On Wednesday, four former football stars who were protagonists in World Cups expressed their enthusiasm for the tournament to be held in the summer of 2026 in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, whose draw will take place on Friday in Washington.
At a panel organized by FIFA in the U.S. capital two days before the event where the composition of the next World Cup's twelve groups will be known, the Brazilian Dunga, the American Marcelo Balboa, the Mexican Luis Hernández, and the Canadian Atiba Hutchinson showed excitement for an event that will "unite the world" and in which, for the first time, 48 teams will participate.
Between laughs, Dunga stated that the 2026 World Cup will be the sixth to crown Brazil "because it has been 24 years since we won and because when I lifted the Cup in '94, precisely in the United States, it had been exactly 24 years since we had won it".
Balboa, who played in the 1990 and 1994 World Cups and was captain of the U.S. team, and Hutchinson, one of Canada's most prominent names, highlighted how much football has advanced in their respective countries in recent years and assured that both teams will do well in 2026.
Hernández, for his part, who made Mexicans vibrate with his four goals in the 1998 France edition, highlighted that the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City will become the first to host three opening matches in the biggest football event (it did so in 1970 and 1986) and assured that his country will be "the best host".
"This tournament is for him, he has everything to be the best player of the next World Cup," sentenced he who was a defender for León in the 1990s.
Balboa considered that Colombia will be the team that will pull off the "upset", although Spain and Portugal are the two teams that, he believes, can lift the trophy next year.
Regarding specific names, those of Kylian Mbappé, the French star of Real Madrid, or the Norwegian striker Erling Haaland of Manchester City, are the ones that will shine the most in the World Cup, in their opinion, although Hutchinson highlighted that the standout figure will be Spanish prodigy Lamine Yamal.
In this sense, Hernández considered that the revelation will be Morocco for the fourth place achieved in Qatar and for its recent victory in this year's U-20 World Cup in Chile.
The 'Matador' assured that the three venues in his country—Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey—will organize "a great party" thanks to the joy of Mexicans, the country's gastronomy, and the passion that football awakens in them.
The former captain of that national team also expressed his desire for the "surprise" team of the tournament "to be an African one".
Dunga, champion in the 1994 World Cup in the U.S.
