Argentina began their journey to defend their World Cup title with a victory over Honduras in a friendly match and are already looking ahead to what’s next. While many consider Lionel Messi‘s team a strong contender for the title, EA Sports predicts that Spain will be crowned champion in the upcoming tournament.
Through its FIFA simulator, the renowned gaming company correctly predicted the last four World Cup champions, and in this case, the last team standing was Lamine Yamal’s team.
Although this type of prediction sometimes might be wrong, the technology suggests that Messi would be denied the chance to win his second consecutive World Cup title in a row.
The latest EA Sports predictions
It’s absolutely wild how EA Sports has been nailing these type of predictions. Using a video game simulations, they’ve accurately called the last four World Cup champions right before the tournaments started.
Lionel Messi of Argentina kisses the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Winners’ Trophy.
The streak kicked off back in South Africa 2010 when they predicted Spain would lift the trophy, followed by Germany in Brazil 2014, and France in Russia 2018. To top it all off, they hit the jackpot again by predicting Argentina would take it all in Qatar 2022.
Argentina want to put the predictions aside
Lionel Messi and Argentina are heading into the 2026 World Cup group stage with a clear target on their backs as they face Algeria, Austria, and Jordan in Group J. The reigning champions will kick off their journey in Kansas City before heading to Dallas for the remaining two fixtures, looking to secure a smooth path into the knockout rounds.
For Messi, playing in his record-breaking sixth World Cup, this tournament is all about cementing an unparalleled legacy. Lionel Scaloni‘s squad is heavily favored to top the group, but the team knows that defending the crown and chasing Argentina’s fourth star will require absolute perfection as the rest of the world looks to dethrone La Albiceleste.
Could Spain and Argentina face each other?
Yes, they definitely can, but when it happens depends entirely on how they perform in their groups. Because of how FIFA structured the bracket to keep top-ranked teams apart early on, if both Argentina (Group J) and Spain (Group H) win their respective groups, they cannot face each other until the Final on July 19.
However, the path completely shifts if someone slips up: if Argentina finish as the runner-up in Group J and Spain win Group H, they would clash almost immediately in a massive Round of 32 showdown.
