Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article 0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterSubscribe to our newsletterWhen you go back through the annals of World Cup history, some of the most memorable tournament moments are those when an unfancied team upsets the apple cart and gatecrashes the latter stages of the competition.Just about every one of the 22 World Cups played so far have seen a dark horse from outside the sports established elite crash the party, such as 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, third-placed finishers Turkey in 2002 or Cameroon who took England to the brink in the 1990 quarter-finals.So who are the under-the-radar teams to keep an eye on when the action gets underway in North America later this week? FourFourTwo runs over some contendersNorwayNorway are making their first World Cup appearance since 1998 and have something of a Golden Generation, which puts them in pole dark horse position.No team in world football will ever want to play a fit and firing Erling Haaland, while freshly-minted Premier League title-winning skipper Martin Odegaard will be joined by the likes of Oscar Bobb, Julian Ryerson and Alexander Sorloth in a squad that features plenty of experience of playing in - and winning - Europes top five leagues. You may like Norway World Cup 2026 squad: Stale Solbakken's final 26-man selection World Cup 2026 Playoffs: The complete guide World Cup 2026 power rankings: Are Lionel Messi and Argentina still the team to beat? Haalands 16 strikes in qualifying didnt even make up half of the teams European-best of 37 goals and the whole team will need to be firing if they are to see off France, Senegal and Iraq in one of the competitions toughest groups.EcuadorMuch has been made of the challenging climate that teams will face in North America and if any team is well-placed to take advantage of any European struggles in the heat, it will be Ecuador.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.And its not just the conditioning of La Tricolor that the World Cup elder statement need to worry about, as under boss Sebastian Beccacece, Ecuador have lost just once in 19 matches and finished behind only Argentina in South American qualifcation.In Moises Caicedo, Piero Hincapie and Willian Pacho they plenty of big-name players who have come together to make a tough, hard to beat outfit that are more than capable of getting out of a group containing Germany, Ivory Coast and Curacao and matching their 2006 run to the last-16. Their football may not always be pretty, but it can be very effective.MexicoHost nations are often able to leveage being on home soil to over-perform, and from the three we have to chose from this time out, it is Mexico who look the most likely to trouble the second half of the tournament. What to read next I think theres a dark horse to watch out for, who will have a good go at the World Cup they are a very good side England legend Chris Waddle reveals the unexpected country he thinks everyone should keep their eyes on in North America this summer World Cup 2026: Every team to have qualified The Netherlands are the World Cup 2026 dark horses people aren't talking about enough Placed alongside Czech Republic, South Korea and South Africa in Group A, Mexico are in the habit of winning tournaments, having triumphed in the Gold Cup 12 months ago, which came shortly after their Nations League success.Their recent form is good and if veterans such as Edson Alvarez and Raul Jimenez can click with younger talents like teenage midfielder Gilberto Mora, then they can be confident of a first win in the knockout stage since 1986.SwedenIf youre in the market for a complete wild card who are just as likely to surge into the final stages as they are to stink the place out in the group stage, then Sweden may be the side for you.After a dire qualification campaign in which they finished bottom of their group and cost Jon Dahl Tomasson his job, the Swedes took full advantage of the secondary Nations League route to get past Poland in the play-offs under Graham Potter.While his stock may have been damaged following his stints at Chelsea and West Ham, Potter remains popular in Sweden, where he had his coaching breakthrough at Ostersund, and he has leaned into a more traditional style of play that combines a tight defence with swift counterattacks.If Potters side remain organised at the back, Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak should be able to take their chances, which will give them a chance of progressing out of a tough group that contains the Netherlands, Japan (another decent dark horse shout) and Tunisia.TOPICSNorwayEcuadorSwedenMexicoJoe MewisSocial Links NavigationFor more than a decade, Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor. Mewis has had stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others and worked at FourFourTwo throughout Euro 2024, reporting on the tournament. In addition to his journalist work, Mewis is also the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team. Now working as a digital marketing coordinator at Harrogate Town, too, Mewis counts some of his best career moments as being in the iconic Spygate press conference under Marcelo Bielsa and seeing his beloved Leeds lift the Championship trophy during lockdown.
