England have been drawn with Croatia, Ghana and Panama in Group L for the 2026 World Cup, setting up a path that should take them through their first three matches with little room for error. Croatia look the toughest opponent on paper, but England are still regarded as favourites to win the group.
That is why the draw is being picked over now: it gives shape to England’s route through the tournament and raises the question of whether they can do more than simply advance. LiveScore Bet are offering 7/1 on England to win all three of their group games by two or more goals, a mark that reflects both confidence in the squad and the difficulty of making that sort of run happen at a World Cup.
England have done the hard part before. They topped their group at each of the last two World Cups, and they have the kind of attack that makes another clean sweep plausible. Harry Kane, 32, scored a career-best 61 goals in all competitions for Bayern Munich this season, at well over a goal per game, while Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Morgan Rogers give Thomas Tuchel options around him.
There is, though, a reason the market still leans on history rather than certainty. England have not won all of their group games since 1982, when they also went out in the second group stage. They have the tools to challenge that pattern, but the record sits there as a reminder that early group-stage control is not the same thing as guaranteed dominance.
The timing of the schedule adds another layer. England’s second group game is against Ghana, and their third is against Panama, a match Tuchel could use to rotate if first place is already secure. That would leave Croatia as the key fixture at the start of the campaign, the one most likely to decide whether England can build momentum quickly or spend the group stage chasing it.
England’s case for confidence is backed by more than one hot striker. They qualified without conceding a single goal and ran off six straight wins by two goals or more between September and November last year, including friendlies, a stretch that showed they can be ruthless when the game opens up. The next question is not whether England belong among the favourites. It is whether they can turn a favourable draw into three wins, and start with Croatia by proving the group already belongs to them.
