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World Cup Power Rankings: Who are the front-runners with 48 hours to go?

With just 48 hours until the 2026 World Cup begins, our reporters ranked the top 15 contenders for this summer's top prize as they see it. Did your national team make the cut?

9hJames Tyler
Illustration by ESPN

World Cup Rank: The 50 best players in the 2026 tournament

1dRyan O'Hanlon

TOP HEADLINES

ASIAN CONTENDERS

Son has had quite the World Cup journey -- but will 2026 be his final hurrah?

3dGabriel Tan
Illustration by ESPN

Japan plan to win the World Cup by 2050. How close will they get in 2026?

6dGabriel Tan

FIFA WORLD CUP

Messi vs Ronaldo at 2026 World Cup: How dream showdown could happen

10hAnirudh Menon
ESPN/Shruti Sadbhav

Džeko, Ronaldo, Modrić ... why are there so many over-40 players at the World Cup?

9hTom Hamilton

REAL MADRID

FOOTBALL

Forget Mourinho, star signings: Pérez's next big move could change Real Madrid forever

1dAlex Kirkland
Federico Titone/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Perez hails 'extraordinary result' after winning Real Madrid presidential election

1d
1:51
NBA Finals - Game 3NY leads series 2-1

Everything the Spurs figured out in their Game 3 win, and why the Knicks struggled

5hZach Kram
Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

The Spurs bounce back in Game 3! Biggest takeaways from the NBA Finals

13hNBA insiders

De'Aaron Fox drills step-back to ice Spurs' Game 3 win at MSG

13h
0:18

Victor Wembanyama is second-youngest with 30-5-5 in a Finals game

13h
0:56

MSG erupts as Clarkson beats shot clock with triple

13h
0:19

Wembanyama gets up for clutch chase-down block for Spurs

12h
0:25

Wemby elevates to finish alley-oop from Castle

14h
0:25

Brunson somehow gets unreal circus shot to fall plus the foul

14h
0:27

Harper soars past Anunoby for huge 2-hand flush

15h
0:22

Wemby Eurosteps into the lane for an and-1

15h
0:31

    UFC

    Months of planning preceded White House Octagon event

    6hMichael Rothstein
    Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images

    From the Octagon to the Oval office: White, Trump and a 25-year friendship

    1dESPN Staff

    AROUND THE DIAMOND

    Passan: How could an MLB salary cap work? Lessons from NBA, NHL and NFL systems

    6hJeff Passan
    Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images

    Still-too-early 2026 MLB All-Stars: AL, NL roster predictions and debates

    6hDavid Schoenfield

    MLB SCOREBOARD

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