Qatar World Cup 2026: Lopetegui’s experience not enough to help the Maroon One

After qualifying for the last FIFA World Cup as the host nation, Qatar have reached the 2026 edition on merit. The Maroon One are led by experienced coach on the European continent in Julen Lopetegui. He's been in charge for over a year and led Qatar to top of their qualifying group.

Below I have made my Qatar World Cup 2026 predictions as I take a look at their squad and assess their chances of getting out of their group.

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Goalkeepers: Salah Zakaria (Al-Duhail), Mahmoud Abunada (Al Rayyan), Meshaal Barsham (Al-Sadd)

Defenders: Hashmi Hussein (Al Arabi), Ayoub Alawi (Al Gharafa), Boualem Khoukhi (Al-Sadd), Pedro Miguel (Al-Sadd), Issa Laaye (Al Arabi), Lucas Mendes (Al-Wakrah), Sultan Al-Brake (Al-Duhail), Homam Al-Amin (Cultural Leonesa)

Midfielders: Mohammed Al-Manai (Al Shamal), Jassem Jaber (Al Arabi), Karim Boudiaf (Al-Duhail), Ahmed Fathi (Al Arabi), Abdulaziz Hatem (Al Rayyan), Assim Madibo (Al-Wakrah)

Forwards: Tahseen Mohammed (Al-Duhail), Edmilson Junior (Al-Duhail), Almoez Ali (Al-Duhail), Akram Afif (Al-Sadd), Mohammed Muntari (Al Gharafa), Youssef Abdulrazzaq (Al-Wakrah), Ahmed Alaa (Al Rayyan), Hassan Al-Haydos (Al-Sadd), Ahmed Al-Janahi (Al Gharafa)

Qatar went through three rounds of qualifying to get to this point but it was Lopetegui who got them over the line. The last few years of his club management career have not been ideal, which is probably why he threw himself back into international management.

After all, he was the Spain head coach once upon a time. He's no stranger to major tournaments and I would say he's going to be Qatar's biggest asset in North America.

World Cup Odds

He also guided Sevilla to the 2019/20 UEFA Europa League title. He has a lot of wisdom to share with his players, but given the quality of Group B, with Canada,, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Switzerland, Qatar have been dealt a tough hand.

Qatar's standout players come in the attacking areas in the form of all-time top scorer Almoez Ali and joint-third top scorers Akram Afif and Hassan Al-Haydos.

The Maroon One are a side who rarely travel, so being out of their comfort zone in North America is likely going to have a big impact on their chances this summer.

They have been defeated by Palestine, Tunisia and Zimbabwe in friendlies over the past year, while 24 goals conceded in their 10-most recent qualifying fixtures does not inspire confidence heading into the tournament.

Group B Fixtures:

13 June 12pm local (8pm BST) - vs Switzerland (San Francisco)

18 June 3pm local (11pm BST) - vs Canada (Vancouver)

24 June 12pm local (8pm BST) - vs Bosnia-Herzegovina (Seattle)

Player to watch: Akram Afif

Afif has 41 goals for Qatar and so he will be looked to for inspiration from his teammates and Lopetegui. He's a huge celebrity back home, having won several league titles and other trophies with Al Sadd.

He's capable of moments of magic out on the wing and his eye for goal can perhaps give the Maroon One a fighting chance this summer, even if it's still a tall order.

Football Odds

Prediction: Bottom of Group B

Sorry Qatar, but I can't see you getting past the group stage. They have three tough opponents to face and I can't see Qatar taking a point off any of them. They managed one goal in their home tournament four years ago, but I wouldn't be surprised to see them blank in their three fixtures in North America.