From England in Qatar to other hyped contenders, this article breaks down the biggest World Cup underperformers across the last three tournaments.
The FIFA World Cup is the pinnacle of world football, but every four years, some nations fail to live up to the weight of expectation. This summer, that weight will fall onto the shoulders of reigning European Champions Spain. La Roja romped to a record-breaking fourth European Championship in the summer of 2024, beating England in Berlin thanks to Mikel Oyarzabal's late winner. Now, online betting sites make them the team to beat as North America draws ever closer.
The latest Lucky Rebel World Cup Odds currently make Spain a clear 9/2 favorite to claim the trophy in the MetLife Stadium finale in mid-July, and they will be aiming to live up to those expectations. It has been 16 years since a pre-tournament favorite last lived up to the billing and actually won the tournament. That, however, was also La Roja, who claimed the famous gold trophy for the first time in South Africa in 2010 through Andres Iniesta's extra-time strike.
Over the years, there are far more overhyped teams that fall short than there are teams that actually live up to the billing. With that being said, let's take a look at the biggest underachievers at each of the last three tournaments.
England headed into the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar with newfound optimism. Four years prior, Gareth Southgate led the Three Lions to a first final appearance since Italia '90. He would follow up that effort with a trip to the European Championship final in 2021. Both of those endeavors would ultimately end in defeat, but the next logical step seemed to be silverware.
Southgate's side headed to the Arabian Gulf as contenders, with only South American giants Brazil and Argentina considered more likely champions. Captain Harry Kane led the line, while young guns Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka had become bona fide superstars. They were expected to lead England to a third straight deep run at a major tournament, perhaps even ending 56 years of hurt since their last triumph on the grandest stage.
Throughout the group stage, the English looked like genuine contenders. They destroyed both Iran and Wales, winning the former by six goals to two before dispatching the Red Dragons 3-0. In the second round, a potentially tricky contest against African champions Senegal could have been a banana skin, but goals from Jordan Henderson, Kane, and Saka sealed yet another dominant victory.
Reigning champions France awaited in the quarterfinals, and unfortunately for England, they were unable to handle the step up in class. Despite dominating for long stretches, the Three Lions once again come unstuck against top-tier opposition, just as they had so many times in the past. Goals from Aurelien Tchouameni and Olivier Giroud, coupled with a late missed Kane penalty, secured a 2-1 win for Les Bleus, leaving Southgate's men to leave yet another tournament empty-handed.
Germany headed into the 2018 World Cup in Russia as the reigning champions and favorites to successfully defend their crown. They had swept all before them in 2014, famously routing host Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals before then ending Lionel Messi's dream of leading Argentina to the title on enemy territory with a 1-0 victory in Rio de Janeiro. But despite being tournament frontrunners when they touched down in Moscow, things would immediately take a turn for the worse.
Despite fielding a team containing the likes of Mesut Ozil, Manuel Neuer, Toni Kroos, and Thomas Mueller, Die Mannschaft were unable to break down a game Mexican team in their opening contest. As such, they were duly punished on the counterattack by Hirving Lozano, succumbing to a 1-0 defeat in the Luzhniki in the process. A dramatic 2-1 victory against Sweden in their second game kept their hopes alive, but an even bigger shock was just around the corner.
Joachim Low's side just needed to beat already eliminated South Korea if they were to progress to the knockout round. But once again, they drew a blank, missing a bucketload of gold-edged chances. Much like in their opener against El Tri, those misses would come back to haunt them, and a pair of injury-time strikes from Kim Young-gwon and Son Heung-min sealed a stunning 2-0 defeat and a group-stage exit, their first ever.
Heading into the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Spain were world football's dominant force. They were the reigning world champions, having claimed the trophy for the first time in South Africa four years prior, and they had also won each of the last two European Championships. Their vaunted Barca-based midfield of Xavi, Andres Iniesta, and Sergio Busquets was thought to be the world's best, while defender and captain Sergio Ramos had just led Real Madrid to La Decima, and striker Diego Costa had led Atletico Madrid to a shock LA Liga win.
However, their tournament was over as quickly as it began. They were shockingly torn apart by Luis van Gaal's Netherlands in their opening game, slumping to a disastrous 5-1 defeat after a blistering display from winger Arjen Robben. Five days later, their title defence was over, with Alexis Sanchez leading Chile to an upset 2-0 victory in Rio. The Dynasty spanning the last six years was over, and truth be told, it was left in ruins.
