{"id":19099,"date":"2026-06-04T14:23:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T14:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/19099\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T14:23:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T14:23:11","slug":"world-cup-2026-group-g-predictions-and-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/19099\/","title":{"rendered":"World Cup 2026: Group G Predictions and Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

Who will make it out of Group G and into the last 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a>? We assess the credentials of Belgium, Egypt, Iran and New Zealand.<\/p>\n

Belgium<\/a> kickstart Group D when they face Egypt<\/a> in Seattle on 15 June, allowing for another chance to see counterparts Kevin De Bruyne<\/a> and Mohamed Salah<\/a> face off. They will be joined by Iran<\/a> and New Zealand<\/a>, neither of whom have ever made it past the first round of the FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n

With the \u2018Golden Generation\u2019 years behind them, do Belgium still have enough firepower to make an impact on the big stage? Can Salah put a poor club campaign behind him to lead Egypt to the knockout rounds? And can Iran or New Zealand finally go beyond the first round?<\/p>\n

We look at the Opta supercomputer\u2019s World Cup predictions<\/a> for Group G to answer those questions and more.<\/p>\n

World Cup Group G Predictions<\/p>\n

Belgium are favourites to progress from Group G (89.6%), qualifying as group winners in more than half of pre-tournament simulations (51.9%).<\/p>\n

There is little to split Egypt (68.2%) and Iran (64.3%), who both have around a two-in-three chance of reaching the knockout stage.<\/p>\n

New Zealand are expected to be eliminated in the group stage, with that occurring in 52.2% of the Opta supercomputer\u2019s 10,000 simulations.<\/p>\n

\"Group<\/p>\n

What remains of Belgium\u2019s so-called \u2018Golden Generation\u2019, the side who were once ranked No. 1 in the world?<\/p>\n

Thibaut Courtois<\/a> (34) is still regarded as one of the game\u2019s best goalkeepers, although he missed two months of last season with a thigh injury and only returned in May.<\/p>\n

De Bruyne (34) also endured thigh problems, albeit much more severe, and managed just 13 starts in Serie A for Napoli. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, his compatriot and club teammate Romelu Lukaku<\/a> (33) failed to start a single match for Napoli last season after battling injuries of his own, and was recently described as being \u201cout of shape\u201d by Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia.<\/p>\n

Axel Witsel<\/a> (37) and Thomas Meunier<\/a> (34) are still involved as well, though they were never in the same bracket as the aforementioned trio.<\/p>\n

\"Belgium<\/p>\n

Belgium may therefore need to rely on a younger generation if they are to have success at this summer\u2019s tournament. Clubs are circling for Lille winger Matias Fernandez-Pardo<\/a>, while Charles De Ketelaere<\/a> has always been held in high regard in Italy.<\/p>\n

But J\u00e9r\u00e9my Doku<\/a>, coming off a fine season for Manchester City, is expected to be the catalyst if Belgium are to progress from Group G, something they achieved in 89.6% of the supercomputer\u2019s simulations.<\/p>\n

Doku was electric during qualifying. He completed 47 dribbles, at least 20 more than any other European player, while his 110 touches in the opposition box were at least 42 more than any competitor.<\/p>\n

Belgium are not considered among the tournament favourites and, with the supercomputer giving them only the 10th-best chance of becoming world champions (2.4%) \u2013 behind the Netherlands (4.0%) and Norway (3.3%) \u2013 they cannot claim to be the best of the rest either. Perhaps they are back in \u2018dark horse\u2019 territory once again.<\/p>\n

Egypt are expected to be Belgium\u2019s main challengers in Group G, progressing in 68.2% of simulations, with a 20.3% chance of topping the group.<\/p>\n

They will need to improve significantly on their historical World Cup record if they are to justify those projections. Only Honduras (9) have played more World Cup matches without ever winning a game than Egypt (7).<\/p>\n

Salah\u2019s Liverpool career may have ended on a slightly sour note after a poor campaign for both club and player, but he remains Egypt\u2019s undisputed talisman. Indeed, he was their top scorer (9) and top assister (3) during World Cup qualifying, ultimately being directly involved in 60% of their goals.<\/p>\n

At the time of writing, ahead of Egypt\u2019s friendly with Brazil on 6 June, Salah has scored 67 goals for Egypt and needs three more to become their all-time top scorer. <\/p>\n

The man ahead of him? Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan (69), who finished his international career with 69 goals.<\/p>\n

\"Hossam<\/p>\n

Iran have plenty of World Cup experience, with this their seventh appearance overall and their fifth in the 21st century. So far, though, their participation has yet to yield any success. They are yet to progress past the first round \u2013 only Scotland (8) have made more appearances in the finals without doing so.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, among teams to have taken part in 15+ World Cup matches, Iran have scored the fewest goals per game (0.72), while only Bulgaria have a lower win rate (11.5%, vs 16.7% for Iran).<\/p>\n

The fact that Iran are still given a 64.3% chance of progressing from Group G despite all of the above likely comes down to the apparent weakness of the group\u2019s fourth team, New Zealand.<\/p>\n

The All Whites, who have never won a World Cup match, progressed from the group in just 47.8% of simulations.<\/p>\n

They will be managed by Englishman Darren Bazeley. He won the 2024 OFC Nations Cup with New Zealand and is the third individual to lead the nation at a World Cup tournament, after John Adshead (1982) and Ricki Herbert (2010).<\/p>\n

*All prediction data is accurate as of 4 June 2026.<\/p>\n

\"FIFA<\/a><\/p>\n

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