qualification under new manager Thomas Tuchel. The German head coach’s team has been defensively impeccable, conceding zero goals through six games. Harry Kane will captain the side and lead the line for the lions in a squad that is overflowing with talent. The only thing holding this England team back is potential moral issues because of the sheer amount of talent they hold. Theres only room for eleven men on the pitch and it will surely be a hard decision for Tuchel to decide who fits in his best lineup.
Lastly, I think Spain could make a push for the trophy. A young, refreshed and hungry Spain team demonstrated their quality in the European Championships in 2024 by capturing the title over continental rivals England. The young wonder kid Lamine Yamal seems to be getting better and better and has proved his class on the world’s grandest stage. I expect a big tournament from him.
One flaw in this squad is their lack of a lethal and world class striker to lead their line; however, they proved that problem was minimal in their triumphant win during the Euros. Obviously, the World Cup has many strong teams including France, Portugal, Brazil and the Netherlands. However, I believe this could be the year that England finally brings the trophy home. Tuchel is a manager who has made a name for himself in tournament football and seems to be the man who can direct this team to a win in the states.
A few dark horse teams I would be on the lookout for are Norway and Senegal. These teams are both stacked with talent. After excelling in qualification and with a solid defense, Norway could really surprise fans with a deep run in the tournament. The real threat from this Norway side comes through their attack. The Norwegian front line is exuding with talent, showcasing names like Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard, Jorgen Strand Larsen, Antonio Nusa, Alexander Sorloth and Oscar Bobb, who all carry legitimate threat in the final third. Similarly, Senegal has an amazing squad from top to bottom. With legendary African players such as Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly leading them and an electric injection of youthful flair from players like Iliman Ndiaye and Nicolas Jackson, this team could really surprise fans come summertime.
The player of the tournament is always tough to predict and is usually directly tied to a country’s success within the tournament. For this reason, I predict the player of the tournament to be England’s captain Kane. I believe Kane and Kylian Mbappe will be on each other’s heels for top goal scorers in this tournament; however I think Kane’s playmaking quality and leadership will both be driving factors in deciding the player of the tournament. Even though their goal tallies will be extremely close, I think Kane’s ability to drop deep into an advanced midfield role and provide assists for teammates, in addition to his role in leading England to their first World Cup trophy since 1968, could just push him over the line and grant him with the title of Player of the Tournament.
For me, the Young Player of the Tournament award will come down to two names. Barcelona’s Yamal, who has so much class and is still so young, and Chelsea FC’s brilliant teenage starlet from Brazil, Estêvão. I believe that combined with the class of Vini Jr. and Rodrygo, Estêvão will have a breakout summer and take the world by storm with his dynamic playstyle that is backed by his undeniable confidence and magical skill with the ball at his feet. I think the 18-year-old from Sao Paulo will cause so many problems for defenders this summer and prove to the world that he is the future.
The winner of the Golden Boot will be Mbappe. The form he has displayed this season has been incredible and if he can bring it into the summer, we could see one of the greatest goal-scoring performances in World Cup history. Football fans around the world know what this French side is capable of in the World Cup, with final appearances in the last two World Cups being a testament to their brilliance. A French team that is overwhelmed with quality is sure to be competing at a very high level in this tournament and the weight of their success could be determined by how good Mbappe plays. Based on previous World Cups, I expect Mbappe to have a brilliant summer leading the tournament with goals scored, while leading Les Blues to a deep tournament run.
As the months push on, the stage slowly begins to build. The world’s greatest players on the world’s biggest stage — who will shine? Who will crumble? Time can only tell.