As the countdown to the 2026 FIFA World Cup intensifies, debates around potential champions are growing louder. Football fans across the globe are weighing the chances of traditional giants, but Toni Kroos has delivered a shocking verdict that has turned heads.
The former German midfield maestro has ruled out Lionel Messi’s Argentina and Neymar’s Brazil, instead backing Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal as a leading contender for World Cup glory.
Speaking on Brazilian icon Romário’s YouTube channel, Kroos unveiled his shortlist of favourites ahead of the tournament set to take place in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
“𝑷𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒈𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉-𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒚,” 𝑲𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒔 𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔.
No Argentina, No Brazil — Kroos Picks New Powerhouses
Kroos’s list of favourites includes Portugal, France, Spain, and Morocco, highlighting a shift toward emerging and tactically disciplined teams. Notably, he excluded both Argentina and Brazil, along with his own nation, Germany, raising eyebrows among fans.
Explaining his admiration for Morocco, Kroos said:
“𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚’𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒉𝒖𝒈𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔. 𝑴𝒐𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒄𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏.”
Addressing his omission of Brazil directly to Romário, Kroos added diplomatically:
“𝑺𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝑹𝒐𝒎á𝒓𝒊𝒐, 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒊𝒍. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒏, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒕.”
Kroos Criticises 48-Team World Cup Format
While discussing contenders, Toni Kroos also voiced concern over the expanded 48-team format of the 2026 World Cup. According to him, the change could reduce competitive quality.
“𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒑𝒖𝒕 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒂 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒐𝒏𝒆-𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 4-0 𝒐𝒓 5-0,” 𝑲𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒔 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅.
He stressed that football should prioritize intensity, balance, and competitiveness rather than inflated numbers.
World Cup Legacy and Historic Champions
Historically, Brazil has remained the most successful nation with five World Cup titles. Germany and Italy follow with four each, while Argentina has lifted the trophy three times. France and Uruguay have won twice, and England and Spain once each.
Despite this legacy, Kroos believes the balance of power is shifting, and the 2026 tournament could crown a new dominant force in world football.
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