The Best 2026 World Cup Fantasy Team – Ingenuity Official Team Reveal 

After weeks of tinkering, researching and shuffling around, we have finally settled on our World Cup Fantasy team. 

One thing that is a main feature of this team, is the fact that it targets fixtures. Ultimately, a player can be as good as anyone, but playing lesser opposition is normally the best indicator for predicting a high scoring performance. This is where the World Cup differs from other Fantasy platforms such as FPL. 

In FPL, the gulf between 1st and 20th will no doubt be sizeable, but given they are in the same league, it will often be limited. However, given international team quality can vary even more, the gulf in quality can often be even more substantial. Like a Premier League team playing a League 2 team. These mismatches often lead to sizeable scorelines as a result. 

Before we get stuck into the team, if you are after some more inspiration to build yours, then check out our best goalkeepers in World Cup Fantasy, as well as our Best defenders under $4.5m. 

Anyway, without further ado, we present to you the official Ingenuity World cup Fantasy 2026 Team Reveal. 

 

Goalkeepers: 

 

Maxime Crepeau (Canada) – $4.0m 

Ownership: 3.2% 

Pretty simple inclusion this. Canada come into the World Cup in decent form, conceding only 1 goal in their most recent 3 matches against Tunisia, Republic of Ireland and Uzbekistan. They now take on Bosnia and Qatar in MD1 & MD2, who are arguably of a lower standard than those warmup opponents. 

A great option at a low price point, and one who should be able to tick off the Scouting Bonus should Canada achieve a clean sheet. 

 

Sergio Rochet (Uruguay) – $4.1m 

Ownership: 4.3% 

Another simple decision this. Uruguay have arguably the two easiest fixtures of any team to start the tournament. With Saudi Arabia in MD1 and Cape Verde in MD2.  

Add onto this the fact they only conceded 1 goal in their most recent pair of friendlies against England and Algeria. As well as only 12 goals in their 18 qualifying CONMEBOL qualifying games. They are a stubborn, defensively well organised and hard-working team, who should be able to secure some clean sheets against much lesser opposition. 

 

 

Defence: 

 

Joshua Kimmich (Germany) – $5.5m 

Ownership: 32% 

An absolute staple of any Fantasy team. Kimmich is a great profile for Fantasy purposes as he fits the bill of a listed defender who can be active with attacking returns. In 5 qualifying games he was able to register 3 attacking returns. 2 goals and an assist. As well as registering a total of 7 shots, 5 of which were on target.    

Not only does he also find himself in advanced areas creating chances, he is also on set-pieces. Meaning he has plenty of routes to points. Even if he starts at right back, we can expect to see him invert into midfield and pick up the ball in very advanced areas.   

Their opening fixture against Curacao in MD1 might genuinely be the easiest fixture any team has in the entire tournament. Along with an Ivory Coast fixture in MD2 which shouldn’t present a ton of problems either.   

 

Marc Cucurella (Spain) – $5.1m 

Ownership: 24.5% 

The only Spanish defender to secure a goal and assist during qualifying. If there’s one thing Cucurella loves to do, it is get forward. As Chelsea fans know all too well, he will often crash back posts, make overlapping runs or even invert into midfield and look to play balls forward. 

Now, were Spain playing against some teams who had bad attacks but good defences, we would potentially look elsewhere, but given they are playing two bad attacks AND two bad defences in MD1 and MD2, we don’t mind paying extra to include a defender who can get points on either end. 

 

Pervis Estupinan (Ecuador) – $4.8m 

Ownership: 2.6% 

If you remember anything about Estupinan, it should be how much he loves to get forward. A fun but often frustrating throwback for you FPL vets. 

The reason we have gone for Estupinan, is in no small part down to how Ecuador set up. Ecuador finished a resounding 2nd in the qualifiers. With only Argentina finishing above them. Finishing higher than the likes of Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay.   

Their defence only gave up 5 goals across their entire 18 games. A truly remarkable achievement. Averaging just 0.28 goals conceded per game and setting a record for least goals conceded during the 18 game qualifiers. 

