As the FIFA world cup 2026 reaches its Semifinals, we have four teams that have lifted the trophy at least once, a first occurrence after the 1990 world cup.
Current Champions Argentina, Former world cup winners England, France, and Spain will play to get to the finals, and win the entire thing if possible.
Each team had different journeys to reach this stage, with varying playstyles and stats.
Here is a look into the journey of each team in the semifinals, and a power ranking according to their form in the world cup.
4. England
The Three Lions have reached the semi finals after beating DR Congo, Mexico, and Norway, in chronological orders through the knockout rounds. Earlier, they had topped the Group L that consisted Croatia, Ghana, and Panama.
The team has scored 13 goals so far in the tournament, while they have conceded 6 goals.
The team heavily relies on captain Harry Kane and midfield general Jude Bellingham for goals, as they together have contributed 12 of their 13 goals in the tournament.
Coming through on an injury time winner against Norway, in a 2-1 scoreline quarterfinals game, they are at the rank 4 in our power rankings.
3. Argentina
Reigning champions Argentina has reached the semis of this world cup, riding on the shoulders of one of the GOATs of the game, Lionel Messi (and allegedly FIFA), with most of the goals the team scored being either scored or assisted or created by the football magician.
The team cruised through the group stages with convincing victories against all three teams in Group J. Those included a 3-0 thrashing of Algeria, a 2-0 victory against Austria and a 3-1 win against Jordan.
But in the knockout round things got a little tight for the champions, with every team they faced fighting really well giving Argentina a tough time. Their game against world cup debutants Cabo Verde went into extra time, with Argentina edging past the islanders in the merit of an own goal in the 112nd minute, with a final scoreline of 3-2.
In the round of 16, they met Egypt, which became one of the most controversial games in the tournament. Argentina was trailing by two goals till the 79th minute, before scoring three late goals to advance with a scoreline of 3-2 again, in a game that was filled with questionable refereeing decisions that happened to favour the champions.
The quarterfinal round match against Switzerland also had its fair share of controversy, with the Swiss scoring an equaliser and their striker getting sent off soon after, before the champions could score two more goals and advance into the semifinals with a scoreline of 3-1.
The champions have scored 17 goals in the tournament so far, making them the joint most attacking team in this world cup. It is their defence which has been leaky, with 6 goals conceded till the quarterfinals.
We are keeping them in rank 3, owing to their struggles in the knockout rounds but factoring in their trump card, Lionel Messi.
2. Spain
La Roja are in the semi finals for the first time after the 2010 world cup, which they went on to win the entire thing. This time, they are in the semis on the wings of a young squad. Perhaps they would be the youngest team in the semifinals.
While they have scored the least number of goals among the semifinalists, their defence has been unmatched. The only goal they have conceded so far in the quarterfinal game against Belgium.
They started the campaign with a shock draw with Cabo Verde that went goalless. Then came a huge 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia, and a 1-0 victory against Uruguay, and advancing as group champions.
The Spanish team kept their momentum in the knockout rounds, with a 3-0 thrashing of Austria in the round of 32 match.
In the round of 16, they faced Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal, in a final-before-final game. The match has been the biggest tie in various European championships lately. The Spanish youngsters came victorious in the game, with a lone goal, and an even remarkable clean sheet against the attacking prowess of Portugal.
They met the ageing golden generation of Belgium in the quarterfinals, with La Roja claiming victory in the 88th minute.
The Spanish team is second ranked in the power rankings, owing to their victories against top ranked teams throughout the tournament.
1. France
France, being the most explosive team that has cruised past every team they have faced so far, looks the most formidable among the semifinalists of FIFA World Cup 2026.
They have marched past every opponent with a goal difference of two or higher, barring their 1-0 victory against Paraguay in the Round of 16.
Their talisman Mbappe is on the race to the golden boot and the all-time top scorer record with Lionel Messi, with Mbappe behind just one goal on both records.
They have scored 16 goals, and have conceded only two goals so far, making them the team with the largest goal difference in this world cup.
Their victories against Senegal (3-1), Iraq (3-0), Norway (4-1) in the group stages were enough to reveal their intent of being the freescoring team and take the trophy to Paris.
In the Round of 32, they sunk Sweden 3-0, advanced with a lone-goal victory against Paraguay in the round of 16 and defeated Morocco 2-0 to reach the World Cup semis.
We pip the Frenchmen to win the FIFA World Cup 2026, owing to their stature of being the team to beat.
The Semi Finals are played between France and Spain on Tuesday night in Dallas, while Argentina will face England on Wednesday night in Atlanta.
The FIFA World Cup 2026 Final will take place in the New York New Jersey Stadium on Saturday Night, in which any of these former champions will be crowned again.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
