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World Cup 2026 Australia thread

Quicky said:
We knew it was likely but that interview has to put a line through Volpato this World Cup. He wants Italy but is hedging his bets. It isn't good enough.
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I would welcome him with open arms if he is still available.... but only after the World Cup. You have to respect those who have done the jobs as well as those who have strived to be in the squad. 2027 Asian Cup may be a different matter.

It does kind of question Poppa 's tough talk.
 
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The 2026 FIFA World Cup host committee in San Francisco Bay Area is considering a vastly reduced Fan Fest, which may even see no Fan Fest on game day, after being allocated games short of leading nations or marketable star names.
 
Aaronson in good form. USA with many good attacking options. Fear they'll break our lines a lot and latch onto crosses.
 
OFFICIAL: CommBank #Socceroos great Mile Jedinak has joined Head Coach Tony Popovic’s coaching staff for the #FIFAWorldCup 2026! 💚💛

Full details via the link in comments 👇

#WelcomeBackMile

How great it'll be having his experience and leadership amongst the squad.
 
patjennings said:
Who would have thought the US would rig the draw via their quadrants. Oh well - just have to top the group!!

Why Group D stands out for upset potential and deep run:

Group winnability for an underdog: USA are favorites (home advantage, 73 Opta rating), but vulnerable—no full qualifying grind, recent form reliant on friendlies, and host pressure can lead to stumbles. Australia (76 rating) and Paraguay (75) are close in strength, and the playoff team (Turkey ~78 strongest, but could be weaker like Kosovo) adds variability. Opta ranks Group D mid-tier difficulty (average ~73), meaning a battle-hardened side like Australia has a realistic shot at topping it (20-30% chance if upsets hit, per expert models post-draw).

Favorable bracket path (one of the softest for group winners):

Round of 32: vs. a third-placed team from Groups B/E/F/I/J (often a weaker advancer like New Zealand, Curaçao, Haiti, Uzbekistan, or a scraped-through mid-tier—highly winnable for any group winner).

Round of 16: vs. winner of Group G (Belgium heavy favorites, but aging "golden generation," recent underperformers in knockouts) or another third-place. Belgium are beatable on a counter-attacking day (your squad's pace with Irankunda/Kuol/Volpato + Souttar set-pieces perfect for it).

Quarterfinal: Winner of that advances to QF against a survivor from another mid-tier matchup (potentially avoiding giants like Spain, Argentina, France, Brazil, England, Portugal early—the bracket spreads top seeds, and this quadrant is notably softer per ESPN, The Analyst, and Athletic analyses).

Compared to other groups: Many "easy" groups (e.g., B, E, A per Opta weakest averages) feed into tougher paths (R16 vs. England, France, Portugal/Colombia). "Tough" groups (J, I, F—real Groups of Death) are hard to upset-win in the first place.

Runner-up mentions:

Group G (Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand): Similar mirrored path—easy R32, R16 likely vs. Group D winner (USA or upset). If Egypt/Iran pulls a massive upset over Belgium, they'd have a golden QF shot in this soft bracket side.

Group E (Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curaçao): Easiest to potentially upset-win (Curaçao drags average down), but path leads to likely R16 vs. France—nightmare for an underdog.

Overall post-draw expert consensus (ESPN, The Athletic, Opta Analyst, Guardian): The D/G quadrant offers one of the most navigable routes to QF.
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I have been thinking about the 'easy group'.

In some ways it could turn out to be a one of the hardest to get out of. Many of the groups have 'minnows' in their group. Those groups will have there best 3rds with a high GD. This is not an easy group - it is an even group. On any day any one of the can win or lose any of the games.

The odds are overwhelming favouring the US in their betting markets. But football has little to do with betting markets.

I'll assume that Turkey is the 4th team. The ratings for all the teams at the moment are USA 15, Turkey 25 (and likely to go if they qualify), Australia 27, Paraguay 40. Now look at the reality of the rankings. The US is one of a few whales in a very soft confederation. Their rankings is high because of this. This time they didn't have to qualify but even when they do they don't have the tough games that South American or European qualifications or the extreme travel requirement that Australia faces in the AFC.

