Benfica take note: Otamendi and Ríos learn possible World Cup opponents | OneFootball

The first international break for the national teams is underway, ending at the beginning of this week, 16 countries that have already secured their passports to the World Cup are now known. More specifically, Nicolás Otamendi and Richard Ríos, the biggest stars of Benfica, already know some of the possible opponents in the tournament that kicks off in the summer of 2026.

As is known, both the center-back and the midfielder are part of the South American qualification and, therefore, already have a reserved presence in the world tournament thanks to the good performances of Argentina and Colombia. The albiceleste, holder of the trophy won in 2022, secured their presence last year, while the coffee team secured their spot last week, thus fulfilling Richard Ríos' dream.

Note that the European continent's teams are not yet on the attendance list, as only now, due to UEFA's tight schedule, more specifically the Nations League, they have just started the qualification in this international break, with a major highlight for Portugal's victory over Armenia, by 5-0.

So, already thinking about the 2026 World Cup, Nicolás Otamendi and Richard Ríos may cross paths, in the group stage, with the United States of America, Canada and Mexico, which belong to the North and Central America confederation, but have a guaranteed spot as they are the tournament organizers. From South America, but who will not be opponents in the initial stage, Brazil, Uruguay and Ecuador are also present.

In the Asian confederation, the contributions are greater and there are even two debutant teams, such as Uzbekistan and Jordan. In addition to these two countries, Australia, Japan, Iran and South Korea are also present. From the African continent, Tunisia arrives and Oceania is represented by New Zealand.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.