Given defenders get no bonuses like DefCons, attacking full backs are still king in World Cup Fantasy. Especially when the fixtures are against Ivory Coast in MD1 and Curacao in MD2. Which as well as presenting great clean sheet opportunities, could also present attacking opportunities for the likes of Estupiñán. Who despite belonging to a more defensively oriented unit, was still able to accrue 10 shots on goal across 13 appearances from left-back.   

At just 2.6% ownership, he should also be a lock for potential Scouting Bonus. 

 

Silvan Widmer (Switzerland) – $4.2m 

Ownership: 1.6% 

Despite some questions around his starting role in a Swiss back 5, it is hard to see them experiment too much from the back 4 in a group this easy. A marauding right-back who loves to get forward, Widmer often finds himself in advanced positions for the Swiss and is one of their key players in build-up.   

Not only was he able to register a goal in qualifying, but he also registered 6 shots across his 6 appearances, double that of every other Swiss defender. Not only that, but he also accrued the 2nd most xG in the entire team (0.91) throughout qualifying. 2nd only to Embolo. In case you needed further evidence of his attacking tendencies.   

Where Widmer really shines as an asset, however, is in the defence he belongs to.  Switzerland only conceded 2, yes 2, goals across their 6 qualifying games. The 2nd least amongst all European nations.    

They now take this elite defensive organisation into fixtures against Qatar and Bosnia-Herzegovina in MD1 and MD2. Both of which could not only yield clean sheets but also attacking returns. With Akanji ($5.0m) sitting at 4.8% ownership, which is close to the threshold, Widmer represents a higher ceiling at a way lower price and ownership, and should be an absolute lock for Scouting Bonus. 

 

David Moller Wolfe (Norway) 

Ownership: 0.9% 

Rounding out the defence is Norway’s Moller Wolfe. Though not as attacking as Ryerson, he is more than capable of getting forward. Registering 1 goal and 2 assists in 8 qualifying matches. Not too shabby.  Like Ryerson he also started all 8 games in qualifying and is pencilled in as the starting left back.  

What Møller Wolfe does have over Ryerson however, is the Scouting Bonus. At only 0.9% ownership, we can safely assume he should maintain his Scouting Bonus. With fixtures against Iraq in MD1 and Senegal in MD2, managers also have the flexibility of transferring him out ahead of Senegal if Norway are not at the races. 

 

 

Midfield: 

 

Jeremy Doku (Belgium) 

Ownership: 13.3% 

It is no secret that Belgium have one of the easiest groups in the entire competition, with Egypt, Iran and New Zealand. Although Belgium are nowhere near the levels of their golden generation, they still have a strong team and will therefore be capable of scoring plenty.  

Not only did Doku register the most goal involvements in qualifying, with 5 goals and 5 assists, but he also registered the most minutes.  

Doku has not just been electric for Belgium in qualifying, but also for City in the Prem. He comes into 2 very easy fixtures in fantastic form. Normally a recipe for success. 

 

Michael Olise (France) 

Ownership: 30.1% 

I’ll admit it, I watched the Northern Ireland match and caught Olise fever. Honestly, if Mbappe’s finishing was slightly better, he also could’ve left with a few assists as well.  

Olise has looked electric all year but the thing that entices me most about him, is how well his game suits tournament football. He can generate a chance out of almost thin air. He can skip past one or two players and either play a killer ball or stick it top bins, and the frequency he is able to do this at is ideal for fantasy owner. 

He should also have plenty of set-piece coverage. France’s attack looks frightening, so making sure I own a piece was essential. 

 

Florian Wirtz (Germany) – $7.5m 

Ownership: 23% 

Wirtz was one of Germany’s top performers during qualifying, registering a goal and 2 assists across their 6 games. More encouragingly however, was the fact he was also their top shot taker, registering 16 across the 6 games.  

We all know how talented Wirtz is, and him being an absolute lock in the starting lineup and with the threat he poses, his inclusion could yield great returns. 

