How Far Can the Socceroos Go in the 2026 FIFA World Cup?

The topic is the FIFA World Cup

The date is Saturday, June 13, 2026, at 5:35 am

Australia is in its sixth straight World Cup, hoping to go further than before

One day, Australia will go far in the World Cup

Tony Popovic says this when asked how far the Socceroos can go

Twenty years after Australia's best team, the Socceroos are in another World Cup, but haven't made it past the first knockout stage

Why not this group, Popovic asks

Tony Popovic believes in his team as the World Cup approaches

The Socceroos avoided a group with a very strong team, playing the USA, Türkiye, and Paraguay instead, with Australia ranked 27th

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For comparison, Australia has been in groups with France, Brazil, Germany, and the Netherlands in past World Cups

In 1974, the Socceroos were in a group with the hosts, West Germany, who won the tournament

Archie Thompson played 54 games for Australia, scoring 28 goals

This time is different, says former Socceroos striker Archie Thompson

This group is competitive, with not much difference between the teams, says Thompson

Thompson thinks Türkiye will top the group, looking at their players and the football they play

After that, it's unpredictable

Real Madrid's Arda Guler is a key player for Türkiye and a threat to the Socceroos

Where will the goals come from for Australia?

There's excitement about striker Mo Toure and Nestory Irankunda's form

Mo Toure is Australia's main striker, while Nestory Irankunda could be a surprise

But Thompson isn't sure Australia has enough quality in attack

Thompson is nervous about the Socceroos' chances, thinking they're strong defensively but need more up front

He doesn't think Australia has enough to get through

Bookmakers agree, considering Australia the least likely to advance

Former US player Alexi Lalas called the Socceroos an average team

It's hard to compare the Socceroos to their group opponents, having played them only a few times

A war of words between former USA players and the Socceroos adds excitement to their matchup

Australia has never beaten Türkiye, but those losses were a long time ago

The Socceroos have never lost to Paraguay, beating them in 2010 and drawing in 2006

The USA might be a good indicator of how the teams match up, having played each other recently

The previous matches between the USA and Australia are split, with one win each and a draw

For Thompson, getting out of the group stage would be a success

Thompson thinks it's hard to get out of the group stage, but if Australia can get good results against Paraguay and the USA, they might make it

The Popovic effect is significant

Tony Popovic took over the Socceroos when they were struggling and turned things around

He was unbeaten in his first 11 games, including a win against Japan

Popovic inherited a struggling team and guided them into another World Cup

The team's performance has been up and down since October, with some losses and wins

The Socceroos had a good second half against Mexico and drew with Switzerland

Making it to the knockout stage will be a challenge, and going further would be a great success

But Popovic keeps saying, 'Why not this group?'