Netherlands World Cup 2026: Can the Dutch finally win first World Cup?

The Netherlands were fantastic to watch at the last World Cup, and went toe-to-toe with eventual champions Argentina in that pulsating quarter-final before eventually losing on penalties. 

Now they are back, with Ronald Koeman at the helm, looking to get back to the semi-final stage at the minimum. Below you can find my Netherlands World Cup 2026 preview, which looks at their squad and my prediction for the Dutch side. 

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Goalkeepers: Bart Verbruggen (Brighton), Mark Flekken (Bayer Leverkusen), Robin Roefs (Sunderland)

Defenders: Nathan Ake (Manchester City), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Denzel Dumfries (Inter Milan), Jorrel Hato (Chelsea), Jan Paul van Hecke (Brighton & Hove Albion), Jurrien Timber (Arsenal), Micky van de Ven (Tottenham Hotspur)

Midfielders: Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona), Teun Koopmeiners (Juventus), Noah Lang (Galatasaray), Tijjani Reijnders (Manchester City), Marten de Roon (Atalanta), Guus Til (PSV), Quinten Timber (Marseille), Mats Wieffer (Brighton & Hove Albion)

Forwards: Brian Brobbey (Sunderland), Memphis Depay (Corinthians), Cody Gakpo (Liverpool), Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth), Donyell Malen (AS Roma), Crysencio Summerville (West Ham United), Wout Weghorst (Ajax)

Let’s start by talking about the squad, and there is a notable omission in the form of Liverpool’s Jeremie Frimpong. Koeman referenced persistent injuries as the reason to leave him at home, with team-mates Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo all included. 

This is a squad made up of 14 Premier League players, including Brighton trio Bart Verbruggen, Jan Paul van Hecke and Mats Wieffer and Manchester City duo Nathan Ake and Tijjani Reijnders. Sunderland keeper Robin Roefs is in with Brian Brobbey and Bournemouth's Justin Kluivert hoping to make an impact up top.

World Cup Odds

Crycsencio Summerville of West Ham is also in, with the Hammers relegated from England’s top flight. This looks to be a balanced squad with plenty of their stars playing in the strongest league in the world. 

Qualification was a doddle, as they won six and drew twice to make it to the World Cup, conceding just four goals during that time. They are 20/1 to go all the way and win their very first World Cup, but Group F should test them. 

Japan, Sweden and Tunisia are no pushovers by any means, and they will have to be extremely strong to win this group. However, they are favourites to do so and came extremely close to reaching the final of Euro 2024, as England beat them 2-1 late on in the semis. 

I’m confident that the Dutch can have an extremely good tournament.

Group F Fixtures:

14 June 4pm local (9pm BST) - vs Japan (Seattle)

20 June 1pm local (6pm BST) - vs Sweden (Houston)

25 June 7pm local (26 June 12am BST) - vs Tunisia (Kansas City)

Key Player: Cody Gakpo

Hear me out. This Netherlands team is unbelievably well balanced and it looks incredibly strong in defence and midfield, but up top they are lacking an elite number nine. Brobbey has been superb for Sunderland and could start up top, but with Memphis Depay not at the peak of his powers, it feels as though Koeman will choose Gakpo to lead the line.

He is coming off the back of a disappointing season with Liverpool having scored just seven league goals, but he does have 19 in 48 for his country, with three of those coming at Euro 2024. 

He isn’t the best player in this Dutch side, but his performances may just determine how far they go. Weghorst and Brobbey are more natural nines if he doesn’t produce, but the Netherlands are going to be fairly fluid up top and Gakpo could profit. 

Football Odds

Prediction: Quarter-finals

I think the Netherlands will be really strong during this World Cup, but I’ve mapped out their possible route to the final and it ends in the last eight. I’ve got them down as winning a tough Group F, and then facing the team that finishes second in Group C, which could be Morocco. 

That’s a really tough test for the Dutch, given how strong Morocco were at AFCON and the last World Cup, but I’m going to side with them again, before a last-16 tie with South Korea which they should win. However, this draw places them up against France in the quarters, and that could spell the end of the road. 

If the draw opens up a bit more they could definitely make the final four, but I’ll back a second quarter-final exit in a row for the Netherlands. 

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