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By best, do you mean the best teams or the best teams we could have hoped to be drawn with?

Personally, I'm happy to avoid the possibility of Italy.
Best teams we could have hoped. You have to have an EU team and we will one of the weakest for SURE


USA should go 3-0
 
The way the draw is done it is hard to have a Group of Death, but England seems to be the team that got screwed the most by having Croatia, and Ghana and Panama play a rough style. England likely will win that group but might come out limping.
USA got a huge break it seems.
 
We just got the best EU playoff -

Turkiye, Kosovo, Romania and Slovakia
Funny enough, if Turkiye wins that playoff, they will be the 2nd highest ranked team in the group (25th - Australia is 26th). The others are in the 40s and Kosovo is 80th. Paraguay is 39th.
 
None of the groups are difficult anymore. That's because they added so many fucking teams. Cape Verde Islands and Curacao are both in the World Cup. So is Haiti. I mean, it's just not a serious first stage of the tournament.

England's group looks tough because the names have history, but Ghana is one of the lowest ranked teams in the tournament. I don't know about Croatia -- their golden generation has aged and I don't know how good they will be this cycle. France is a little bit harder but I don't see Norway as much of a threat to them and I really don't know about Senegal. Its best player plays in Saudi and he's a 33 year old fast forward who might not be that fast any more. They are better than Australia, I'd imagine, but I don't think of this as a particularly hard group. Harder than many others. Perhaps the hardest. But nothing like the groups of death of the past.
 
If the US plays Kosovo, maybe we can just ask them to, you know, let us have this one because Bill Clinton is the only reason they have a country.
 
Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Winner Playoff D

Group B: Canada, Winner Playoff A, Qatar, Switzerland

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland

Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Winner Playoff C

Group E: Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Winner Playoff B, Tunisia

Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand

Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay

Group I: France, Senegal, Winner Playoff 2, Norway

Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan

Group K: Portugal, Winner Playoff 1, Colombia, Uzbekistan

Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama

/

UEFA Playoff A: Italy, Wales, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Northern Ireland

UEFA Playoff B: Ukraine, Poland, Albania, Sweden

UEFA Playoff C: Türkiye, Slovakia, Kosovo, Romania

UEFA Playoff D: Denmark, Czechia, Republic of Ireland, North Macedonia

FIFA Playoff 1: DR Congo, Jamaica, New Caledonia

FIFA Playoff 2: Iraq, Bolivia, Suriname
 
Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Winner Playoff D

Group B: Canada, Winner Playoff A, Qatar, Switzerland

Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland

Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Winner Playoff C

Group E: Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador

Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Winner Playoff B, Tunisia

Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand

Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay

Group I: France, Senegal, Winner Playoff 2, Norway

Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan

Group K: Portugal, Winner Playoff 1, Colombia, Uzbekistan

Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama

/

UEFA Playoff A: Italy, Wales, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Northern Ireland

UEFA Playoff B: Ukraine, Poland, Albania, Sweden

UEFA Playoff C: Türkiye, Slovakia, Kosovo, Romania

UEFA Playoff D: Denmark, Czechia, Republic of Ireland, North Macedonia

FIFA Playoff 1: DR Congo, Jamaica, New Caledonia

FIFA Playoff 2: Iraq, Bolivia, Suriname
Current FIFA rankings for the US group:

United States (14), Paraguay (39), Australia (26), Winner Playoff C (Türkiye (25), Slovakia (45), Kosovo (80), Romania (47))

I actually think this is not as easy a draw as other people are suggesting. We did dodge the best Pot 2 teams, but will likely face one of the tougher teams from Pots 3 and 4 (especially if Turkey comes through the playoff). I would definitely make the US the favorite to win the group - especially with home-country advantage - but any team in that group could beat the US, other than maybe Kosovo (who I doubt will come through the playoff).
 
None of the groups are difficult anymore. That's because they added so many fucking teams. Cape Verde Islands and Curacao are both in the World Cup. So is Haiti. I mean, it's just not a serious first stage of the tournament.

England's group looks tough because the names have history, but Ghana is one of the lowest ranked teams in the tournament. I don't know about Croatia -- their golden generation has aged and I don't know how good they will be this cycle. France is a little bit harder but I don't see Norway as much of a threat to them and I really don't know about Senegal. Its best player plays in Saudi and he's a 33 year old fast forward who might not be that fast any more. They are better than Australia, I'd imagine, but I don't think of this as a particularly hard group. Harder than many others. Perhaps the hardest. But nothing like the groups of death of the past.
True BUT it could well make the knockout rounds even better.
Ghana is better than their ranking. Senegal is also very very tough
 
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