'Round of 16 bracket finalized': World Cup win odds released, Messi's Argentina ranks '3rd'

*This content was translated by AI.

With the Round of 16 bracket for the 2026 FIFA North America World Cup now finalized, football statistics outlets have unanimously predicted France as the tournament favorite.

According to win probability data released by statistics outlet Opta on the 9th (Korean time) for teams that reached the Round of 16 at the North America World Cup, France leads with a 27.32% chance, surpassing Spain (21.33%), Argentina (17.28%), and England (16.48%). Norway (6.57%), Switzerland (3.78%), Morocco (3.66%), and Belgium (3.58%) follow behind.

Although France ranked third in the FIFA rankings released on the 11th of last month, trailing Argentina (1st) and Spain (2nd), Opta immediately after finalizing the Round of 16 bracket identified France as the strongest contender for this tournament's title.

France advanced to the Round of 16 by defeating Senegal (3-1), Iraq (3-0), and Norway (4-1) in Group I of the group stage, then beating Sweden (3-0) and Paraguay (1-0). The team posted an overwhelming record of five wins with 14 goals scored and only two conceded throughout this tournament.

France will face Morocco in the semi-finals (quarterfinals), and Opta projected France's probability of reaching the semi-finals at a remarkable 73.88%. France's chance of advancing to the final, which requires defeating the winner of the Spain-Belgium match, is also 44.34%, making it the only Round of 16 team with a probability in the 40th% range.

Another statistics outlet, Squawka, also named France as the strongest title contender and projected the top four in order: Spain, Argentina, and England. The next tier included Norway, Belgium, Morocco, and Switzerland. While the rankings for positions 1 through 5 matched Opta's projections, only the 6th and 8th place positions differed.

The outlet noted, "France needs no special reason to be considered a title favorite. They easily defeated Sweden 3-0 in the Round of 32 and also beat Paraguay to reach the Round of 16. There is almost no room for doubt regarding France's championship prospects."

If France actually wins this tournament, it would mark their third overall title, eight years after their 2018 Russia World Cup victory and including their 1998 home triumph. France also reached the final at the 2022 Qatar World Cup but lost to Argentina, failing to achieve back-to-back titles.

The Round of 16 schedule for the North America World Cup, following the finalized bracket, begins on the 10th at 5 a.m. with France facing Morocco. On the 11th at 4 a.m., Spain will play Belgium; on the 12th at 6 a.m., Norway will face England, followed by Argentina versus Switzerland at 10 a.m.

The semi-final matchups will feature winners of France/Morocco against Spain/Belgium, and winners of Norway/England against Argentina/Switzerland. The highly anticipated final is scheduled for the 20th at 4 a.m.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.