Four-time champions Germany head to North America seeking to break their more recent World Cup hoodoo after failing to make it out of the group stage at the last two editions.
Since Mario Goetze’s extra-time winner at the Maracana in the 2014 final, perennial World Cup contenders Germany have had a miserable time of it on football’s biggest stage.
Their title defence in Russia in 2018 ended with a bottom-place finish in their group, before their campaign in Qatar four years later hit the rocks at the same stage.
Germany have won just two World Cup games since lifting the trophy in Rio de Janeiro, against Sweden and then Costa Rica.
Standing between Julian Nagelsmann’s charges and a return to the knockout stages at the 2026 edition in Group E are 2023 Africa Cup of Nations champions Ivory Coast, Ecuador and World Cup debutants Curacao.
Since 38-year-old Nagelsmann took over Germany two years ago, he has overseen an upturn in their fortunes, spearheaded by extravagant youthful talents such as Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala, as well as experienced stalwarts like Joshua Kimmich and Antonio Rudiger.
They reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 on home soil and then made it to the last four in the UEFA Nations League the following year, falling on both occasions to the eventual winners of the respective tournaments, Spain and Portugal.
Elephants, Blue Wave, Tricolor
Germany’s biggest threat in Group E will likely be Ivory Coast as the Elephants return to the World Cup for the first time since 2014.
Long gone is the great generation of Didier Drogba and the Toure brothers, Yaya and Kolo, but Emerse Fae’s current squad nonetheless boasts some mercurial talents such as Nicolas Pepe and Amad Diallo.
After a disappointing AFCON title defence this winter, which was curtailed at the last-eight stage by Egypt, Ivory Coast enter their fourth World Cup finals with probably their best chance yet of making the knockout stages after three consecutive third-placed finishes between 2006 and 2014.
Caribbean island nation Curacao will appear for the first time at the global showpiece after emerging unbeaten from CONCACAF qualifying.
Since becoming the smallest nation ever to make a World Cup, their momentum has stalled somewhat as Curacao crashed to consecutive defeats against China and Australia in warm-up friendlies in March.
Their buildup was also disturbed after the man who guided them to the World Cup, Dutch veteran Dick Advocaat, first departed his role for family reasons and then returned after his replacement, compatriot Fred Rutten, stood down.
Ecuador qualified for the tournament by finishing second in South American qualifying, ahead of Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia, meaning they certainly won’t be there just to make up the numbers at this enlarged 48-team World Cup.
