Several top-tier national teams enter the 2026 FIFA World Cup seeking to break historic curses or championship droughts. The 2022 FIFA World Cup has been a ground where both the finalists broke curses.
France effectively broke the "Champions Curse" at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar as they reached the finals against Argentina. Teams before 2022 who were defending champions were eliminated in the group stage, like France in 2002, Italy in 2010, Spain in 2014, and Germany in 2018, all went out from the group stage as defending champions.
Argentina ended their World Cup drought and multiple tournament "curses" at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar when they finally won the cup, defeating France in a thrilling penalty shootout by 4-2. Argentina ended a 36-year drought, lifting the trophy for the first time since Diego Maradona led them to victory in 1986. Previously, winning the Copa América often brought disappointing World Cup performances for Argentina, but this tournament broke that negative cycle.
Like this, 2026 fans and experts think it can be a ‘curse-breaking’ cycle too for many teams.
Five Teams that would aim to end their curse in FIFA World Cup 2026
Let us have a close look at the five teams this World Cup season who can break their year-long trophy droughts and curses:
England
England’s history at the FIFA World Cup is defined by decades of near-misses, controversial exits, and penalty shootout heartbreaks following their solitary 1966 triumph. The Three Lions have suffered from 60 years of trophy drought. In the recent 2018 Russia World Cup, even after an early lead, they lost to Croatia in extra time, taking fourth place. England reached the quarter-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, where they were eliminated by eventual runners-up France. This year, under Thomas Tuchel’s tactical strategies and some bold squad decisions, England can break the curse. Also, with the new rules of extra seed advantage in the tournament, England can qualify instead of the giants heading over to the final stages.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is always labelled as the best team that can never win. They lost three World Cup Finals in 1974, 1978 and 2010. Despite revolutionising football with their "Total Football" philosophy and producing generations of world-class talent, the Dutch have suffered distress and near-misses over the decades. They reached their first final in the 2010 Africa Cup after 32 years but lost to Spain after Iniesta scored a goal. In 2022 Qatar, the Dutch made a thrilling two-goal comeback to tie Argentina in the quarter-finals, but ultimately suffered another elimination in a penalty shootout. The Netherlands is a dark horse of the tournament in 2026 with a highly balanced and experienced squad under Ronald Koeman, and can aim to break their curse.
Mexico
As a tournament host, Mexico will be looking to break the record ‘Fifth Game’ curse by advancing beyond the Round of 16, a hurdle they have failed to clear in every tournament since 1986. The country holds the record for most World Cup appearances without a semi-final finish. Mexico qualified for the knockout stage in seven consecutive tournaments but suffered heartbreak in the Round of 16 each time, often eliminated by narrow margins against top-tier nations from 1994 to 2018. In Qatar 2022, they were eliminated only from the group stage. With FIFA's new extra-seed qualification scenario, Mexico has a fair chance to go beyond round 16 in 2026 in front of a home crowd and under experienced head coach Javier Aguirre.
Portugal
This is all about Cristiano Ronaldo and his final World Cup, which the legend would try to have, and definitely Portugal winning their first one. Despite producing global icons like Eusébio, Luís Figo, and Cristiano Ronaldo, their World Cup journey is defined by heartbreaking semifinal defeats and shocking group-stage exits. In 2006, Portugal achieved their second-best finish by reaching the semifinals under Luiz Felipe Scolari. However, the campaign ended in disappointment with a 1-0 loss to France in the semis and a 3-1 defeat to host nation Germany in the third-place playoff. In the 2022 Qatar they suffered a shocking 1-0 defeat to Morocco in the quarterfinals, ending their tournament run in tears. Portugal can very well break their World Cup curse and lift the trophy in 2026, boasting one of their deepest and most talented squads in history. They possess a world-class core of midfielders and defenders, actually the best in the tournament. The presence of Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, and Bernardo Silva gives them arguably one of the best midfields in the world.
USA
Co-hosts USA would aim to end a knockout stage curse by winning a World Cup knockout match for the first time in modern history. A long time back in 1930, they had their best finish by ending the tournament in third spot. In 2018, Russia didn’t qualify for the tournament, although in 2022, Qatar did advance to the Round of 16. In front of the home crowd in 2026, they can break the curse of 40 years of qualification.
