Name a team that played in the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The rarest possible answer — almost no player finds it.

• Curaçao— An island of about 150,000 people and 171 square miles — the smallest nation ever to reach a World Cup, taking a record that had belonged to Iceland. Dick Advocaat took the job at 76, went unbeaten through ten qualifiers, and sealed it with a goalless draw in Kingston on the last matchday while Jamaica and Costa Rica went home. Germany then beat them 7-1, but the 0-0 with Ecuador was a World Cup point.

Genuinely obscure. Most players never think of it.

• Cape Verde— Half a million people, a first World Cup, and three draws in Spain's group was enough to finish second in it. Argentina then needed extra time to beat them 3-2.
• DR Congo— Fifty-two years since they last went, as Zaire in 1974. They came through the inter-confederation play-off to get there and then took England to 2-1 in Atlanta.
• Haiti— Their first World Cup since 1974, drawn against Brazil, Morocco and Scotland, and beaten in all three.
• Iraq— Back for the first time since 1986, and only after beating Bolivia in the inter-confederation play-off staged in Mexico. Twelve conceded in the group.
• Jordan— Their first World Cup, drawn with Argentina, and three defeats to show for it.
• New Zealand— Oceania had a guaranteed World Cup place for the first time in history, and New Zealand used it: one point, ten goals conceded.
• Panama— Three matches, no points, and not a single goal scored.
• Uzbekistan— A debut, and a chastening one: three defeats, eleven goals conceded, two scored.

Uncommon — only a minority of players land here.

• Algeria— Back at a World Cup for the first time since 2014, through as a third-placed team, and out 2-0 to Switzerland in Vancouver.
• Austria— First World Cup since 1998, second in Argentina's group, and then 3-0 to Spain in Inglewood.
• Czechia— One point and six goals conceded in the hosts' group.
• Ecuador— Four points in Germany's group — including the goalless draw that gave Curaçao the only point of their World Cup — and then 2-0 to Mexico in Mexico City.
• Ghana— Through as a third-placed team on four points, and out 1-0 to Colombia in Kansas City.
• Iran— Three draws, three points, and out. Nobody beat them and they beat nobody.
• Ivory Coast— Two wins from three in Germany's group, then 2-1 to Norway in Arlington.
• Paraguay— Third in their group, and then they put Germany out on penalties in Foxborough. France stopped them 1-0 in Philadelphia.
• Qatar— Their first World Cup reached by actually qualifying — the 2022 edition was handed to them as hosts — and it finished two goals scored, ten conceded.
• Saudi Arabia— Two draws and two points in Spain's group, one goal scored.
• Senegal— Eight goals in three group games and still only third. Belgium then needed extra time to beat them 3-2 in Seattle.
• South Africa— Second in Mexico's group, and beaten 1-0 by Canada in Inglewood.
• Tunisia— Three defeats, twelve goals conceded, no points — the heaviest group exit of the tournament.
• Turkey— Won one, lost two, and finished last in the group the United States topped.

A solid, middling pick shared with plenty of other players.

• Australia— 1-1 with Egypt in Arlington, and out of the shoot-out 4-2.
• Belgium— A win and two draws in the group, extra time to beat Senegal, four past the United States, and then a 2-1 defeat to the eventual champions.
• Canada— The third co-host, through as one of the eight best third-placed teams, 1-0 up on South Africa in Inglewood and then 3-0 down to Morocco.
• Colombia— Topped Portugal's group, beat Ghana 1-0, and then lost to Switzerland on penalties after 120 goalless minutes.
• Croatia— Second behind England, and beaten 2-1 by Portugal in Toronto.
• Egypt— Unbeaten in the group, past Australia on penalties, and then 3-2 to Argentina in Atlanta — closer than anyone expected.
• Japan— Unbeaten in the group — one win, two draws — and out 2-1 to Brazil in Houston.
• Morocco— Put the Netherlands out on penalties, beat Canada 3-0, and lost 2-0 in the quarter-final to France — the same country that ended their run in 2022.
• Netherlands— Ten goals in the group and top of it, then out on penalties to Morocco in the round of 32.
• Norway— A first World Cup since 1998, and straight to the quarter-finals: past Ivory Coast, then Brazil 2-1, and beaten by England only in extra time.
• Portugal— Second in Colombia's group, 2-1 past Croatia in Toronto, and out to Spain by a single goal in Arlington.
• Scotland— Back at a World Cup after 28 years. One win, one goal scored in three matches, and still not a single knockout round in their history.
• South Korea— Three points, third in the hosts' group, and home after eight days.
• Sweden— Through the play-offs and then through the group as a third-placed team, before France put three past them in East Rutherford.
• Switzerland— Won a group containing Canada and Bosnia, beat Algeria, edged Colombia on penalties, and took Argentina to extra time in the quarter-final.
• Uruguay— Two draws, one defeat, two points, and out of Spain's group. The first World Cup winners, going home first.

An overthought pick that scores below the middle of the board.

• Bosnia and Herzegovina— The 'don't forget who put Italy out' pick. Bosnia won the European play-off final on penalties on 31 March 2026, sending the four-time champions to a third World Cup in a row without them — and at world number 12, Italy were the highest-ranked team not to make it. Anyone who watched the play-offs types Bosnia.

The most common answer on the board.

• Argentina— Three group wins, extra time to see off Cape Verde and Switzerland, past England in the semi-final, and then 106 goalless minutes against Spain before it broke.
• Brazil— Out in the round of 16 to Norway, 2-1 — the same scoreline Norway beat them by in 1998, which was the last World Cup Norway had been to at all.
• England— Third place, secured by beating France 6-4 in a ten-goal consolation match. The semi-final against Argentina had finished 2-1 the wrong way.
• France— Won all three group games, reached the semi-final, lost 2-0 to Spain — and then lost the third-place match 6-4, which is not a football score.
• Germany— Ten goals in the group, including seven past Curaçao, and then out on penalties to Paraguay in the round of 32 — a round that had never existed before this tournament.
• Mexico— Co-hosts, and the only team to win all three group games without conceding — 6-0 across the group. England then beat them 3-2 in Mexico City.
• Spain— Champions. Seven wins, one draw, and a single goal conceded in the entire tournament — no winner had ever done that. Ferran Torres settled the final against Argentina in the 106th minute at MetLife.
• United States— Co-hosts. Through the group, 2-0 past Bosnia and Herzegovina, and then taken apart 4-1 by Belgium in Seattle.