Right now, all attention in the Premier League is on the epic title fight between Arsenal and Manchester City. The Gunners have looked like surefire champions all season long, but the recent 2-1 defeat at home to Bournemouth, coupled with the second-place Blues’ 3-0 drubbing of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, has the pundits re-evaluating their opinions. Now, with Pep Guardiola’s downing Arsenal 2-1 at the Etihad, it is they who are suddenly in the driver’s seat. But regardless of who ends the year with the title, the end of the season will bring with it a different beast entirely.
World Cup Draws Near
That beast is the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which gets underway on June 11th, just 18 days on from the final day of the 2025/26 Premier League season. England will head to North America aiming to end 60 years of hurt; however, after the disappointing recent friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, drawing the first before losing the second, online betting sites aren’t convinced.
For most of the year, the Lucky Rebel World Cup odds had Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions positioned as an 11/2 second-favorite. Spain were the only team considered more likely champions at 9/2, the team that famously beat England in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin two years ago. However, since that drab pair of friendlies at Wembley, the 1966 winners have been pushed out to 15/2, with France now also considered more likely to win the tournament at 5/1.
It goes without saying that the vast majority of the Premier League’s biggest stars will be strutting their stuff across the pond this summer, but several huge names will also be staying at home. Here are the biggest of them.
Dominik Szoboszlai
Dominik Szoboszlai has been the sole bright spark of Liverpool’s miserable season. After romping to the title 12 months ago and forking out over £400m on transfer fees last summer, many expected the Reds to storm to a second straight title at a canter. Instead, what has transpired has beggared belief.
Of course, sports fans are accustomed to specific months being chaotic. Americans, for example, will point toward their beloved March Madness basketball tournament.
For Liverpool, however, it was a miserable October that ended their title defence before it even got going. The Reds lost six out of seven league games that month and plummeted out of title contention.
But throughout the campaign, their Hungarian midfielder has delivered stellar performances and blockbuster goals. He has scored stunning free kicks against each of Arsenal, Manchester City, and Spurs, and he has regularly been the driving force behind Arne Slot’s team, even in their darkest hours.
However, just as he has suffered plenty of misery at Anfield this season, he has suffered internationally as well. His Hungary team expected to progress to at least the playoffs in World Cup qualifying, with Portugal unquestionably a huge test, but the Republic of Ireland and Armenia certainly beatable. In the final round of qualifiers, the Magyars simply had to avoid defeat at home to the Irish to progress to the playoffs. Despite leading twice, they could not get the job done, losing 3-2 after Troy Parrott completed his hat trick with a last-gasp 97th-minute winner.
At the age of 25, one has to expect that Szoboszlai’s time will almost certainly come. However, that doesn’t mean that missing out on this summer’s showcase won’t sting. It most definitely will.
Sandro Tonali
Another player who has shone in an underwhelming team this season is Sandro Tonali. The Italian midfielder has continued to drive Newcastle forward from the center of the pitch, despite the Magpies’ slide down the table. Last season, the Toon Army qualified for the Champions League, but this year, they will be lucky if they finish in the top half, with the recent 2-1 defeat away at Crystal Palace plummeting them down to 13th in the table.
With the national team, it’s an even more painful story. Tonali was just 14 years of age the last time Italy qualified for the World Cup. 12 years on, he was hoping to be a part of the team that broke the Azzurri’s recent qualifying curse. But once again, the playoff hoodoo would strike.
Italy was beaten in the playoffs in qualifying for both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, first by Sweden and then, shockingly, by North Macedonia. This time around, it looked as though they would get the job done when Moise Kean gave them an early lead in their playoff final against Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, an Alessandro Bastoni red card allowed Bosnia back into the game, equalizing with just 11 minutes remaining before going on to win a penalty shootout.
The fallout in Italy has been monstrous, with the public calling for a complete overhaul of Italian football from top to bottom. By the time the 2030 World Cup rolls around, it will have been 16 long years since the Azzurri last featured at the tournament, a scarcely believable number considering the royalty-like status the Italians have within the beautiful game. Tonali will be 30 by the time that showpiece rolls around, and if he continues in the kind of form he has shown at Newcastle in recent seasons, you’d have to expect him to still be involved in the national team set up.
