Another 4 years have passed and once again the most anticipated and prestigious event in world sports is upon us. The best players across the world have gathered for the 2026 World Cup, but only one can walk away with the Golden Ball. Here are my rankings of the potential winners.
Criteria
Instead of making a numbered ranking I have decided to put players in tiers instead. My rankings will factor in past international and club performance, likelihood of team success, positional value, and of course personal bias.
Right Player Wrong Team
Erling Haaland 🇳🇴
A good way to win the Golden Ball at the World Cup is by scoring the most goals. When it comes to scoring goals, there is no player in world football more prolific than Erling Haaland. In his first attempt, Erling set the all time record for most Premier League goals in a season with 36 goals in 35 appearances. He then followed this up with 27 Premier league goals the next season, 29 the year after, and has tallied 22 in the current season. Haaland is also 7th in all time goals scored in the Champions league at just 25 years of age, including two seasons in which he scored the most goals in the competition. Furthermore, he has scored 55 goals in 49 international appearances, making him Norway’s all time leading goal scorer.
Even with the most lethal striker on the planet, Norway’s success has been dim. Prior to this upcoming event, the nation has failed to qualify for a single Euros or World Cup with Erling on the roster. In fact, Norway last qualification for a World Cup was in 1998, before Haaland was even born. While qualifying for this years World Cup is certainly a trend in the right direction, the nation would be lucky to make it past the round of 16.
Mohammed Salah 🇪🇬
Simply put, Mohammed Salah is one of the Premier League’s all time great players. The Liverpool winger has amassed over 200 Premier League goals across his career, and has never failed to score fewer than 15 goals in a season since 2015. On top of his striker like numbers, Salah is also top 10 all time in Premier League assists, making him one of the most well rounded attackers the league has ever seen.
After a frustrating season where both Salah and Liverpool looked like shadows of their former selves, the forward announced this season will be the end of his era defining stint at the English giant.