Nick Seddon previews Group G, featuring Belgium, Iran, Egypt and New Zealand.
World Cup 2026 Group G Preview
There’s a group at each World Cup finals that’s declared the “hipster’s choice” due to having a particularly niche line-up and Group G certainly falls into that category.
European heavyweights Belgium are commanding favourites and will fancy an extended run into the tournament, but their ageing squad will face off against three sides who will set up to keep things tight.
The presence of Iran brings a fascinating political sub-plot, too, meaning this group is well worth keeping an eye on, for all that goals may be at a premium.
World Cup 2026 Group G: World Rankings of each side
Belgium – Ranked 9th
Iran – Ranked 20th
Egypt – Ranked 29th
New Zealand – Ranked 85th
World Cup 2026 Group G Fixtures – Listed in UK time
Belgium v Egypt, Monday 15th June (8pm), Seattle
Iran v New Zealand, Tuesday 16th June (2am), Los Angeles
Belgium v Iran, Sunday 21st June (8pm), Los Angeles
New Zealand v Egypt, Monday 22nd June (2am), Vancouver
Egypt v Iran, Friday 26th June (4am), Seattle
New Zealand v Belgium, Friday 26th June (4am), Vancouver
World Cup 2026 Group G: Team-by-Team Preview
Belgium are commanding favourites to win this group, though they will come up against three robust defences, in a group where goals may be at a premium. We’ve taken an in-depth look at each side in Group G below.
Belgium (1.31)
As England found out 20 years ago, being referred to as a “golden generation” can prove to be a difficult burden to carry and there’s a sense that Belgium never quite lived up to the talent they have at their disposal.
Led by the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard, Vincent Kompany and Romelu Lukaku, the Belgians were considered genuine title challengers on the world stage around a decade ago, though aside from a third-place finish in Russia in 2018, they’ve got no further than the quarter-finals in three major tournaments since.
A lot of that generation are either retired or well into their thirties these days, though this Belgium side still boasts plenty of quality, as they showed when edging out Wales to seal automatic qualification with an unbeaten campaign. It wasn’t all plain sailing, with disappointing draws against North Macedonia and Kazakhstan in that run, though impressive warm-up wins against the USA, Croatia and Tunisia have since followed.
In-form Manchester City winger Jérémy Doku leads a youthful new generation of players, though Belgium still rely heavily on the old guard and while they’re near-certainties to navigate this group comfortably, the sheer number of games in this expanded tournament may catch up with them.
Egypt (4.45)
Egypt are a football-obsessed nation, though they don’t qualify for the World Cup too often, with this being just their fourth finals appearance overall and the second this century.
As seven-time African champions, Egypt are one of the heavyweights on the continent and they qualified unbeaten, scoring 20 goals and dropping just four points in a group that included Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone. A far more reliable barometer of their ability is the Africa Cup of Nations in January, when they were narrowly beaten in the semi-finals by Senegal, who won the final on the pitch before being stripped of the title.
Their talisman is undoubtedly soon-to-be former Liverpool frontman Mohamed Salah, who at 33 is at the twilight of his career, flanked by Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush. With just nine of the 26-man squad playing outside Egypt and only six of those in Europe, there’s a frailty outside their two star men and they will be set up to hit sides with pace on the break.
The Egyptians picked up a creditable goalless draw in Spain in a warm-up game in March which will give them plenty of hope of frustrating top seeds Belgium, as will a plucky defeat to Brazil last week. They will fancy their chances, but they could be vulnerable at the back.
Iran (6.15)
Iran arrive in North America for their fourth straight finals appearance and will be keen to focus on their job on the pitch, though the sub-plot of the ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel hangs heavy over Amir Ghalenoei’s side.
Team Melli are due to play all three of their games on the west coast of the US, though due to political tensions they will be based in Tijuana in Mexico. On top of this, they can only travel into the States the day before each game, presenting them with a unique challenge.
On the pitch, Iran were one of the first nations to secure their spot here, topping a group that included Uzbekistan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. They’re defensively robust and will set up to frustrate, though the fact they’ve never got beyond the group stage shows they often lack a bite going forward.
Comfortable warm-up victories against Costa Rica, Gambia and Mali will have given Iran confidence, though very few of their players play outside their home country and it’s difficult to see where a ‘Plan B’ will come from if they fall behind.
New Zealand (20.00)
The only representatives from Oceania, New Zealand are the lowest-ranked side at the tournament and are unfancied on just their third appearance on the biggest stage.
The All Whites strolled through qualification to get here, though their list of opponents includes the likes of Tahiti, Samoa and Fiji, all of whom would likely be given a game by European minnows San Marino.
A far more accurate barometer of New Zealand’s ability comes from their warm-up games since, winning just two of their 12 ties. The majority of those results came against second-tier opposition, too, including a 4-0 thumping at the hands of fellow minnows Haiti earlier this month.
New Zealand finished unbeaten on their last appearance at a finals in 2010 (with three draws) and they will be well-drilled and tricky to break down here. Nottingham Forest frontman Chris Wood will once again lead the line and while the Kiwis have come a long way in a short space of time, their lack of depth shows that rugby is still very much the top dog on those shores.
Selections
Back Under 1.5 Goals in Iran v New Zealand at 2.50 with kwiff
Back Under 2.5 Goals in New Zealand v Egypt at 1.58 with kwiff
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