The 2026 World Cup's Surprise Packages: Five Teams Exceeding All Expectations in Week 1

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is barely days old — and already, the tournament is producing the surprises that make the competition the world's most compelling sporting event. Here are five nations who have exceeded all pre-tournament expectations in the opening round of matches and are already reshaping the narrative of the 2026 World Cup.

1. The Debutants: Making History Just by Competing

Jordan, Uzbekistan, Curaçao, and Cape Verde — the four nations making their World Cup debuts — have already exceeded one critical expectation: they are here, they are competing, and they are representing their nations with pride on football's grandest stage. Curaçao's 150,000 citizens watching their nation compete against Germany is a moment that transcends the scoreline. Cape Verde facing Spain at Levi's Stadium represents the World Cup fulfilling its promise to be the whole world's game. Whatever results these nations achieve, they have already won.

2. Norway: Haaland Announces His World Cup

Norway's opening match — whatever the result against Iraq — will be defined by how Haaland performs on the World Cup stage for the first time. If he scores, the Golden Boot race immediately becomes more interesting, Norway's odds for an upset run shorten dramatically, and the pre-tournament narrative around the world's most prolific striker competing at football's greatest event reaches its natural next chapter. Norway exceeding expectations in Week 1 would be the tournament's most compelling early storyline.

3. Türkiye: Güler's World Cup Debut

Türkiye's return to the World Cup after 24 years generates enormous expectation around Arda Güler — and the Real Madrid star's first World Cup performance could immediately elevate him into the conversation for the tournament's best young player. If Güler delivers a creative, decisive performance in Türkiye's opener against Paraguay, the narrative around one of football's most anticipated young talents will shift from 'potential' to 'certainty' overnight.

4. Scotland: The 28-Year Wait Ends in Style?

Scotland's first World Cup appearance since 1998 is an emotional occasion for an entire nation — and if Steve Clarke's side can take points from their Group C opener, the emotional release across Scotland will be one of the tournament's most human moments. Scotland are not expected to advance from a group containing Brazil and Morocco, but football's capacity for emotional storytelling means that a Scotland result in Week 1 could be one of the tournament's defining early moments.

5. Japan: The Silent Giant-Killers Strike Again?

Japan's 2022 World Cup was defined by two results nobody expected — beating Germany and Spain in the group stage. In 2026, Japan face the Netherlands in what most analysts consider a clear Dutch victory. If Japan produce another European giant-killing performance in Week 1, the tournament's entire narrative shifts — because it would confirm that Japan's 2022 results were not accidents but the product of a tactical system and player quality that genuinely threatens elite European opposition. Japan as 2026's breakout nation is the most exciting early possibility the tournament offers.