The first round of World Cup games is over: Best team, player, worst prediction and who will win?
The first round of World Cup games is over — featuring 24 matches, 75 goals, and one Lionel Messi.
There is still plenty of football left to play before the final in New Jersey on July 19, and indeed before the group stage finishes in 10 days’ time.
But at this early stage, how do our writers think the rest of the tournament will shape up? And who thought this Argentina side were finished?
Most impressive team
James Horncastle: Four years ago in Qatar, Argentina improvised during the tournament and found freshness by promoting Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez from the bench. This time around, I worried they might go stale. Alas, Messi had other ideas.
Carl Anka: Mauricio Pochettino has found a way to get the United States to play like his 2015 Tottenham Hotspur side. Their first-half performance against Paraguay was a welcome surprise.
Amy Lawrence: In some ways ‘impressive’ depends on where the bar is. Were Germany, with their 7-1 exhibition win against Curacao, more impressive than Cape Verde, with one of the game’s most surprising goalless draws of all time? I’d like to honour Cape Verde’s team play, and the way they executed an almost impossible job.
Cape Verde pulled off a stunning result against Spain (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)
Simon Hughes: France. They weren’t great against a very powerful opponent in Senegal and still won 3-1.
Laura Williamson: Argentina. Messi looked ominously sharp. Surely they can’t do it again?
Lukas Weese: Argentina. They just kept coming in waves against Algeria. It helps when someone named Lionel Messi continues to dazzle aged 38.
Charlie Scott: France only turned up against Senegal for the final 30 minutes, but what a 30 minutes it was. Michael Olise is on a different planet and Kylian Mbappe is pretty good, too.
Jack Lang: Relative to my expectations, I’d say the USMNT. It wasn’t just a commanding win; they played some really attractive, subtle football. I’m intrigued to find out whether there is more where that came from.
Ben Burrows: Argentina and England were impressive but France saw off what should have been a tough opponent in Senegal with plenty to spare.
Most disappointing team
Horncastle: Paraguay. Granted, I wasn’t expecting much, but after seeing the incredible send-off their fans gave them before they left for the U.S., I thought the first game for Pochettino’s side would be harder than the capitulation it turned out to be at SoFi.
Anka: There’s a difference between playing defensively and defending well. Tunisia were so poor against Sweden that they decided to sack Sabri Lamouchi and parachute in Herve Renard. They need to regroup and fast.
Lawrence: Ecuador. Like Turkey, a popular pick for dark horse who did not start showing off their best qualities. Ivory Coast caused Ecuador’s famed defence serious problems.
Hughes: Turkey. They have lots of good players but no width or pace anywhere on the pitch and they are particularly slow at the back.
Williamson: Maybe Brazil. So many of my colleagues bigged them up beforehand. Nightmare for my Pick ‘Ems, honestly.
Brazil were held to a 1-1 draw with Morocco (Reuters/Mike Segar via Getty Images)
Weese: Senegal. They played a solid first half but once the second began their defensive structure was susceptible. France are difficult opponents but Senegal could have tried to maintain a more solid defensive block.
Scott: Ghana. The only way they could score against Panama was from three yards out, in front of an open goal.
Lang: Portugal. Absolute stodge fest, sorry.
Burrows: I thought Paraguay could test the USMNT in their opener but the South Americans didn’t lay a glove on them. Plenty to improve on when they play Turkey on Friday.
Best game
Horncastle: Mexico 2-0 South Africa. The World Cup should have a residence at Estadio Azteca. I don’t care who hosts it. A game should always be held there. It is World Cup heritage. Lethal paper sombreros, beer showers and mariachi bands. What’s not to like?
Anka: Iran 2-2 New Zealand was a cross-continental classic. A match well worth ruining your sleep cycle for if you were watching from Europe. These are the unexpected surprises that make World Cups special.
Lawrence: I’m with Carl on this one. It was hard to watch that game without the extra emotion considering the circumstances Iran’s players find themselves in. Even without that, it was a breathtaking game. With it, even more so.
Hughes: Australia 2-0 Turkey, influenced entirely by the fact I was there. You cannot beat seeing a team who no-one fancies come along and cause an upset.
Williamson: England 4-2 Croatia. Great stadium, cracking game, six goals and an England win.
Jude Bellingham left his mark on a madcap game (Francois Nel/Getty Images)
Weese: Netherlands 2-2 Japan. No goals in the first half. Four in the second half, which included Daichi Kamada’s tremendous equaliser in the 89th minute. Incredible theatre.
Scott: Argentina 3-0 Algeria. Remarkable scenes in Kansas City as a 38-year-old Messi scored three goals and had another disallowed in front of a raucous crowd.
Lang: If I was picking just one half of football, it would be the first period of Brazil vs Morocco, which was excellent. Whole game, though? Netherlands vs Japan.
Burrows: England-Croatia. Two good teams who were pretty evenly-matched before Thomas Tuchel’s half-time rocket helped England pull away.
Best player
Horncastle: Olise. He combines the best wing-play with the imagination of the very best No 10s. His assist for Mbappe’s opener against Senegal was the pass of the tournament so far.
Anka: It’s still Messi. His remarkable hat-trick against Algeria reminded us that he is (probably) the greatest player to ever do it.
Lawrence: Olise showcased his creative qualities and completely changed the game in what was a tough assignment for France. He switched on the electricity. We expect it of Messi. It was exciting that Olise captured the imagination in his first World Cup match.
Hughes: Messi.
