The underdogs of 2026

As the countdown to the FIFA World Cup 2026 hits just three days, the narrative is suffocated by the usual heavyweights fighting for favor. While Brazil and France dominate back-page projections, I am looking at the bottom of the bracket. Curacao has officially secured a spot, and they are not just here for the shirts and the airfare.

Being the smallest nation ever to enter the tournament carries a massive tactical burden. According to deep dives on their qualification path at Sky Sports, this roster is built on rigid defensive geometry rather than attacking flair. Expect them to deploy a low block that forces opponent wingers into low-probability crossing zones.

The organizational noise problem

While the focus should be on the pitch, the sport is wrestling with internal rot. West Ham is currently reeling from severe, credible allegations surrounding David Sullivan. As the BBC has detailed, the investigation into his conduct during his tenure is overshadowing the club's transition. It is impossible to ignore how this mirrors the broader decay in institutional oversight.

We saw this toxicity leak into player management at Anfield last year. When the Daily Mail reported on the friction between Mohamed Salah and Arne Slot, it highlighted a trend of freezing out veterans to facilitate a forced rebuild. Salah netting only 7 goals last league campaign is an indictment of the system that pushed him out, not the player's decline.

Predicting the upset

Back to the tournament starting June 11. Curacao acts as the spoiler. They lack the squad depth to win the whole thing, but they possess the exact style of play to disrupt a lethargic favorite in the group stages. If a team like Belgium or Portugal enters the opener overconfident, they will find zero space behind Curacao’s middle bank.

My skepticism lies in their stamina. In a compressed tournament schedule, a squad this lean will inevitably crack around the 75th minute if they are forced to chase a game. The defensive discipline reported by scouting databases will likely fail the second the initial energy surge wanes.

They will nab one draw, pull off a stubborn defensive masterclass for 60 minutes, then lose concentration when the bench depth of a major European power is introduced. It will be a valiant exit, but it will confirm that grit has a hard ceiling in modern international football.