The 2026 FIFA World Cup is barely a week old and European football’s sense of superiority is already taking some dents. Of the 16 UEFA-qualified nations in the tournament, only seven managed to win their opening group stage matches, while six drew and three lost outright.
Germany delivered the performance of the round. Their 7-1 demolition of Curaçao on June 16 was the kind of statement that makes other teams quietly reconsider their pre-tournament bravado.
Scotland ground out a 1-0 win over Haiti, a result that gets the job done in a tournament where points are everything. Sweden took a more emphatic approach, dispatching Tunisia 5-1 in a performance that suggests the Scandinavians could be a dark horse in this expanded field.
Belgium drew 1-1 with Egypt. Switzerland also settled for a 1-1 draw against Qatar. In total, six European teams shared the spoils in their opening games.
Three European nations dropped all three points in their first fixtures, results that immediately put pressure on their remaining group stage matches. In a tournament format where each group contains only three teams, an opening loss leaves almost zero margin for error going forward.
