As the reigning UEFA Euro champions, Spain appear firmly established as one of the leading contenders to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Coach Luis de la Fuente shares that belief, though he also sees two other teams in the same tier.
De la Fuente appeared on the podcast ‘La estrella que nos une’ for a conversation with former coach Vicente del Bosque, who led Spain to the 2010 FIFA World Cup title in South Africa — still the country’s only global triumph to date.
“We have to stay grounded. I’m not avoiding it, we’re favorites,” De la Fuente said before adding an important clarification: “But just as much favorites as England or France.” In that sense, he agreed with Del Bosque, who recommended approaching North America “with caution.”
With those comments, De la Fuente made his opinion clear regarding the teams he believes are best prepared to compete for the title. Spain, as the reigning UEFA Euro champions, are viewed by many as one of the favorites, while France also earn that status because of their recent performances and the quality of their roster.
France are favorites to win the 2026 World Cup, according to De La Fuente.
England, meanwhile, have not generated the same level of consensus. Led by Harry Kane, they have cruised through qualifying but still face questions about whether they can finally break through in a major tournament. Even so, the Spain coach believes The Three Lions are better prepared than other traditional powers such as Argentina, Brazil, and Germany.
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De la Fuente discusses the challenges of coaching a national team
During the same conversation, Luis de la Fuente reinforced the importance of staying cautious and avoiding assumptions when evaluating Spain’s potential opponents. “People are not aware of how balanced national teams are right now. It has nothing to do with clubs. Every country has 11 good players,” he said.
He also discussed the biggest challenges that come with his role. “The most critical process is scouting players, but the most painful part is leaving out players who are good enough to be there. Along with injuries, seeing players miss out because of that is difficult,” Luis said. “There are no club players here, only national team players. It’s a different mindset.”
Spain’s challenge at the 2026 World Cup
For decades, Spain occupied a secondary place among the world’s top international soccer powers. In fact, their best World Cup performances before their golden era were quarterfinal appearances in 1934 and 1986, along with a third-place finish in 1950.
That changed at the start of this century, when a generation of stars including Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Ramos, Iker Casillas, and Sergio Busquets emerged and led the country to UEFA Euro titles in 2008 and 2012 and, most notably, the 2010 World Cup.
However, after reaching the summit of international soccer, they have struggled to replicate that success. In their next three appearances at the FIFA tournament, Spain failed to reach the quarterfinals. They were eliminated in the group stage in 2014, while in 2018 and 2022 they suffered unexpected round-of-16 exits against Russia and Morocco, respectively. In North America 2026, Spain will look to end that streak and perform up to expectations.
