Spain Is the World Cup Favorite — One Question Could Change That

Spain enters the 2026 FIFA World Cup as the odds-on favorite to win the whole thing.

After reaching the Round of 16 in back-to-back World Cups, first falling to host Russia in 2018 before their brutal penalty shootout loss to Morocco in 2022, La Roja spent the last several years rebuilding around a new generation of young stars.

Led by manager Luis de la Fuente, and powered by stars like Rodri, Marc Cucurella, Dani Olmo, and Nico Williams, Spain won the UEFA Euro 2024 and re-established itself as one of the world’s premier national soccer teams.

Yet no player’s rise has been more dramatic than that of Lamine Yamal.

At just 17 years old, Yamal won Young Player of the Tournament honors at Euro 2024 and earned a place in the Team of the Tournament.

Now two years later he enters the 2026 FIFA World Cup as one of the sport’s biggest stars, and one of the tournament’s most closely watched players.

On Tuesday, June 9, with just 48 hours before the tournament kicks off, ESPN dropped its latest power rankings, placing Spain at No. 1.

Yet, despite these lofty expectations, the biggest obstacle standing in Spain’s way is the health of Yamal.

“(Yamal) missed the last month of the 2025-26 club season with a torn hamstring, and his road back to match readiness is being carefully managed. Spain boss Luis de la Fuente left Yamal (along with winger Nico Williams and reserve forward Víctor Muñoz) behind at La Roja’s base camp in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to continue rehabbing while the remainder of the squad headed to Puebla, Mexico, for the final World Cup tuneup game against Peru. De la Fuente is confident Yamal will be ready for their tournament opener, but it is likely to be a big TBD until matchday,” wrote ESPN’s James Tyler.

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Yamal suffered a torn hamstring while scoring a penalty goal in Barcelona’s 1-0 victory over Celta Vigo on April 22, and hasn’t played since.

That’s nearly two months away from the game with an injury that can be notoriously unpredictable and easy to re-aggravate.

Before the injury, Yamal was enjoying a career year, scoring 16 goals and 11 assists in 26 games. That was enough to earn him LaLiga Player of the Season honors, making him the youngest player ever to win the award.

As the best young player in the world, Spain has been extremely cautious with Yamal’s recovery. He’s expected to be available for their World Cup opener on June 15 against Cape Verde in Atlanta, Georgia, but it remains to be seen how long he’ll be out there for.

With Spain being nearly three goal favorites, there’s no real need for Yamal in that game. But the competition will only heat up from there, with remaining matches against Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.

Yamal enters the World Cup among the favorites for both the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards. But those awards, along with Spain’s title hopes, will hinge on how quickly he can regain the level he was playing at before the injury.

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