The 2026 World Cup begins Thursday. Forty-eight teams will play a total of 104 matches between now and July 19 to determine a champion of perhaps the biggest, most popular sporting event on Earth.

Six matches will be played right here in Philadelphia, as Lincoln Financial Field will become "Philadelphia Stadium," one of the host sites for the group play round.

We know the Delaware Valley has a strong, passionate soccer fan base. We know the Union has its own legion of enthusiasts. And we know casuals in and around Philly who don't follow soccer closely will still have interest in what's going on in their backyard; they won't want to feel left out when their soccer-loving friends talk Cup. 

For the past week, we at PhillyVoice have previewed each of the nine countries that will play in Philly. Fortunately for you, Philly is home to plenty of knowledgeable soccer experts, and we enlisted the help of two Big 5 soccer coaches who absolutely know Cup.

St. Joe's men's soccer coach Tim Mulqueen and Villanova men's associate head coach Alex Balog were as excited to help us preview the Philly faction of the 2026 World Cup as we were to have them assist our coverage.

Mulqueen, a New Jersey native who has more than three decades of coaching experience in college and professionally, instructed several U.S. soccer legends, including Tim Howard and Tony Meola. He was an assistant on the 2008 U.S. Olympic men's team and for the 2005 and 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cups, along with the 2007 and 2009 U-20 World Cups.

Balog, a native of Belgium, has also played professionally here and overseas, including in Belgium, Hungary, Greece, and England. He has also served as the boys director of coaching at FC Bucks, and since 2022 has served as technical director for Atlantic City FC, along with his duties as an assistant at Villanova.

We asked them tons of questions about the upcoming matches in South Philly. Here's is their scouting report:

The favorites 📈

France 🇫🇷

Widely considered the favorite or second-best favorite to win the Cup, France plays in Group I with Senegal, Iraq and Norway. Philly will get to see France on June 22 against Iraq. France, which has won the Cup twice, has some of the deepest top-end talent in FIFA, including arguably the planet's best player (more on him later). They made the final in 2022 before losing to Argentina in an overtime shootout, a match some consider the best final in World Cup history.   

Tim Mulqueen: "Right now they have the best team from front to back. In these competitions, you have to score goals to win, you don't want to rely on penalty kicks or being too conservative. They go six, seven deep in world-class attackers. As a coach, I would be terrified to try to figure out a way to stop them. They have lot of fire burning in their belly. They played in arguably the greatest World Cup Final and they didn't win."

Alex Balog: "It's a team with a lot of experience. The vast majority of these players play in the biggest leagues in the world. That's a really, really strong team. Really, really technical team. Very well organized. A team that I think should be playing more attacking football, but because of their coach they are defense-first. Just the way that they play, that could be their Achilles heel. Then again, it could also be their strength because they can break out very, very quickly. I think Senegal can be a threat to them."

Brazil 🇧🇷

With five World Cup titles, Brazil has the most in World Cup history and is considered a contender for the 2026 World Cup. The country's last championship came in 2002. Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Scotland and Haiti. Philly will get to see Brazil on June 19 against Haiti.  

Tim Mulqueen: "It starts, for me, with coach [Carlo] Ancelotti. He had great success at the club level. He is Italian and is pragmatic, which goes against everything Brazil is about. Brazil would be your World Cup favorite if this game was being played in a pickup tournament. I grew up in North Jersey and you heard all the time about playground legends in New York City basketball, but put them in a gym and structure and they struggle. That's Brazil. Brazil is best when they are free-flowing, no one has a position, and they just have more studs than you do and they'll win. They don't have that anymore, so they hired the right coach in Ancelotti. He is a master of getting the most out of his players. I think you are going to see more of a conservative, counterattacking, defensively buttoned-up Brazil. Fans don't want that. They want the samba, the dancing, the music. It's going to be a battle of them and Morocco to win that group." 

Alex Balog: "They are always one of the favorites, but it really hasn't worked out for them the last few, losing big sometimes. They brought on Ancelotti, who is a very seasoned coach, has won everything there is to win except the World Cup. As a coach, this could potentially be his last hurrah. He's maybe not the strongest coach from a technical standpoint but a players manager. When you have players that are technically superior to most of their opponents, that could sometimes mask those little tactical shortcomings. Talent-wise, Brazil by far has the most in that group. Brazil, Morocco – you will see two teams that want to attack when they have the ball, and are very, very good."

