Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo: Supercomputer Predicts Who Is Likely to Win 2026 World Cup
- Opta’s supercomputer has predicted who is likely to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
- The two greatest footballers of all time are playing in what could possibly be their final appearances at a World Cup this year
- Messi enters the tournament as the defending champion, while Ronaldo aims to win the only elusive trophy in his cabinet
Opta’s supercomputer has predicted who is more likely to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The 2026 World Cup in the United States of America, Mexico and Canada kicks off in seven days and is scheduled to run from June 11 to July 19 2026.
Source: Getty Images
The tournament is the first edition of the expanded 48-nation Mundial and the first to be hosted by more than one country since the 2002 edition.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, alongside Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, will be featuring at the World Cup for the sixth time, a record.
For all three, it is possibly the last time the world will watch them at the global spectacle, and it is a question of whether they will win it on their farewell edition, particularly Messi and Ronaldo.
Messi’s Argentina are the defending champion, while Ronaldo is earnestly hoping to win the only elusive trophy of his decorated career.
Lionel Messi’s World Cup outings
Messi featured at his first World Cup in the 2006 edition in Germany and since then has played 26 matches, scoring 13 goals and featuring in two finals.
Argentina reached the quarter-final at the 2006 edition and were eliminated by Germany. Current manager Lionel Scaloni was part of the squad that year.
La Albiceleste reached the quarter-final in 2010 and were eliminated again by Germany, who crushed them 4-0 during Diego Simeone's managerial reign.
Argentina reached the final in 2014 and again lost to Germany, thanks to Mario Gotze’s late goal. France eliminated the Messi-led side in the Round of 16 in 2018.
Messi returned to the final of the World Cup in 2022 and this time led his nation to their first victory since the Maradona-inspired triumph in 1986.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup outing
As noted by Planet Football, Cristiano Ronaldo has played 22 matches in five World Cup outings and scored eight goals, all of which came in the group stage.
In 2006, he helped Portugal reach the semi-final and lost the third-place playoff to Germany. In 2010, they were eliminated in the Round of 16 by eventual winners Spain.
Source: Getty Images
Germany delivered yet another crushing blow to Cristiano Ronaldo in 2014, beating Portugal 4-0 to facilitate their group-stage exit. Uruguay and Morocco eliminated them in the Round of 16 and quarter-finals in 2018 and 2022, respectively.
Supercomputer predicts World Cup winner
According to The Analyst, Opta’s supercomputer has rated the chances of either Messi or Ronaldo walking out of the United States with the World Cup trophy.
The supercomputer gives Argentina a 10.4% chance of defending their title, the fourth-best rating at the tournament, while Portugal has a 7% chance of winning it for the first time.
Scaloni names favourites to win World Cup
Legit.ng previously reported that Lionel Scaloni named the 10 favourite countries he expects to challenge for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Argentina national team manager picked his team and nine others, including Portugal, France, Spain and England, as likely winners.
Source: Legit.ng
