Wenger: Only One Team Can Stop France from World Cup Glory

Former Arsenal manager and current FIFA Chief of Global Football Development, Arsène Wenger, has shared his predictions for the final stages of the World Cup. The Frenchman believes Les Bleus are capable of securing a third World Cup title, but he identifies only one team well-equipped enough to challenge them: Spain.

When asked for his tournament forecast, Arsène Wenger predictably backed his home nation. This comes as no surprise, given the exceptional level of play demonstrated by Didier Deschamps' squad in their first five matches.

“France will win the World Cup,” the 76-year-old specialist declared on the podcast hosted by 2014 World Cup winner Toni Kroos and his brother Felix. “I know you’ll say it’s because I’m French. But if you analyze the tournament a bit, the train is moving at a certain speed today. And you have to be able to get on it.”

As a former coach of Japanese club Nagoya Grampus in the 1990s, Arsène Wenger closely monitored the performance of Asian national teams during the World Cup. While two nations from the Asian Football Confederation advanced from their groups (Japan and Australia), neither managed to reach the quarter-finals. According to the iconic former Gunners manager, this outcome was entirely logical.

“Asian teams were eliminated because they couldn’t maintain the rhythm and intensity of the matches,” Arsène Wenger continued. “And they didn’t possess enough technical quality to compete.”

With six of the eight quarter-finalists hailing from Europe, this 2026 World Cup has seen a significant European dominance. However, while Argentina and Morocco are determined to disrupt the Old Continent's plans, the former Arsenal coach believes they would struggle to overcome Les Bleus.

The same applies to England, whom Wenger does not believe are in a position to win the World Cup this summer, despite his 22 years in the Premier League. In his view, only European champions Spain, with the phenomenal Lamine Yamal, appear capable of rivaling France. And to succeed, Luis de la Fuente shouldn't necessarily rely solely on the Barcelona star.

“For me, the real question is Spain. If there’s a team capable of beating France right now, I’d say it’s Spain,” the 76-year-old Wenger continued. “Because they have a better technical level than France. They possess a quality in collective play and a team culture that no one else in the world currently has. At least not at that level.”

“So, in my opinion, everything will come down to these two teams. Of course, France is physically stronger,” he concluded.

World Cup matches are broadcast live on bnt.sportal.bg. The platform will stream all 104 matches of the 2026 World Cup program in real-time.