Perhaps the main reason however for Wirtz’s inclusion, and indeed our Germany triple up, is Curacao. In Curacao’s most recent (serious, not counting Aruba) 3 friendlies they lost 5-1 to Australia, 2-0 to China and 4-1 to Scotland. All significantly worse teams than Germany. They come into the tournament as arguably the worst side and honestly MD1 could get real ugly.  

Germany players can naturally be transferred out for French players in MD2, but for MD1 at least, I want 3 Germany players. 

 

Luis Diaz (Colombia) – $8.1m 

Ownership: 18.4% 

To say Diaz was Colombia’s star man during qualifying would be an understatement. Colombia scored a whopping 28 goals in qualifying, 2nd only to Argentina, with Diaz scoring 7 of them and assisting for 3 of them. Not only that, but he also took on a tournament record 53 shots across the 18 games. No that is not a typo.  

His form for Bayern this year has been simply magnificent, and he now carries that into 2 fixtures against Uzbekistan in MD1 and Congo in MD2. He is an elite player who can create chances from nothing and loves shooting. All great traits for Fantasy. 

 

Bruno Fernandes (Portugal) – $8.5m 

Ownership: 50.9% 

Speaking of players who are elite chance creators and love to shoot, Bruno Fernandes rounds out our midfield. He was arguably the best player to own in Fantasy Premier League and is coming off the best season of his career. 

He was their top scorer and shot taker during qualifying and should also cover plenty of set-pieces. Most importantly however, are Portugal’s opening 2 games against Uzbekistan and Congo. Two fixtures which should see Portugal score plenty of goals and create plenty of chances.  

I also cannot think of a player that the scoring bonus for midfielders creating chances benefits more than Fernandes. Much like FPL, his routes to points are vast. 

 

 

Forwards: 

 

Kai Havertz (Germany) – $7.8m 

Ownership: 13.8% 

As mentioned before, the plan was always to triple up against Curacao, meaning Havertz rounds out the final spot. He looks set to get the nod over Woltemade and has likely further cemented that with a goal and assist in their most recent warm-up game against USA. He also scored a key but ultimately futile goal in the Champions League final for Arsenal, so is likely not short of confidence. 

As mentioned before, Curacao might honestly ship 5 goals this game so targeting the opposition striker is never a bad route to go down. 

 

Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain) – $8.1m 

Ownership: 18.7% 

Spain emerged from the qualifiers with the 2nd highest xG after only England. With Oyarzabal being the spearhead. Him and Merino both led the way with 6 goals each in qualifying, although all accounts suggest Oyarzabal will be the one leading the line at the World Cup.  

He was also able to accrue the much higher xG during qualifying and has a fantastic goalscoring record for Spain, scoring 25 goals in 53 games. A quite remarkable stat line and one that he was able to add to within 2 minutes against Peru in their latest warmup game.   

More importantly for his inclusion, however, are Spain’s fixtures. They take on Cape Verde in MD1 and Saudi Arabia in MD2. Given how high-powered Spain’s attack is, these fixtures should yield plenty of goals, with Oyarzabal perfectly positioned to capitalise.   

 

Erling Haaland (Norway) – $10.5m 

Ownership: 33.0% 

Norway looked absolutely lethal in qualifying and given their first fixture is against Iraq, this was a hard one to turn down. In just 8 fixtures in qualifying, Haaland racked up 16 goals and 2 assists. Setting a record for qualifying. Simply absurd numbers. He has now scored 55 goals in just 50 appearances for Norway and is showing no signs of slowing down.  

Although Senegal may present some difficulties in MD2, it will be bold to go without Haaland for MD1. So, managers should either 12th man him in or start with him in their lineups. Not least as managers may want to steer clear of him for MD3 when they take on France. 

 

Final Thoughts 

This lineup gives us flexibility first and foremost. With players spread out across multiple starting days. Especially the premiums. Not only that, but it also contains 5 players eligible for the Scouting Bonus. Meaning depending on how high powered the bonus presents as, we can move to a Scouting Bonus majority team in just a few transfers.  

 

Check out our World Cup section for more World Cup Fantasy Tips.