World Cup 2026: What have we learned from a thrilling first week?

Before a ball had been kicked, there were concerns that the expanded tournament – featuring a record 104 matches – would produce a number of boring, one-sided contests.

But it has taken less than a week for those fears to be allayed.

The traditional powerhouses of Europe and South America – the continents that hold 15 of the top 20 slots in the current Fifa rankings – have not had things entirely their own way.

Brazil, Uruguay and Switzerland were all held to draws by so-called ‘lesser’ nations, while Spain were frustrated by debutants Cape Verde in one of the World Cup’s biggest surprises of all time.

The fact that the third-smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup was able to hold their own against the reigning European champions helped dispel the myth that this tournament would be riddled with mismatches.

Others have had their moments: Fellow debutants Curacao scored against Germany – despite being drubbed – Jordan pushed Austria for long periods and DR Congo held Portugal.

Asian Football Confederation countries have been particularly impressive, with Australia and South Korea winning, Japan holding the Netherlands and Qatar and Saudi Arabia picking up creditable draws.

The caveat here is its very early days. We are only a third of the way through the group stage, and the bigger teams can perhaps afford an off-day when 32 of the 48 sides will go through to the next phase.

United States’ women’s manager Emma Hayes told ITV: “There has been a lot of the talk about the expansion, but you can see it is bringing out the best in teams.”