So we have a group that contains an inflated favourite versus 3 battle hardened teams that have gone through qualifying. The US have some decent players - particularly in attack. They think they will dominate in the midfield. However, they do have a soft underbelly, their CBs are slow especially on turning when they lose possession and their keepers are not you expect from a high level team.

The best sort of squad to beat that squad is one that is a solid defensive unit that can break quickly and expose the slow CBs and the less than elite keeper. That basically describes Paraguay, Australia and Turkey.

They also have a recent history of winning friendlies but losing competitive games (Nations League semis loss to Panama, Gold Cup final defeat to Mexico).

At the end of the day I expect all the games to be tight. The GD between the different teams will be small. So the likelihood of a best third, given the lack of a true 'minnow' is actually quite small. To be honest I don't think the US will top the group. They may come 2nd or 3rd - but I doubt 3rd will be good enough. Against battle-hardened opponents in front of what for the most part be a traditional home growns but a bunch of corporates and event goers. Yes they will have they own active support, but they will definitely not provide support that you would expect in a European or South American World Cup. Hell - they may even come last.
 
patjennings said:
I have been thinking about the 'easy group'.

In some ways it could turn out to be a one of the hardest to get out of. Many of the groups have 'minnows' in their group. Those groups will have there best 3rds with a high GD. This is not an easy group - it is an even group. On any day any one of the can win or lose any of the games.

The odds are overwhelming favouring the US in their betting markets. But football has little to do with betting markets.

I'll assume that Turkey is the 4th team. The ratings for all the teams at the moment are USA 15, Turkey 25 (and likely to go if they qualify), Australia 27, Paraguay 40. Now look at the reality of the rankings. The US is one of a few whales in a very soft confederation. Their rankings is high because of this. This time they didn't have to qualify but even when they do they don't have the tough games that South American or European qualifications or the extreme travel requirement that Australia faces in the AFC.

So we have a group that contains an inflated favourite versus 3 battle hardened teams that have gone through qualifying. The US have some decent players - particularly in attack. They think they will dominate in the midfield. However, they do have a soft underbelly, their CBs are slow especially on turning when they lose possession and their keepers are not you expect from a high level team.

The best sort of squad to beat that squad is one that is a solid defensive unit that can break quickly and expose the slow CBs and the less than elite keeper. That basically describes Paraguay, Australia and Turkey.

They also have a recent history of winning friendlies but losing competitive games (Nations League semis loss to Panama, Gold Cup final defeat to Mexico).

At the end of the day I expect all the games to be tight. The GD between the different teams will be small. So the likelihood of a best third, given the lack of a true 'minnow' is actually quite small. To be honest I don't think the US will top the group. They may come 2nd or 3rd - but I doubt 3rd will be good enough. Against battle-hardened opponents in front of what for the most part be a traditional home growns but a bunch of corporates and event goers. Yes they will have they own active support, but they will definitely not provide support that you would expect in a European or South American World Cup. Hell - they may even come last.
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probably an unpopular opinion, but as much as poppaball can be ugly to watch I see him as our secret weapon for a good run at the world cup

he has been pretty good at getting results, particularly in asian champions league
 
grazorblade said:
probably an unpopular opinion, but as much as poppaball can be ugly to watch I see him as our secret weapon for a good run at the world cup

he has been pretty good at getting results, particularly in asian champions league
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Yeah - my only concern is that I think we really need to pick a bunch of speedsters to be that true counter attacking threat. Vellupillay seemed to e a chance but seems to have gone off the boil a bit, Boyles pace sees to carry him for the club but seems to be caught out for the Socceroos, just lacking the speed he once had. We need to select fast players that can dribble and roam and create chaos on the counter AND are efficient in front of goal. Toure and Irankunda fit that bill - but we need more than that.
 
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