@Landon

27d

Swedish Dreams

Sweden is entering the 2026 World Cup with a losing record in WCQ and playoffs. Yes, that’s right. One of the most bizarre things to happen in WCQ in a while. Sweden had 2 wins, 4 losses, and 2 draws in qualifying and playoffs. It’s not like they scored a lot of goals either, they scored 10 goals and conceded 15! How the hell are they even here. Basically a lot of teams lost and they won 2 games in a row so that kinda gave them a spot in the tournament. I don’t really understand either it’s fine. The Swedish play a 3-4-2-1 brand of football sitting back on defense and waiting for a counter attack opportunity. They have a strong, technical midfield staring Dortmunds Daniel Svensson. Their midfield will run attempt to run through the opposing team’s defense trying to force some chances. They lack quality in some areas up top. They will still score though. The X factor player would be Gyökeres from arsenal. He averaged a 6.8 match score in 32 matches in the prem and champions league. I saw Sweden get absolutely handled by Norway the other day in a 3-1 loss. Norway was better in every aspect. Not a convincing match. If Sweden can make it out of group F it’s going to be as a three team. That’s just the reality of the situation. I don’t see them beating the Netherlands or Japan. Qatar, well they better beat Qatar. Sweden is kinda running on hope and dreams. The World Cup will not forgiving like the qualifiers were. They will have to prove themselves. I got Sweden getting grouped. How far do you think they will go?

Sweden

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Low group stage total

Sweden got only 2 points in the entire group stage of World Cup qualifying but still managed to go to the World Cup despite that. They made it to the last round of qualifiers by being one of the top 4 highest ranked nations league group winners. They will join the Netherlands, Japan, and Tunisia in group F

@FlameRaptorRaven

Iraq repeats Infamy

This one hurts because I have a soft spot for the Lions of Mesopotamia, however, with their 5-0 loss to Senegal, they have officially thrown their hat into the ring for worst World Cup performance ever. 3 losses, 1 goal for, 12 goals against and -11 goal differential I mentioned in the Tunisia did you know that 9 teams have ended a World Cup with a goal differential of -10 or worse. Well, before today, only 5 teams had ever ended a World Cup with a goal differential of -11 or worse. Iraq is now the 6th. Which World Cup is most like Iraq’s 2026? Believe it or not, North Korea 2010: 3 losses, 1 goal for, 12 goals against and a -11 goal differential The comparison is even more striking when you realize North Korea was in the group of death back in 2010 alongside Brazil, Portugal and Ivory Coast. However, North Korea’s run was more humiliating than Iraq. After narrowly losing to an over-the-hill, but still daunting Brazil team 2-1, North Korea had an idea. Clearly feeling supremely confident in their squad, they broadcasted their 2nd game on local TV networks for the whole nation to see. They cut the broadcast in the 60th minute because North Korea was losing 4-0 to Portugal. The North Koreans went on to lose 7-0 and their government claimed the loss was acceptable considering Portugal’s talent (they did not mention that they lost 7-0). North Korea did not broadcast the last game against Ivory Coast, which they lost 3-0. Yes, 2026 Iraq put together one of the 10 worst World Cup campaigns ever, but they didn’t humiliate themselves. Hopefully they’ll be back in 4 years to make up for it. Ideally not in the group of death.

@FlameRaptorRaven

Tunisia’s Torturous Tournament

Tunisia’s 2026 World Cup campaign is mercifully over and it will go down as one of the worst ever. 3 losses, 2 goals for, 12 goals against, -10 goal differential. They became the 9th team ever to finish the World Cup with a goal differential of -10 or worse and the first to do it since 2010. Out of those 8 other teams, which runs are most similar to Tunisia? Once we take out the 5 runs with a goal differential worse than -10 and Greece’s 0-goal -10 in 1994, there are actually 2 that look identical: Mexico, 1978: 3 losses, 2 goals scored, 12 goals against and a -10 goal differential New Zealand, 1982: 3 losses, 2 goals scored, 12 goals against and a -10 goal differential Mexico 1978 was in Pot 2, Tunisia 2026 was in Pot 3 and New Zealand 1982 was Pot 4. By that logic alone, Mexico 1978 would be the worst of the 3, with Tunisia 2026 in 2nd worst, making them the 8th worst World Cup performance ever. However, I think you could argue they’re as high as the 4th worst performance depending on how much you consider the advances in a team’s football program and their prior history.