The remarkable stats behind Messi at the World Cup
Duncan Alexander and Tom Williams
Williamson: Mbappe. Fourteen goals in 15 World Cup games is just ridiculous.
Weese: Mbappe. It wasn’t his best first half, but the Real Madrid forward dazzled with his speed and nifty footwork after the break. That goal in stoppage time was jaw-dropping.
Scott: The Mexican duck, Merlin. What a tournament he’s had. And still only two. The future is bright.
Lang: Let’s give Yan Diomande a little bit of love. He was electric in Ivory Coast’s win against Ecuador.
Burrows: The only one who scored a hat-trick.
Your new favourite player
Horncastle: Elijah Just. His brace against Iran would, once upon a time, have led old school football execs to make a knee-jerk decision to sign him. Robust data analysis from the new sporting director class robs us of that romanticism.
Anka: Ayyoub Bouaddi. Excellent for Morocco in their 1-1 draw against Brazil, so much so that I even asked our own David Ornstein if Manchester United had shown interest in the young midfielder. What a talent.
Lawrence: Mr Anka, get in the queue. Bouaddi’s class and composure was so exceptional. At 18, it is not surprising France tried very hard to keep him from switching to the country of his family’s origins.
Bouaddi plays his club football for Lille in France’s Ligue 1 (Imagn Images via Reuters/Caean Couto via Getty Images)
Hughes: Pat Beach. The Australian goalkeeper’s contribution towards his team’s victory over Turkey might be forgotten by the rest of the world in the fullness of time, but he was magnificent. It was his first competitive match at international level — and he has a great name!
Williamson: Just. The first Motherwell player to score at the World Cup, apparently.
Weese: Vozinha. Enough said. To put in that kind of goalkeeping performance against Spain to earn your country’s first ever point at a World Cup is the stuff of legend.
Scott: Nathaniel Brown looked great as Germany demolished Curacao. Set for a big move soon, it seems.
Lang: Keito Nakamura. I thought he was the best player on the pitch in Japan vs Netherlands. He was wriggly, determined, composed on the ball… and he scored a lovely goal, too.
Burrows: Boualem Khoukhi. Qatar were largely battered before Khoukhi’s bullet header rescued a point in the 94th minute against Switzerland.
Thing you didn’t expect to like at this World Cup, but do
Horncastle: The New York Knicks.
Anka: The expansion to 48 teams has been good! The gap between the supposed European heavyweights and the smaller nations has grown ever smaller! Football is fun!
Lawrence: I didn’t expect to like the way it is too expensive and too out of reach for greater numbers of travelling fans… and I still can’t stand it.
Hughes: I was worried that security would be a nightmare getting into stadiums but, in Vancouver and Seattle, the organisation has been clear and excellent. This gets a big tick from me because basic stuff matters.
Williamson: England.
Weese: The Netherlands chant Links Rechts. It came and went for me during the 2024 European Championship. But seeing the Dutch supporters jumping left and right during the World Cup makes me smile every time I watch it.
Scott: Every player being on the pitch for the anthems before kick-off. Lots of them won’t play in this tournament. It’s quite nice, really.
Portugal and DR Congo’s squads line up before kick-off (Xu Zijian/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Lang: This is going to mark me out as a pretentious idiot, but I actually think the graphic design and colour schemes have looked really good. I hate me, too, don’t worry.
Burrows: The walk-outs. A terrible idea that has actually been pretty fun.
Your worst prediction from before the tournament
Horncastle: I have been quite bullish on Brazil’s chances. Bad timing given the football left Casemiro (again) against Morocco.
Anka: I picked Spain before a ball was kicked because I believe Lamine Yamal is about to declare himself the best in the world. I would like him to save me from potential embarrassment.
Lawrence: Not so much a prediction but Algeria in the sweepstake isn’t looking too good.
Hughes: Slow games and all of the big players being tired. Even the midday kick-offs in the sun have had intensity and, so far, everyone has turned up.
Williamson: Maybe tipping Morocco, but I’m not quite giving up on that one yet.
Weese: Portugal making the semis. That draw against DR Congo did not inspire a lot of confidence.
Cristiano Ronaldo sums up Portugal’s thoughts against DR Congo (Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Scott: That Spain would win 8-0 vs Cape Verde.
Lang: That Argentina were done. Could still be OK, but it’s not looking amazing, is it?
Burrows: That the group stage would be terrible with lots of boring, low-quality games.
After one round, who do you think is going to win it?
Horncastle: Argentina’s form in their warm-ups and record in the U.S., where they won the Copa America in 2024, makes me think they can go all the way again. Particularly now Messi seems unburdened and fulfilled by winning the World Cup four years ago.
Anka: I’ll stick with Spain. Yamal has yet to play 90 minutes.
Lawrence: I keep wanting to say France but something I can’t pin down is just stopping me. In the spirit of bad predictions then, I should say France.
Hughes: The Germans are looking typically ominous.
Williamson: I know what Amy means about France so… Argentina. Every game’s a home game somehow.
Weese: France. Unlike Amy, I’m not wavering from my pre-World Cup prediction. Just too much talent that will only get better as the tournament progresses.
Scott: France. Just look at their squad, for goodness’ sake. Up front they can pick from Ousmane Dembele, Mbappe, Olise, Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola. And Rayan Cherki doesn’t even start.
Lang: On the basis that you shouldn’t let one result overturn an opinion you have held for months, I’ll stick with Spain.
Burrows: Spain. Yep, I’ll pick the team who probably had the most disappointing result of anyone relative to expectations.