World Cup 2026: Why are European teams doing so well?

Sides from Europe have built up a head of steam as this World Cup has gone on, but some eyebrows have been raised at a slow start as seven of the first 10 European teams failed to win in their first group game.

The heat in North America was a sticking point ahead of the tournament, with several sides – including England – basing themselves in hot spots ahead of the opening games.

But few managers have put their finger on the slow start.

“We should have done 10 degrees or 30 degrees better,” said Belgium’s draw with Egypt boss Rudy Garcia, while Switzerland coach Murat Yakin pointed to his team’s waste rather than the conditions after their 1-1 draw with Qatar.

But eventually the European teams hit their stride and at the end of the group stage they had 17 wins, 12 draws and seven defeats.

In the playoffs, some European countries also impressed when they were struggling.

England made a tough trip to the Azteca to face Mexico in the last 16, where they had to deal with the altitude and the crowds, but they met both and produced some of their most impressive displays of fighting to progress.

“It shows we have a team capable of winning the World Cup,” former England striker Wayne Rooney told BBC Sport after the win.

“That belief will be huge for these players.”

Meanwhile, France will try to progress to the last eight against the ‘dark arts’ of Paraguay, while Belgium will play host to an expectant home crowd and edge out co-hosts USA in the last 16. They will next face the European champions, Spain, to advance to the semi-finals.

“There were encouraging signs from Belgium,” former England defender Matt Upson told BBC One.

They should be good against Spain’s impressive midfield.