Sports
Who will win the World Cup? BBC pundits make their predictions
The World Cup starts in Al Khor’s Al-Bayt Stadium on Sunday and finishes at Lusail Iconic Stadium in Doha on 18 December.Who will win the World Cup? BBC pundits make their predictions Thirty-two teams will contest the tournament, which will be played out in 64 matches over 28 days, including hosts Qatar, holders France and five-time winners Brazil.Who will get their hands on the famous gold trophy this time? Who are the other main contenders? And how will England and Wales do?BBC Sport’s TV and radio football presenters and pundits predict what will happen over the next four weeks.
Who will win the World Cup?
Alan Shearer: Argentina. It will be a great way for Lionel Messi, the best player in the world, to go out. It could be a defining moment for him – he has probably been the greatest player we have ever seen, but the thing that is always chucked at him when comparisons are made between him and Diego Maradona is that he has never won the World Cup. If he was to win this one, that would pretty much be the end of that debate – and what a story it would be.
Micah Richards: It’s Brazil for me. I understand why there is a buzz about Argentina, but this is Neymar’s time to shine. He scored eight goals in qualifying and has taken his game to the next level this season. There is the weight of the nation on his shoulders and he has to deal with what Brazil expect from him, but he will be the star of the show.
Chris Sutton: France are the holders and have arguably got the best forward line with Karim Benzema and his Ballon d’Or, Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele, even Antoine Griezmann too. Yes, they have got some injuries in midfield, but they have got two young stars in Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga of Real Madrid who are already absolutely top class. It’s not an exact science but when you think of France at World Cups, they are either all in or all out. This time? I’m saying they will be all in. If they click like they did in Russia, why not?
Alex Scott: I am going with Brazil. Their squad has a great blend of experience with exciting and in-form young players who could have great tournaments, like Vinicius Jr. Neymar is in great form too and, with every team having so little preparation time before the tournament to get key organisation right, it could come down to individual brilliance to settle some games.
Ashley Williams: Your team is always a little reliant on how much firepower you’ve got and Brazil have got a wealth of attacking options. It will be great for football if they win too. We are all fans of Brazil, aren’t we?
Fara Williams: My head is telling me that with the squad Brazil have, they will win it – the depth of their attackers is the best out of all the squads. But my heart is telling me differently. I’m going to predict an England v Brazil final… and we are bringing it home.
Jermaine Jenas: Everyone is always obsessed with the attacking side of things, but defensively Argentina look really solid and, off the back of winning a Copa America in 2021, they will have found a rhythm of what works for them. In the final they beat Brazil, who will be their biggest competitor in Qatar too, but I have a feeling Messi is going to get it done.
Karen Bardsley: Historically, it looks as though clean sheets and conceding the fewest goals is the key to winning World Cups. So which team has the most solid defensive unit, with a good goalkeeper? Then also their ability to manage moments in the tournament and how they will gather momentum in the group stages. My top two are Brazil and Argentina – and I would say Brazil will win because they are fully loaded in every position and defensively they are the strongest I have seen them in many, many years.
Rio Ferdinand: Brazil have got depth in their squad and experience too – as in, all the way through the spine of their team is experience of winning things.
Rob Green: They have some young exciting talents to go with that experience of winning. It’s Brazil for me.
Gabby Logan: I’m not going to be sentimental and say Messi will triumph but a South American team will win. Vinicius Jr will be a really important player and the World Cup winners will wear yellow shirts.
Danny Murphy: I can’t see past Brazil or Argentina. Both are full of quality and experience and will take some stopping. Maybe Argentina will do it this time, as it seems written in the stars that the greatest ever player will win the World Cup.
Danny Gabbidon: I fancy France. Overall they are a really well-balanced side with so much quality up front, and the biggest problem for manager Didier Deschamps is to find the best system and decide on his starting XI.
Jurgen Klinsmann:
With Argentina, the big driving force is Messi. All football fans know his situation and how this has to be his moment if he wants to win his first World Cup at the age of 35. He knows that too, and so do his team – so they will do everything possible to get that World Cup win. Brazil, though, have got so much quality in every position. They are a team I have watched a lot over the past couple of years and I have been very impressed – they are coming to Qatar to win the World Cup and I believe they will.
(BBC Sports)
After winning back to back warm up matches Sri Lanka Under 19s led by Vimath Dinsara will kick off their Youth World Cup campaign with confidence when they meet minnows Japan in their first match at Windhoek Namibia on Saturday.
