Sunny dreams of a World Cup summer

AFTER the politics, prices and pop songs, it’s finally time for the football.

28 Summers. That’s the title of a recently released documentary by the Scottish Football Association in celebration of the national team at last qualifying again for a World Cup, their first since France ‘98.

As a Scotsman, I had to go (who knows when it might happen for us Scots again?) and I’ll be reporting live from World Cup 2026 and seeing if the Scottish excitement is matched by US enthusiasm for “soccer”.

The United States of course is sharing hosting duties with Canada and Mexico.

The column inches in the build-up to the tournament have been dominated by “dynamic” (which appears to be a euphemism for eye-wateringly expensive) ticket prices, visa controversies for several nations, and a prelude of largely forgettable pop songs.

The memories though, as ever, will be made on the pitch. The first World Cup that I really remember was Italia ‘90 – yes, I am that advanced in years.

The Italians, remarkably, have failed to advance yet again from the qualifiers.

The four-time winners will be absent for the third World Cup in a row.

A couple of their European neighbours are my early picks for glory – France and Spain.

Both arrive with strong and balanced squads as well as the experience of having recently won major tournaments.

I’ll be at France vs Senegal in New Jersey next week to see how Mbappe and his teammates perform in their opening game.

It’s one of the more attractive group stage fixtures of an expanded competition that seems likely to dilute the initial quality on display, though that may prove to be a worthwhile trade-off against spreading World Cup excitement to more countries than ever before.

The next tier of contenders includes England and Brazil. England came within trophy-touching distance under Gareth Southgate before retreating into their defensive shell. Thomas Tuchel’s mission is clear: to end the now 60 years of hurt.

His boldness in that quest is beyond doubt, and he’s named an eyebrow-raising squad, which finds no place for, among others, Harry Maguire, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden, and Cole Palmer.

Alexander-Arnold and Palmer are the two most baffling omissions. Even if Tuchel doesn’t see them as starters based on form or system, they would surely be useful options off the bench in a 26-man squad.

Imagine England a goal down in the quarter finals against Brazil and the manager looks to the bench in a bid to turn the game. There he will see Jordan Henderson and Dan Burn, but not the set-piece prowess of Trent nor the game-changing maverick that is Palmer.

The big selection decision for Brazil centred around Neymar. He has made it on the plane; how much time he spends on the pitch remains to be seen. The most important factor in assessing Brazilian prospects is not their enigmatic playmaker but rather their Italian coach.

Ancelotti is a winner, a master at managing egos, and the calmest of heads in the hottest of arenas. The only thing raised more often than his quizzical eyebrow is his hand with trophies therein.

If anyone can make Brazil greater than the sum of their samba parts, it’s Carlo.

I’ve got this far in assessing the contenders with no mention of the reigning champions, Argentina. Outstanding in Qatar, led by the mercurial Messi, they have retained much of the same squad.

Older may be wiser but I suspect also slightly slower and Leo’s stardust will be more sparingly sprinkled. I don’t see them retaining their crown.

Portugal are much fancied by many as Ronaldo continues to chase an elusive World Cup win. At 40, his chasing down of defenders is more of a trot than a gallop these days. A true athletic thoroughbred he surely remains, but an honest analysis would conclude that Portugal are stronger without him as a starter.

He almost certainly will start though, as Roberto Martinez is not noted for the same level of boldness as Tuchel.

As for Scotland’s chances, well, Andy Robertson and his fellow bravehearts are seeking to become the first Scottish squad to make it out of the group and into the knock-out stages.

A 4-0 win over in Bolivia in the final warm-up game had some exuberantly optimistic Scots speculating as to whether the location of the World Cup victory parade would be in Edinburgh or Glasgow.

A win against Haiti in the opening game in Boston is a must (another game I’ll be at) before sterner tests against Morocco and Brazil. Win or lose, sunscreen, bagpipes, and hope will be carried in the luggage of the Tartan Army.

Anything to declare? “Yes, Customs officer, we think we’ll probably beat Brazil.”

Messi. Ronaldo. Yamal. McTominay. World Cup summers, they’re always the best summers.