Croatia 🇭🇷

One of the smallest counties in the tournament, Croatia has managed to appear in six World Cups since 1991, making the semis in three, with two bronze medals and a silver. Philly will see Croatia against Ghana on June 27. Joining Croatia and Ghana in Group L is England and Panama.

Tim Mulqueen: "Croatia is interesting. They're going to be the most tactically astute team, they'll be the most organized team. Their success is a collection of the sum of their parts. They're underwhelming in the attack but they're going to grind you down. They're going to wait for you to make a mistake. They'll live on set pieces. They are vanilla ice cream."

Alex Balog: "That's going to be a real interesting group. I don't want to call it the 'Group of Death' but England is a strong team, Ghana has been good, and Croatia has managed to put good results together when they turn out at big tournaments. Their manager has been with them for an extended period of time, Zlatko Dalić. It's a team that can absorb pressure. Overall, it is an experienced team. They didn't bring that many young guys on."

Ghana  🇬🇭

This is Ghana's fifth time qualifying for the World Cup, with its best finish being the quarterfinals of the 2010 tournament. Ghana is in the aforementioned Group L, with Panama, England and Croatia.

Tim Mulqueen: "They are coached by my old boss, Carlos Queiroz. He's going to let the boys go. They are super athletic. They are really aggressive, they're going to have a pressing style of defense, and they're going to be in your face. The moment you get the ball there will be players there looking to turn it over. Their whole mantra is: Can we get a score in five passes or less?"

Alex Balog: "They will be [aggressive], without a doubt. It's a team that I personally am looking forward to seeing them play. They changed coaches just a couple of weeks ago. Carlos Queiroz, a Portuguese coach, very experienced as well, is going to be leading them. Interestingly enough, they right now have five goalkeepers on their squad, so there is a lot of inexperience in goal. Their most capped goalkeeper plays in Switzerland and has 28 caps, so that could definitely be an Achilles heel for Ghana, but yes, a very athletic team that can go forward super fast."

The others ⚽️

Ivory Coast 🇨🇮

Balog: "Also a team that doesn't bring a whole lot of experience to the table. They'll be coached by an Ivorian coach, which is unique for African teams. It's pretty cool to see they are trusting the fate of the World Cup to one of their own. It's really in the middle of the field where I think they will have some quality, from a technical perspective." 

Curaçao 🇨🇼

Balog: "It's the smallest country to ever qualify, in terms of population, for the World Cup. The vast majority of their players were born in the Netherlands. The mere fact that they qualified is an accomplishment to itself."

Haiti 🇭🇹

Balog: "Their backs were against the wall almost the whole qualifying campaign long. If you look at their squad, a couple of guys are playing in decent leagues. Nobody plays for a top club, but they do have some good players who had good seasons individually."

Iraq 🇮🇶

Balog: "The fact that Iraq qualified is so cool. They beat Bolivia in their very last qualifying game. The country exploded when they won. The vast majority of players are playing in Iraq. They've got some guys who play overseas. An absolute underdog, like Curaçao."

Ecuador 🇪🇨

Balog: "Ecuador is going to be a very physical, very tough team. What you don't see from them is these big blowout games. They're really good at keeping clean sheets, locking the door. They beat Argentina, the previous World Cup champion, at home in the qualifiers. They will be very defensively organized, good set pieces, and try to catch teams on a counter."

The stars ⭐️

F Kylian Mbappé (France 🇫🇷)

Mulqueen: "Mbappé had a hat trick [in the 2022 Cup Final] and didn't win. I would think Mbappé would be considered the best player in the world right now. Messi [from Argentina] is not doing at the level that Mbappé is doing it. He's younger, Messi has to kind of pick and choose his times to be that influential."

Balog: "If you give him a little open space, he's going to go straight to the goal. He's lethal in front of the goal and an unbelievable finisher. He has the ability to unlock a game, especially when he gets a little bit of space."

