With eight World Cup final appearances alone, no nation has as much pedigree in this tournament as Germany, though they arrive in North America after back-to-back exits at the group stage in Russia and Qatar respectively.
H1: World Cup 2026 Group E Preview
Julian Nagelsmann has overseen a steady rebuild and hopes are high that the Germans will return to something near the force we’ve come to expect. Ranked 10th in the world, they have been put in an interesting-looking group, where the battle for second may become particularly heated behind the odds-on favourites.
H2: World Cup 2026 Group E: World Rankings of each side
-Germany – Ranked 10th
-Ecuador – Ranked 23rd
-Ivory Coast – Ranked 33rd
-Curaçao – Ranked 82nd
H2: World Cup 2026 Group E Fixtures – Listed in UK time
-Germany v Curaçao, Sunday 14th June (6pm), Houston
-Ivory Coast v Ecuador, Monday 15th June (12am), Philadelphia
-Germany v Ivory Coast, Saturday 20th June (9pm), Toronto
-Ecuador v Curaçao, Sunday 21st June (1am), Kansas City
-Ecuador v Germany, Thursday 25th June (9pm), New Jersey
-Curaçao v Ivory Coast, Thursday 25th June (9pm), Philadelphia
H2: World Cup 2026 Group E: Team-by-Team Preview
Germany are the overwhelming favourites to secure a safe passage to the knockout phase, though they will face two credible threats in Ecuador and the Ivory Coast. Read on for our in-depth views about each side in Group E.
H3: Germany (1.24)
Prior to the 2018 tournament, you had to go back 80 years to find the last time that Germany had failed to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup, such is their fine record in the tournament, making their exit at the same stage in Qatar four years later utterly unthinkable.
A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then, including a commendable extra-time defeat to eventual winners Spain in the Euros two years ago. The relentless German ability to grind out a sequence of results is steadily returning – they will begin the tournament on the back of nine straight wins – though back-to-back defeats in the Nations League finals show there’s still questions to be answered on the bigger stages.
It wasn’t always straightforward in qualifying for Nagelsmann’s side, who started with a shock defeat to Slovakia, though they were efficient enough to seal progression, making sure of an automatic berth by putting six past their opening day conquerors. Bayern Munich have enjoyed an excellent year and the Germans are likely to rely on a strong core that includes Bayern trio Joshua Kimmich, Jamal Musiala and Jonathan Tah, plus Liverpool superstar Florian Wirtz.
Warm-up victories against Finland (ranked 75) and joint-hosts USA (17) ought to have blown away the cobwebs and it’s difficult to see anyone other than Germany winning this group. The Germans recorded one of the biggest ever finals victories when blowing away Saudi Arabia 8-0 back in 2002 and plenty are expecting them to trouble the current record (Hungary 10-1 El Salvador in 1982) when they kick off against lowly Curaçao. You wouldn’t bet against it.
H3: Ecuador (4.30)
Without a finals appearance in the 20th Century, this is just the fifth time that Ecuador have qualified for a World Cup finals, though they arrive with a formidable record. Indeed, La Tri finished a hugely impressive second in the South American qualifying and would have been clear of the chasing pack if not for a three-point deduction for an historical offence.
Sebastián Beccacece’s side lost just twice in 18 qualifying matches and are currently on a 19-game unbeaten run, with their last defeat coming narrowly in Brazil nearly two years ago. Conceding just five goals in qualifying, this is a side that is built on a robust defence, with Chelsea midfielder Moisés Caicedo and Arsenal full-back Piero Hincapié providing a genuinely world-class punch.
The main issue is in-front of goal, with only 36-year-old veteran Enner Valencia the only player with double-figure international goals in the squad (49). Ecuador will be set up to keep things tight and you only have to look to last year to get a taste of what we’re in for, when recording four goalless draws on the bounce in qualifying against Chile, Brazil, Peru and Paraguay respectively. Warm-up draws with Netherlands and Morocco will have injected confidence and Ecuador will be a match for anyone.
H3: Ivory Coast (6.90)
Adding some pace and flair to this line-up are the 2023 African champions Côte d’Ivoire, who have caught plenty of attention with some of their results in the warm-up for this tournament. It’s been 12 years since Les Éléphants last qualified for the finals and while they have been considered potential dark horses in each of their appearances (between 2006 to 2014), they exited at the group stage on all three occasions.
This side doesn’t quite have the star quality of that era, but there are plenty of recognisable names in their squad, including former Arsenal frontman Nicolas Pépé and Forest stalwart Ibrahim Sangaré. Qualifying was relatively straightforward for Emerse Faé’s side, who barring a tricky Gabon side blew away a weak-looking group to secure an automatic berth.
Recent friendly victories against South Korea, Scotland and France have forced people to take note, though a meek exit at the quarter-finals stage of this year’s AFCON tournament shows that things don’t always come together on the biggest stage. With the two big hitters up first, Ivory Coast will likely focus on their formidable defensive record with a view to still being in with a chance heading into their final game with minnows Curaçao, when goal difference could be crucial.
H3: Curaçao (85.00)
Unless you have Dutch heritage, you’d be forgiven for not knowing an awful lot about Curaçao, a tiny island off the coast of Venezuela and one of the lowest ranked sides in the finals. They are one of several nations that could make a case for playing in the South American section geographically, but play their games in the north instead.
Known as the Netherlands Antilles until 2010, Curaçao were regularly knocked out in the early rounds of qualifying, which is understandable for an island with a population of just 156,000 and a land area of 171 square miles. A steady inflow of Dutch-based talent has slowly improved their fortunes, and a World Cup being hosted in the region has created a perfect storm.
You can probably attribute both the expanded World Cup and the automatic berths for each of Mexico, USA and Canada for the reasons why 82nd-ranked Curaçao are here, though they qualified in their own right, seeing off regional heavyweights Jamaica in a tricky group which also included Trinidad and Tobago.
With 11 of their 26-man squad plying their trade in the top two divisions of the Netherlands, there’s plenty of ability in the side, though this feels like a step too far. Former Manchester United man Tahith Chong is perhaps the most recognisable name, but the fact that League Two side Rotherham United could be represented with Ar’jany Martha suggests this will be a long couple of weeks for the minnows.
World Cup Group E Selections
Back 6+ Goal Range in Germany v Curaçao @ 2.95 with kwiff
Back 0-0 Correct Score in Cote d’Ivoire v Ecuador @ 5.05 with kwiff
By Nick Seddon
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