The draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage is set and there are a host of Gunners pitted against each other for the finals in the USA, Canada and Mexico.
Piero Hincapie's Ecuador and Kai Havertz's Germany will go head-to-head in Group E, Martin Odegaard's Norway have been drawn with William Saliba's France, while Jurrien Timber's Netherlands could face Viktor Gyokeres' Sweden, should they progress through the playoffs in March.
As the dust settles from the draw, we examine what could be in store for our internationals at next summer's showpiece event!
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Martin and Wilo go toe-to-toe
One of the standout groups of the first 48-team world cup comes in Group E where our captain, Martin Odegaard, will face William Saliba's France. Wilo played at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar as Les Bleus made it all the way to the final, finishing as runners-up to Argentina.
This will be Norway's first World Cup since 1998 after Martin helped Norway finish with a perfect qualifying record. The pair will face off in the final group game, going head-to-head on June 26, 2026, in either Boston or Toronto, Canada.
The two European nations are joined by Senegal, who stunned France in the opening match of the 2002 World Cup in Korea, as well as the winner of the intercontinental playoff between Iraq, Suriname and Bolivia.
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Three Lions to face Croatia
England could be the nation with the strongest Arsenal showing after five of our stars represented the Three Lions during the qualifying campaign.
All of Myles Lewis-Skelly, Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Declan Rice and Eberechi Eze found the net in the perfect qualifying round and the reward for our Gunners is Group L, where Thomas Tuchel's side will meet Ghana, Panama and Croatia.
Two of those sides will be familiar to Three Lions supporters, with England playing both Panama and Croatia at the 2018 World Cup. England dispatched the Central American side 6-1 before losing to Croatia in the semi-finals in Russia.
England's first match will be against Croatia on June 17, before taking on Ghana on June 23 and finishing with a game against Panama on June 27. Locations of every group game will be decided on Saturday at a separate draw.
more battling gunners
There could be a showdown between more of our stars at the finals next summer as Piero Hincapie's Ecuador have been drawn in a group with Kai Havertz's Germany.
Piero was a dominant figure in Ecuador's qualifying campaign, helping them finish in second place in the South American qualifiers. Kai did not feature in qualifying but did play for Germany at the last finals in Qatar, scoring in the final game against Costa Rica.
Ecuador will take on Germany in the final group game on June 25. Making up the rest of Group E are the Ivory Coast, playing at their first World Cup since 2014, and Curacao, who are debutants and the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup.
There could be one final head-to-head in Group F where Jurrien Timber's Netherlands are placed. They have been drawn alongside Japan, Tunisia and a potential contest against Viktor Gyokeres' Sweden.
Sweden are in the UEFA playoffs, but should Viktor's nation defeat Ukraine and the winner of Poland vs Albania, then they will take the final spot in Group F. That possible match-up will be on June 20 in either Houston or Monterrey.
Spain handed strong group
Spain could also select a host of Gunners, with David Raya, Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino all in the Spanish squad for a routine qualifying campaign.
La Roja, who the World Cup in 2010, have two-time winners of the World Cup, Uruguay, to contend with in Group H. They will be joined by Saudi Arabia, who beat eventual winners Argentina in the 2018 edition, as well as debutants Cabo Verde, who pipped Cameroon to qualify for the World Cup for the first time.
Elsewhere, Leandro Trossard's Belgium are not joined by any other European nations in Group G. Instead, they'll go up against Egypt, Iran and New Zealand, who are returning to the finals for the first time since 2010.
Brazil, who could have a trio of Gabriels in their squad for the finals in Gabriel Magalhaes, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus, have been handed a familiar-looking draw. Group C consists of Brazil, Morocco and Scotland, who all featured in the same group at the World Cup in 1998. The group is completed by Haiti, who last reached the World Cup in 1974.
Who can still make it?
While plenty of our Gunners already know their route to glory, a few are still looking to get their ticket to next summer's party.
Along with Viktor Gyokeres, another one of those is **Riccardo Calafiori'**s Italy, who are in the playoffs after missing out to Norway at the top of their qualifying group. Cala's Italy will take on Northern Ireland before potentially facing the winner of Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina for spot at the World Cup.
Should they advance, Italy will face hosts Canada, 2018 hosts Qatar and Switzerland in Group B of the competition.
Meanwhile, Christian Norgaard's Denmark is also looking to take the longer route to the finals. Denmark have been drawn against North Macedonia in the semi-finals before potentially facing Czechia or Ireland for a shootout to make it to USA, Mexico and Canada.
Should Norgaard and Denmark triumph, they'll be in a group with hosts Mexico, 2010 hosts South Africa and 2002 co-hosts South Korea in Group A.
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