The World Cup is the international soccer tournament in which national teams compete.
The 2026 World Cup is scheduled to be held June 11th to July 19th in three countries – the U.S.A., Canada and Mexico. (See here , here , here , here and here .) There are 48 teams competing in this World Cup, the most ever, in 104 games.
Soccer at this level is very competitive and only 8 national teams have ever won it. Here is a list of the teams that have won the World Cup and how many times:
Brazil 5 (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002)
Italy 4 (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006)
West Germany/Germany 4 (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014)
Argentina 3 (1978, 1986, 2022)
Uruguay 2 (1930, 1950)
France 2 (1998, 2018)
England 1 (1966)
Spain 1 (2010)
Here is a map of the 8 countries which have won the World Cup in red. It’s interesting how all the countries which have won World Cups cluster in two areas of the globe:
The USA team’s highest placing was in the very first World Cup in 1930, when the team actually made it to the semifinals. (There were 13 teams in the 1930 World Cup). The team has never placed higher in a World Cup.
The highest the Mexico team has gotten is the Quarterfinals, twice (1970 and 1986).
But, it’s a new World Cup, a new chance for every team. It should be interesting…