World Cup 2026: Has the gap between the best and the bottom teams narrowed already?
Lucía Fernández
— · 1 min read
The 2026 Men's World Cup is touted to be the biggest tournament in history, featuring an unprecedented number of teams and matches. However, this raises the question of whether competition between the best and lowest teams has diminished. The analysis shows that the average margin of victory in this World Cup is higher than in the group stages of the last six tournaments, indicating that while the tournament is bigger, the difference in quality can still be significant. Expectations are high for teams like the US Men's National Team and Mexico, but it's highly questionable how the lower-ranked teams will fare against traditional powers such as Germany and Brazil. As the tournament progresses, fans and analysts alike will be waiting to see if the tournament's trend will continue or if the historical trends will hold true.
