From Messi and Ronaldo to Ancelotti and Tuchel: Will the 2026 World Cup Rewrite Football History?

The 2026 World Cup, which will start in a few hours, may change from just another tournament added to the history of the most popular competition on the planet to a historic milestone that will redefine the boundaries of achievement in football.

With the largest edition in World Cup history featuring 48 teams and 104 matches hosted in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, attention is focused on a group of stars and coaches who are on the verge of breaking records that have stood for several decades.

From Lionel Messi, who is chasing another timeless record in terms of the number of matches, wins, and key passes, to Cristiano Ronaldo, who is trying to expand his extraordinary legacy in the World Cup, and Kylian Mbappé, who is approaching legendary status before the age of 30, the competition seems to be wide open to write a new chapter in football history.

On the other hand, the battle for glory is not limited to the green field, as great coaches like Carlo Ancelotti, Thomas Tuchel, Didier Deschamps, and Lionel Scaloni have the opportunity to break unprecedented records or achieve numbers that no coach has ever achieved.

Between the competition of the goal scorers, the battle of the goalkeepers in terms of defensive statistics, and the battle of the coaches for eternal legacy, the 2026 edition seems to be one of the most influential World Cup tournaments in football history, and perhaps the tournament where records considered unbreakable by many will be broken.