2026 World Cup Power Rankings: A year out, which sides are in the best shape?

The 2026 World Cup will be the biggest edition of the tournament yet, featuring 48 nations, but which of them are most likely to win it?

After each qualifying round, we'll be ranking the 10 sides that look in the best shape to reign supreme in the United States, Canada and Mexico based on their form and the strength of their squad.

Here's how things stand with a year to go:

10. Norway

Norway have something of a golden generation on their hands with Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard and Alexander Sorloth among those they can call on, and they've lived up to the hype so far in qualifying.

They've won each of their first four matches and have scored 13 goals in the process, with the standout result being a 3-0 thrashing of Italy.

Questions remain over their defensive strength and their major tournament prowess, but they have the firepower to hurt anyone.

9. Ecuador

Ecuador have impressed in qualifyingFlashscore

Ecuador may not seem like top-10 contenders when you look at their squad, but their competitive record over the last year or so tells a different story.

They took Argentina to penalties in the Copa America quarter-finals last summer, arguably deserving to win, and have since lost only two of their 16 World Cup qualifiers, beating Uruguay and drawing to Brazil.

Led by PSG's Willian Pacho and Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie, their backline has conceded just five goals in those matches, and in Moises Caicedo they have one of the best midfield enforcers in football.

8. The Netherlands

An injury-hit Netherlands side stumbled their way to the EURO 2024 semi-finals, but one year on, they're in much better shape.

They have long had one of the best backlines in international football and the same can now be said for their midfield with Ryan Gravenberch, Xavi Simons and Justin Kluivert battling it out to join Frenkie de Jong and Tijjani Reijnders in the starting XI after enjoying excellent seasons.

The lack of a top striker and the shortcomings of manager Ronald Koeman are big concerns, but with Oranje beginning 2025 with two thrilling draws with Spain in the Nations League quarter-finals - predictably, they lost on penalties - and an 8-0 drubbing of Malta in qualifying, things look to be moving in the right direction.

7. England

After losing in the final of the Euros for the second time in a row, England brought in Thomas Tuchel in the hopes that the German would prove as successful in international football as he was at club level and finally win them another trophy, but the early signs aren't great.

They may have won their first three qualifiers under him, but those wins - 2-0 against Albania, 3-0 against Latvia and 1-0 against Andorra - were hardly convincing, and they were followed by a 3-1 defeat to Senegal.

Whether a largely pragmatic manager is the best fit for a squad with an abundance of world-class attacking talent and no elite centre-backs remains to be seen, though he's ultimately one of the best managers in the world, and they have one of the best squads in the world. If the two can click, they'll be a force to be reckoned with.

6. Germany

Germany's most recent matchesFlashscore

Tuchel's home country are in better shape than the one he's managing, although they don't look quite as good as they did at the Euros, where they were widely considered to be the second-strongest side.

They've won only one of their last five, drawing to Hungary and losing to Portugal and France, with their lack of a world-class striker clear to see in those matches.

Nevertheless, they have an abundance of young talent both on the pitch and in the dugout, and both Julian Nagelsmann and his many exciting prospects are likely to only get better in the next year.

5. Brazil

Ordinarily, a side with just two wins in their last five and a manager who's only just taken over wouldn't make it into the top five in such a list, but Brazil are no ordinary side and Carlo Ancelotti is no ordinary manager.

The Italians' first two matches in charge, a 0-0 draw with Ecuador and a 1-0 win over Paraguay, were far from spectacular but good enough to seal qualification. They did make it clear, though, that forming an elite side from an unbalanced and thus far dysfunctional squad won't be easy.

However, when it comes to getting the best out of such a squad and navigating knockout football, there are none better than the Italian. As long as he has some talent in his ranks, he can make things work, and with Alisson, Gabriel, Raphinha, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo among those to choose from, he certainly does.

4. Portugal

Roberto Martinez's first tournament with Portugal was hardly one to remember with them scraping past Slovenia on penalties before being beaten in a shootout by France in the last eight. Since then, though, things have been going a lot better.

They won the Nations League with a convincing win over Germany and a penalty shootout triumph over Spain, and they also put five past Poland and Denmark on their way to the title.

Whether they can win a World Cup with a 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo leading the line is very much up for debate, but with their quality in every other area of the pitch, CR7 remains in with a genuine chance of finally winning football's biggest prize.

3. France

France have been one of the favourites for each major tournament since 2018 with the frightening amount of talent they have, and that remains the case for the next one.

Their squad is arguably more exciting than ever after stunning seasons from Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Doue and Rayan Cherki. Oh, and Kylian Mbappe isn't half bad either.

They're not as exciting as they could be under Didier Deschamps, but the departing manager knows how to get results and will be more motivated than ever with it being his last tournament in charge of Les Blues.

2. Spain

Under Luis de la Fuente, Spain have become not only the European champions but also the most exciting side in international football. 

Led by Lamine Yamal, they've scored three or more goals in five of their 10 matches since the Euros, and their only defeat has been on penalties to Portugal in a Nations League final that they deserved to win.

They're shaky at the back even with the emergence of Dean Huijsen, but you'd back them to outscore most sides that they'd go up against. 

1. Argentina

Since finally winning Lionel Messi his first World Cup in Qatar, reigning champions Argentina have only gotten better.

Winning another Copa America in the process, they've become less reliant on the Inter Miami man, as shown by when they put four past Brazil in March without him.

They're a coherent unit with quality all over the pitch and an ability to pick up wins no matter what, and they'll probably still have the greatest player of all time in their arsenal. In short, they're the team to beat.