2026 World Cup: Ralf Rangnick already names the tournament winner

02.07.26 FT World Cup

Spain

3

:

Austria

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Knocked out by Spain in the round of 16, Ralf Rangnick delivered a blunt assessment of La Roja's performance, even going so far as to already see them as world champions.

Austria were swept aside by Spain (3-0) this Thursday in the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup. Despite the context of his players' elimination, head coach Ralf Rangnick was full of praise for his opponents, even suggesting that La Roja could well be the next world champions.

Also read: 2026 World Cup: Ronaldo finally breaks his knockout curse!

"Maybe also against the next world champions"

"We can only acknowledge how difficult it is to play against Spain," the German coach admitted in his post-match press conference.

He went on, lavishly praising the Spanish display:

"They don’t make any mistakes. Today, they put in a great performance. We didn’t just lose to the European champions, but maybe also to the next world champions."

De la Fuente refuses to get carried away

Asked about these comments, Luis de la Fuente first thanked his Austrian counterpart, before immediately dialing down the growing excitement:

"Austria is a team that plays with heart, but I don’t agree. I think we still have to keep improving. We must and we can do much better. This team is very ambitious. They always want more, and we want to keep improving every single day."

Mahdi Zakaria LAZRI |

Editor

Football web writer creating digital sports content with a focus on news, analysis and stories that reflect passion, accuracy and objectivity.

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