World Cup 2026 Power Rankings: France leap into top spot as March international break ends

The March international break is over, and the home stretch towards the 2026 FIFA World Cup is in view.

We now know the full 48-team field after this week's play-offs confirmed the final six nations, with the likes of Iraq and DR Congo joining heavyweights France, Spain, Brazil and England at this summer's tournament.

With a full slate of qualifiers and international friendlies having wrapped up, now is the perfect time to put together the first Power Rankings ahead of the massive footballing extravaganza.

Power Rankings are not meant to look at the overall picture, but rather to provide a snapshot based on current form, strength of opposition, and other factors.

Here are DAZN News' Power Rankings following into the international break. 

The top 10

FFF

1. France (▲2)

France flaunted their impressive depth during friendlies against Brazil and Colombia in the U.S., making wholesale changes between games and still coming away with a pair of victories.

2. Spain (▼1)

It was an undefeated start to the year for Spain, who pummeled Serbia before behind held to a scoreless draw with Egypt.

3. Portugal (▲3)

Roberto Martinez's side had a successful trip to North America to face two of the three World Cup co-hosts, drawing with Mexico in Mexico City before defeating the United States in Atlanta. 

4. Argentina (▼2)

Argentina extended their winning streak to five games with victories over Mauritania and Zambia in Buenos Aires. While impressive, their choice of opposition for the final break before the World Cup leaves something to be desired.

5. England (▼1)

The Three Lions employed a similar strategy to their two March friendlies as France by using two largely different lineups against Uruguay and Japan at Wembley, but their results were mixed with a draw and loss, respectively.

6. Germany (▲4)

The Germans have won seven straight matches after victories over Ghana and Switzerland, an encouraging sign with less than three months until their first World Cup match.

7. Brazil (▼2)

It was a mixed bag for the Brazilians in the United States, with a loss to France followed by a win against Croatia.

8. Netherlands (▼1)

After a win and a draw against Norway and Ecuador respectively, the Oranje are now undefeated in 15 matches.

9. Belgium (—)

The Belgians also visited the U.S. in March, cruising past the Americans in Atlanta before playing to a draw with the Mexicans in Chicago.

10. Morocco (▼2)

Back in action for the first time since their controversial AFCON final, the Atlas Lions extended their unbeaten run to an incredible 18 games with a draw and win against Ecuador and Paraguay.

The other 38

DAZN/FIFA

Watch World Cup archive, highlights, and documentaries for FREE on DAZN

DAZN is the home of FIFA+, a vast library of football on-demand content including World Cup archive, iconic documentaries, player profiles, live matches, and both full match replays and highlights.

Watch it all for FREE on DAZN on smart TVs, phones, tablets, streaming devices, games consoles, and web browsers.

FIFA+ includes:

• FIFA World Cup archive - full match replays of all matches from Brazil 1970 to Qatar 2022
• World Cup goals - the best goals from each tournament; every goal from every nation from every tournament
• Original documentaries - including Mo: A Global Icon; Golden Boot: The Documentary; After Diego
• Icons of the game - From Pelé to Cristiano Ronaldo
• Behind-the-scenes content
• Live matches from around the world