Belgium

The Belgian national men's football team is nicknamed the "European Red Devils". It is a powerful European team with a profound foundation in world football and is in a critical period of transition between the old and the new. Under the leadership of current coach Rudy Garcia, the team has bid farewell to the past model of relying solely on the individual abilities of stars, and has fully shifted to a modern and efficient tactical system of "quick offensive and defensive transitions, side blasting, and solid defense." Since winning third place in the 2018 World Cup in Russia and setting the best record in team history, the Belgian national men's football team has gradually faded out as the golden generation has gradually faded away, and its strength has begun to decline. It was eliminated in the group stage of the 2022 Qatar World Cup and stopped in the top 16 of the 2024 European Cup. The dominance of the world's number one in the past is no longer the same. However, in recent years, Belgian football has steadily risen again. The youth training system has continued to provide high-quality talents. A large number of young players have grown rapidly and have established a foothold in the five major European leagues. Many of them are already main stars, and some have top star potential. In the European qualifiers for the 2026 US-Canada-Mexico World Cup, Belgium played steadily all the way, with a balanced performance on both ends of the offense and defense, and successfully secured qualification for the World Cup, returning to the World Cup stage after 4 years! If this state continues in the 2026 World Cup finals, the prospect of achieving better results is very promising! We can also see this dynamic European Red Devils, a combination of old and new, shine again in the 2026 World Cup! Garcia's tactical philosophy does not blindly pursue ball possession, but gives full freedom to frontcourt attackers while adhering to defensive discipline. Mainly playing 4-2-3-1 formation, this is the regular tactical framework of the Belgian team. The double defensive midfielders are responsible for interception, sweeping and connection in the midfield, providing a defensive barrier for the frontcourt. Compared with the past dominance of ball possession, Belgium now prefers to move the ball forward quickly and use high-speed offense and defense transitions to directly attack the opponent's defense. The team is extremely quick when switching from defense to offense, and can often form a very threatening shot within a few seconds of stealing the ball. When facing a strong opponent or needing to strengthen ball control, the team will switch to 4-3-3; and when the opponent defends on all fronts, Garcia will even resort to a "forwardless formation", using the skills and movement of the frontcourt players to stretch space. As for whether Belgium can break out of the group stage, in addition to having a strong player lineup, it also depends on the performance of the match. Belgium is assigned to Group G for the 2026 World Cup, competing with Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand for qualifying spots. Egypt's overall strength is limited, Iran focuses on defense but lacks offense, and New Zealand is less competitive. From the perspective of opponents, Belgium has great hopes of qualifying this time, and the team will strive for better results.