4 World Cup Dark-Horse Teams That Can Actually Make A Run

Forty-eight teams. An other knockout round. And a gully that, successful respective groups, looks similar FIFA was actively trying to origin chaos. Someone is going to spell heavy astatine this tourney that cipher saw coming. 

The biggest World Cup successful past will, of course, inactive diagnostic powerhouses and expected favorites to win. But much contention means much imaginable for astonishment runs and caller fan-favorite squads. 

Here are 4 dark-horse teams that should beryllium connected your radar for this summer's FIFA World Cup.

Odds to triumph World Cup: +3000
Odds to beforehand from group: -900
Group I opponents: Iraq (June 16), Senegal (June 22), France (June 26)

Norway is backmost astatine the World Cup for the archetypal clip successful 28 years, and it arrives arsenic 1 of Europe's astir in-form sides. It dominated a Euro World Cup qualifying radical that included Italy and besides went undefeated during the qualifying process.

Another communicative is that striker Erling Haaland has spent his full vocation watching the World Cup connected television; watching the other superstars get to radiance connected the biggest stage. Haaland scored a mind-numbing 16 goals successful qualifying successful conscionable 8 matches played. Simple mathematics shows that's an mean of 2 goals per game. That conscionable doesn't hap successful this sport. Norway did not sneak done — it bulldozed through, and Haaland did it with the vigor of a antheral who benches tiny cars for amusive and whose hairsbreadth has its ain agent. 

Anyway, Group I features France, Senegal and Iraq. Norway needs to decorativeness second. Beating Senegal and taking thing disconnected France is wholly doable for a squad that besides includes Martin Ødegaard and Alexander Sørloth floating astir Haaland. Get into the knockouts, and cipher volition privation to play Norway. 

Odds to triumph World Cup: +4000
Odds to beforehand from group: -1000
Group K opponents: Uzbekistan (June 17), Congo DR (June 23), Portugal (June 27)

Colombia has James Rodríguez, Luis Díaz and a heavy attacking excavation that gives it the quality to bushed anybody successful the satellite connected a fixed day. And its qualifying run backed it up. 

Group K puts the squad alongside Portugal, DR Congo and Uzbekistan. That is simply a radical Colombia tin perfectly win. Néstor Lorenzo has built a squad that nary longer depends connected 1 infinitesimal of James' magic to unlock games, acknowledgment to Díaz's directness, a property that suffocates successful midfield and genuine antiaircraft solidity marque this a implicit side. James inactive pulls the strings, but helium doesn't person to transportation everything anymore.

James turns 35 successful July. He has spent the past fewer years drifting from Rayo to León to Minnesota conscionable to enactment crisp capable to beryllium here. He has 1 of the astir elegant near feet successful the game, susceptible of a magical escaped footwear oregon a surgically precise done ball. Despite his age, helium tin inactive alteration the crippled from a stationary position.

Colombia's biggest existent prima is Luis Díaz. After moving from Liverpool to Bayern Munich, helium became 1 of Europe's astir feared wingers. He finished the play with a whopping 26 goals and 19 assists crossed each competitions. World-class numbers. Oh, and helium conscionable won the Meisterschale, oregon arsenic you and I say, the Bundesliga trophy. Luis Díaz volition beryllium 1 of the astir important players astatine this World Cup.

Odds to triumph World Cup: +5000
Odds to beforehand from group: -1000
Group C opponents: Brazil (June 13), Scotland (June 19), Haiti (June 24)

At immoderate point, we should astir apt halt calling Morocco a acheronian horse. It reached the World Cup semifinals successful Qatar. It bushed Spain. It bushed Portugal. It did it with a operation truthful choky and a antiaircraft signifier truthful organized that elite coaches spent days trying to fig retired however to interruption it.

That tactical halfway is inactive mostly intact — and past ex-manager Walid Regragui walked retired successful March. The caller manager is Mohamed Ouahbi, a erstwhile U23 manager who astir radical had ne'er heard of 3 months ago. On paper, that should terrify Atlas Lions fans. In practice, the strategy is truthful profoundly embedded successful this squad that the individuality doesn't unrecorded successful the dugout. It lives successful the players. Achraf Hakimi knows his role. Youssef En-Nesyri knows his role. This radical has been done a World Cup semifinal together. A coaching alteration doesn't erase that musculus memory.

Morocco opens Group C against Brazil. Not against Haiti. Not against Scotland. Against Brazil, successful what is instantly 1 of the champion games of the radical stage. Beat oregon gully the Seleção successful that opener, and Morocco announces itself to the full tournament.

Qatar was not luck. This is simply a squad that knows precisely however it wins. The 2022 tally raised the bar. The manager who built that tally is gone. Now we find retired however heavy the foundations really go.

Odds to triumph World Cup: +6500
Odds to beforehand from group: -400
Group F opponents: Netherlands (June 14), Tunisia (June 21), Sweden (June 25)

Japan has beaten Germany and Spain astatine a World Cup. Both of those sentences utilized to beryllium considered impossible. Now, it's conscionable the results from the 2022 tourney successful Qatar.

The pressing strategy Hajime Moriyasu has built is among the astir disciplined successful planetary football. The team's pressing traps are overwhelming, its transitions accelerated and its signifier is astir intolerable to disorganize. Kaoru Mitoma and Takefusa Kubo supply the method quality. The corporate provides the method that makes playing them a existent nightmare. Players crossed their enactment vie astatine the highest level of European home football. The endowment is present mixed with plentifulness of experience.

Group F draws them against the Netherlands, Tunisia and Sweden. It's a tricky group, but Japan could precise good advance. And if it does, a squad this compact and this tactically fearless becomes 1 of the astir uncomfortable draws successful the knockouts. Nobody wanted to play Japan successful Qatar. Nothing has changed.