W Ousmane Dembélé, winger (France 🇫🇷)

Mulqueen: "They have Dembélé, who won the Ballon d'Or award, which is recognized as the world's best player. Mbappe, Dembélé – those guys are 1,000 miles per hour all the time."

Balog: "Big-time player from PSG [Paris Saint-Germain of Ligue 1].

W Michael Olise, (France 🇫🇷)

Mulqueen: "Watch this guy, Olise, who plays for Bayern Munich. He's a magician with the ball. To equate it to American sports, he's that point guard who looks at the first defender and says, 'I'm not worried about you, I'm going to get into the paint and I'm either going to score or provide someone with an easy basket.' This will be his first World Cup. He's fun to watch."

W Vinícius Júnior (Brazil 🇧🇷)

Mulqueen: "I say this all time, in these competitions, your stars have to win you games. Viní Júnior is the best player for Brazil, so he has to deliver."

M Bruno Guimarães (Brazil 🇧🇷)

Balog: "Something most Brazilian managers have strived to do is bring in guys who have played in the Brazilian leagues. That guy is so good and technical. He can cover a lot of ground." 

W Raphinha (Brazil 🇧🇷)

Balog: "I think he will be one of the driving forces behind Brazil’s attack. Crafty winger with a good final product who’s come off a really good season with Barcelona. He’s 29, so this will be one of the last opportunities for him to shine at a major tournament."

Mulqueen: "Raphinha will be one of the most exciting players in the World Cup. He’s an amazing dribbler and combines that with great pace. He also will finish his chances at a high rate." 

M Moisés Caicedo (Ecuador 🇪🇨)

Balog: "Despite only being 24, he’s a very experienced Ecuadorian internationally already. Absolute mainstay in Chelsea‘s midfield. Also has the ability to play as a ride back."

Mulqueen: "He covers a lot of ground in midfield, breaks up plays with great anticipation and immediately starts a counter attack. He does a great job of offering balance in midfield, allowing others to get forward and protects the two center backs."

W Antoine Semenyo (Ghana 🇬🇭)

Mulqueen: "He gets by people. He's very, very fast. He's clever. He's another one who can unbalance teams."

Balog: "He's 26 [years old], has 34 caps for the national team. Shifty, very good 1-v-1 player, fun player to watch. I think he's going to be an interesting player for that Ghanaian national team."

M Luka Modrić (Croatia 🇭🇷)

Mulqueen: "He's their best player. He's the heart of the team, he's the captain. But he's 40. Playing in a tournament like this, in weather that's different for everybody, he's not going to be a 90-minute player like he used to be. He was able to run forever. That will be an issue."

Balog: "Luka Modrić is their big star, nearly 200 games for Croatia, which is an incredible amount. He only has [29] goals for Croatia but an absolute leader, someone who plays at the highest level for years. He's their leader."

W Yan Diomande (Ivory Coast 🇨🇮)

Balog: "He played high school here in the U.S., down in Florida at a prep academy called DME. It'll be interesting to see how he does. He went straight from [DME] to Spain [with Leganés of La Liga], made big money, then moved to Germany [with RB Leipzig of Bundesliga]."

Predictions 🏆

Mulqueen: France 🇫🇷

"They have the best balance of any team in the World Cup and they can win games in any fashion. They have the best attacking group in the world to start the match and can sub in world-class players in those spots as well. Mbappe-Dembélé-Olise-[Rayan] Cherki and [Désiré] Doué create a multitude of problems for opposing teams. Defensively, they have world-class defenders. As you can see, they can outscore you or win 1-0. They have the players to do both. They also have a chip on their shoulder from losing the last final."

Balog: France 🇫🇷

"My heart would say Belgium or USA, but my brain says France. They have the best depth at nearly every position, and have outstanding tournament experience. Won it in 2018, made the final in 2022, both times with their current head coach, Didier Deschamps, who will be leaving after the World Cup and wants to go out with a bang. They have a superstar in Kylian Mbappé playing up top who can unlock a game singlehandedly. They are very good defensively, are organized, don’t give up a lot of goals. Almost all their players play for top clubs in top leagues and bring a lot of elite experience to the table. Some good ingredients to have success in a tournament right there."

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Follow Geoff on Twitter/X: @geoffpmosher