The World Cup groups of death since 1950 👀 | OneFootball

In every World Cup, there are groups that capture attention even before the first whistle.

Groups where the great nations clash, where no mistakes are allowed, where every match feels like an anticipated round of 16.

On the occasion of the 2026 World Cup draw this Friday, let's look back at the toughest groups in World Cup history. The infamous groups of death...

1954 – Switzerland — Group 4

Switzerland 2 pts

England 2 pts

Italy 2 pts

Belgium 0 pts

(Unusual format: only two matches per team)

1962 – Chile — Group 3

Brazil 5 pts

Czechoslovakia 3 pts

Mexico 2 pts

Spain 2 pts

1966 – England — Group 2

Argentina 5 pts

West Germany 5 pts

Spain 2 pts

Switzerland 0 pts

1982 – Spain — Second phase, Group C

Italy 3 pts

Brazil 2 pts

Argentina 1 pt

1990 – Italy — Group F

England 5 pts

Netherlands 3 pts

Ireland 3 pts

Egypt 2 pts

2002 – Korea/Japan — Group F

Sweden 5 pts

England 5 pts

Argentina 4 pts

Nigeria 1 pt

2006 – Germany — Group C

Argentina 7 pts

Netherlands 7 pts

Ivory Coast 3 pts

Serbia and Montenegro 0 pts

2010 – South Africa — Group G

Brazil 7 pts

Portugal 5 pts

Ivory Coast 4 pts

North Korea 0 pts

2014 – Brazil — Group D

Costa Rica 7 pts

Uruguay 6 pts

Italy 3 pts

England 1 pt

2018 – Russia — Group D

Croatia 9 pts

Argentina 4 pts

Nigeria 3 pts

Iceland 1 pt

2022 – Qatar — Group E

Japan 6 pts

Spain 4 pts

Germany 4 pts

Costa Rica 3 pts

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

📸 KARIM JAAFAR - 2010 AFP