Sri Lanka lost the last two matches before the World Cup. They conceded defeat against Bangladesh in the last group match of the Asia Cup before suffering an eight wickets defeat at the hands of India in the semi-final of the tournament. That was not the ideal preparation ahead of the World Cup but now having defeated South Africa and Afghanistan during warm up matches Sri Lanka will enter the World Cup arena with confidence.
If stats of recent matches are of any indication to the form they are in Dimantha Mahavithana, Viran Chamuditha, Kavija Gamage and Dulnith Sigera are the players to watch in the batting department.
Gamage and Chamuditha reached 90s during the warm up matches.
Trinity College speedster Sethmika Senevirathne who did well during the Asia Cup, Jaffna paceman Kugathas Mathulan who has attracted the interest of India’s franchise cricket due to his sling arm action resembling Lasith Malinga and St. Joseph’s spinner Vigneswaran Akash who also hails from Jaffna are among the bowlers in a balanced attack.
Mahanama College’s Sigera and Chamika Heenatigala, St. Sebastian’s Moratuwa player Malintha Silva, Chamuditha, Rasith Nimsan, Gamage and late inclusion Jeewahan Sriram of Wesley are the other bowlers.
Sri Lanka will play all their group matches at Windhoek. Their other group stage opponents are Ireland and Australia.
Sri Lanka’s Group A Fixtures
SL Vs Japan 17- Jan- 2026
SL Vs Ireland 19- Jan- 2026
SL Vs Australia 23- Jan- 2026
The Bangladesh Cricket Board has removed Nazmul Islam as chairman of the board’s finance committee, following the CWAB’s player boycott of cricket in country until he resigns from his position.
“The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) wishes to inform that, following a review of recent developments and in the best interest of the organisation, the BCB President has decided to release Mr. Najmul Islam from his responsibilities as Chairman of the Finance Committee with immediate effect,” the BCB said in a statement.
“The decision has been taken in accordance with the authority vested in the BCB President under Article 31 of the BCB Constitution and is aimed at ensuring the continued smooth and effective functioning of the Board’s affairs. Until further notice, the BCB President will assume the role of Acting Chairman of the Finance Committee.
“The BCB reiterates that the interests of the cricketers remain its highest priority. The Board remains fully committed to upholding the honour and dignity of all players under its jurisdiction.
“In this regard, the BCB hopes that all cricketers will continue to display the highest standards of professionalism and dedication to the betterment of Bangladesh cricket during what is a challenging period for the game, and will do their utmost to ensure continued participation in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).”
Both BPL matches on Thursday – the first between Chattogram Royals and Noakhali Express, and the second between Rajshahi Warriors and Sylhet Titans – have been postponed due to the player boycott.
Even though there seemed to be movement on the issues – the BCB agreed to the player body CWAB’s demands and removed Nazmul Islam from his position as head of the board’s finance committee – but it came too late in the day for the matches to go ahead as scheduled. There was no confirmation yet whether the boycott would be called off or not, and whether the BPL matches on Friday would also be impacted.
[Cricinfo]
The Bangladesh Cricket Board has issued a show cause notice to its director M Nazmul Islam over his “objectionable comments” in public against the country’s cricketers on Wednesday.
The notice came a couple of hours before the scheduled start of the BPL matches for the day, though the players’ body CWAB has called for a nationwide boycott on all forms of cricket unless Islam tenders his resignation.
The four first-division matches in the Dhaka Cricket League scheduled for the day didn’t start on Thursday morning, which caused serious concern in the BCB. ESPNcricinfo has learned that the Chattogram Royals and Noakhali Express players, who were supposed to play the first BPL match on Thursday, are sticking to the boycott.
“The board has already initiated formal disciplinary proceedings against the board member concerned,” the BCB statement read. “A show cause letter has been issued, and the individual has been instructed to submit a written response within 48 hours. The matter will be dealt with through due process and appropriate action will be taken based on the outcome of the proceedings.”
ESPNcricinfo understands that some board directors contacted the CWAB president Mohammad Mithun late on Wednesday night, offering that they would make Nazmul stand down from his role as the finance committee chairman. But Mithun said the cricketers’ call for the boycott remained in place.
The toss of the first BPL match on Thursday is at 12.30 pm local time. Once the start time for the match has passed, the CWAB leaders are supposed to hold a press conference, where they will present the BCB with their demands, including the resignation of the director.
[Cricinfo]
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