World Cup Group F Odds & Preview

One of the more intriguing groups at the 2026 World Cup is Group F. While there is a clear favorite per the World Cup betting odds in the Dutch, none of the teams in this group are pushovers. All four teams are seasoned on the international stage, so the Netherlands must not take the other teams in Group F for granted. In particular, Japan is looking very dangerous and might be poised to make its deepest World Cup run yet.

Odds to win Group F

Netherlands -145
Japan +315
Sweden +575
Tunisia +850

Although the Netherlands are the favorites to win Group F per the World Cup futures, more and more action has come in on Japan over the last several weeks. Samurai Blue have won five straight international matches, and they have posted four consecutive clean sheets.

Japan overcame a 2-0 deficit against Brazil to knock off the Brazilians in the Kirin Challenge Cup and followed that up with a 2-0 win over Ghana and a 3-0 victory over Bolivia. They were even more impressive in late March though, besting Scotland 1-0 in Glasgow and topping England 1-0 in London. Japan became the first Asian team to ever beat England in that match, so many prognosticators are now heralding the Japanese as a World Cup sleeper.

Odds to Win World Cup for Group F Teams

Netherlands +2200
Japan +5000
Sweden +10000
Tunisia +50000

The odds to win the World Cup have fallen to 50-1 for the Japanese. Meanwhile, the Dutch are no longer among the first tier of favorites despite some impressive international performances over the past 16 years. The Netherlands were fortunate to get out of the Group Stage of the 2024 Euros, but they did rally to make the semifinals thanks to victories over Romania and Turkey.

Match Schedule

Team Previews

Netherlands

The Dutch are not as much of a threat as they have been in recent years. Although they made it to the semifinals of the 2024 Euros, they finished third in their group and were fortunate to face Romania and Turkey in their part of the bracket. This is an experienced team, but there isn’t as much top-end talent as there was in the past.

Erstwhile captain Virgil van Dijk is the star of the Oranje. The longtime Liverpool center back has lost a half-step and will turn 35 in July, but he is still one of the best in the world at his position. Van Dijk can get things done on both ends of the pitch, and that will provide a boost to the Dutch when they break out on counters. Nathan Ake, Matthijs de Ligt, Stefan de Vrij, and Denzel Dumfries will all likely see significant playing time as well.

Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has not been the international playmaker many thought he would be as a teenager, as he has only netted two goals in 64 international appearances. That’s why Manchester City’s Tijjani Reijnders’ play is so important. Reijnders has been a spark plug for The Flying Dutchmen in international action with seven goals in 30 matches. Teun Koopmeiners and Xavi Simons are players to keep an eye on too given their youth and potential.

Memphis Depay is the all-time leading scorer on the Netherlands, and he will likely be the primary option at the top of the formation. Depay has 55 goals in 108 caps, but he is on the downslope of his career. That might lead to more playing time for Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo and Ajax’s Wout Weghorst as both forwards have featured recently for the Oranje.

Japan

This might be the most intriguing team in the entire World Cup. Japan’s recent form has been phenomenal, and the Samurai Blue pulled off two massive upsets at the 2022 World Cup. Despite being heavy underdogs per the soccer betting odds, the Japanese knocked off European juggernauts Spain and Germany by the scoreline of 2-1 in the Group Stage to finish atop the group. It appeared that Japan might finally make it to the quarterfinals after that performance, but they ran into Croatia in the Round of 16 and fell in penalties. Japan made it to the Round of 16 in 2002, 2010, 2018, and 2022, and they are out to finally qualify for the quarterfinals.

Parma’s impeccably named Zion Suzuki will be the first-choice goalkeeper for long-time head coach Hajime Moriyasu. The 23-year-old goalkeeper has already made 23 appearances for the national team, and he is back in form after suffering a broken hand against AC Milan in November.

Japan’s back line has been incredible in international play over the last year. Bayern Munich’s Hiroki Ito has been one of the tentpoles in the back, and there is depth to surround him. Feyenoord’s Tsuyoshi Watanabe has been solid, and Yukinari Sugawara and Ko Itakura are likely to see time on the pitch.

There is a ton of depth in the midfield for Japan. Crystal Palace midfielder Daichi Kamada has netted 12 goals in 49 matches at the national level, and Reims Keito Nakamura has shown he can also provide offense with 10 goals in 24 matches. Captain Wataru Endo appears set to return to national duty, and Ritsu Doan is very experienced.

Brighton & Hove’s Kaoru Mitoma can be deployed in a number of ways near the top of the formation, and Feyenoord’s Ayase Ueda is likely to be the tip of the spear. Their ability to continually provide pressure on back lines off the ball can lead to mistakes and turnovers.

Sweden

Few teams have made it to the World Cup more often than Sweden. This will be Sweden’s 13th appearance at the World Cup, and they have advanced out of the Group Stage in each of their last four trips. Sweden turned heads at the 1994 World Cup with a surprising third-place finish, and the national team surprisingly topped a group that included Germany, Mexico, and South Korea at the 2018 World Cup before falling to England in the quarterfinals.

Although the Swedes did not fare well in World Cup qualifying, they still made it to this stage after righting the ship in March. They bested Ukraine 3-1 in late March, followed by a thrilling 3-2 win over Poland on March 31 to earn one of the final World Cup spots.

Captain Victor Lindelof will set the tone for the Swedes. Lindelof was not beloved by Manchester United fans, but he is a quality center back that can get the job done at this level. No other defender has more than 30 caps for Sweden, and there is similar inexperience in net after Robin Olsen retired from international duty last year.

There is a shocking dearth of talent in the midfield compared to past Swedish teams. That will put pressure on forwards Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak to get the job done despite the lack of support. Gyokeres was the hero of the Poland match with a goal in the 88th minute, and he has been fantastic for Arsenal this season. On the other hand, Isak has been a colossal bust professionally since signing with Liverpool. Isak was the third-most expensive transfer ever at £125 million, but he has yet to play a full 90 minutes for the club and has just three goals in Premier League play.

Tunisia

This will be Tunisia’s seventh appearance at the World Cup, but the Eagles of Carthage have never made it out of the Group Stage. Many experts are picking them to finish at the bottom of the group too given their recent performances, including a shocking loss to Mali in the AFCON Round of 16. Tunisia is 3-5-10 at the World Cup and had just one goal scored and one goal allowed in three matches in Qatar.

There is no real surprise as to what Tunisia plans to do in this tournament. Not a single player on the projected final roster has more than eight goals scored for the national team, and one of the top scorers is left back Ali Abdi with seven goals in 45 matches.

Captain Ellyes Skhiri and Anis Ben Slimane are the two players to watch in the midfield for Tunisia. Skhiri might be the most experienced player on the roster with 81 caps to his credit, while Ben Slimane turned some heads playing with Norwich City and could be playing top flight football at the start of next season.