World Cup Group Previews: Group B, the 'Group of Geopolitical Intrigue'

The United States got itself into what is arguably the most interesting geopolitical group in the tournament, facing its old Revolutionary War nemesis in England, as well as England's neighbor Wales (the inspiration for the “How many countries are in this country? Four” joke from the original sketch bit that launched Ted Lasso) and the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

Of course, as keen World Cup observers know, the U.S. has faced two of these three teams in fairly recent World Cup history – the U.S. drew England 1-1 in 2010, with Clint Dempsey getting a ridiculous goal past Rob Green in what was awesomely dubbed the “Hand of Clod” by a bitter British tabloid writer, and lost to Iran 2-1 to close out a disastrous 1998 campaign. 

Here's where things stand for the Americans and their opponents, as Group B action kicks off Nov. 21 and rolls on through the Thanksgiving holiday. 

FIFA Rankings 

(as of October 6, 2022)

England, 5

USA, 16

Wales, 19

Iran, 20

Populations

(according to World Population Review)

USA: 338,289,857

Iran: 88,550,570

England: 57,367,811 

Wales: 3,193,665

World Cup history

England

England will be at its 16th World Cup in 2022, with a history that dates back to 1950. As any English soccer fan will be sure to tell you, England has won a World Cup — back in 1966 when it was the host nation. It made the semis in 2018, falling to Croatia and silencing one of the most enduring slogans of the tournament, “It’s coming home.” (It did not, indeed, come home.) Still, that 2018 fourth-place finish equaled 1990 for the Three Lions’ best outing since winning it all. 

USA

The U.S. returns to the global soccer stage after infamously failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup after seven straight prior tournaments. It will be the 11th all-time World Cup for the Americans — one of just 13 teams to appear at the first World Cup in 1930 in Uruguay, where it got to its all-time best third-place finish. The Yanks, who hosted in 1994, are also guaranteed entrance into the 2026 edition as one of three host nations. 

Wales

This will be just the second appearance for Wales — who may participate in future tournaments as Cymru, which is what Welsh people call their homeland. Wales got to the quarterfinals in the 1958 edition of the World Cup but haven’t been back since. 

Iran

It will be the sixth World Cup appearance for Team Melli and their third consecutive display at the tournament. Iran has never made it past the group stage in its history. Its participation is adding to the turmoil around this Qatar-hosted World Cup. According to Iran International Newsroom, former Iran goalkeeper Sosha Makan is asking for fans to boycott the tournament following the suspicious death of Nika Shakarami, a 16-year-old girl who perished 10 days after participating in a protest against required hijab wearing. Other athletes in the country are calling for FIFA to expel Iran over the controversy. 

How they got here

England

The Three Lions won Group I in UEFA qualifying, besting Poland and four other challenges, to advance to the World Cup in fairly easy fashion. 

USA

The States finished third in Concacaf World Cup qualifying, getting 25 points on 14 matches in the final WCQ octagon by going 7W-4D-3D through that 14-game journey. They beat out Costa Rica (who also landed on 25 points, and beat the U.S. in the finale) for the all-important third spot on goal differential, sending their rivals to the intercontinental playoff and escaping that fate. 

Wales

The Dragons were the last team to get in after a European playoff delayed by one of the contestants, Ukraine, being involved in a literal war to maintain its sovereignty from Russian invaders. Wales finished second in Group B behind Belgium, and then beat Ukraine 1-0 in June (after Ukraine dispatched Scotland to get to the play-in game) to get into Group B. (Because of the delay, Wales’ final qualifying win came after the World Cup draw, so Wales knew they’d get into a group with England should they beat the team most of the world was rooting for.) 

Iran

Iran automatically qualified for the second round of the Asian Football Confederation qualifying due to being one of the top 34 ranked countries in Asia, before finishing atop the second round’s Group C, and then atop the third round’s Group A to automatically punch its ticket to Qatar. 

The cast of characters

England is, of course, loaded with talent, starting with team captain Harry Kane, rising stars Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden, and veteran defenders like Kyle Walker (70 caps) and Harry Maguire (48 caps). Watch enough Premier League, and you’ll see a good chunk of the England roster in action. 

The U.S. team, announced Nov. 9 in a New York event meant to inspire optimism, includes FC Dallas standout (and possibly best of the U.S. No. 9s, though that’s certainly a discussion) Jesus Ferreira, other striker selections Josh Sargent and (surprisingly, over Ricardo Pepi) Haji Wright, the heralded MMA midfield of Weston McKennie (battling through another injury in sort of a star-crossed year), Yunus Musah and Tyler Adams — plus, of course, Christian Pulisic, who might not be the best player on this team but is still the most talismanic and can still be counted on to deliver vital goals, such as the 2021 Nations League PK against Mexico in the final.

Wales, of course, is still Gareth Bale’s team, though Kieffer Moore (who plays for Bournemouth) is the last Welsh player to score in international action. Aaron Ramsey, another longtime standout with an international club pedigree, hasn’t been called up since June, so it might be left to the likes of Matthew Smith and Ethan Ampadu to patrol the midfield. 

Iran’s success may be contingent on Sardar Azmoun, the Bayer Leverkusen forward who suffered a calf injury in early October potentially keeping him out of action until either right before or right after the World Cup. Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Mehdi Taremi are other options for famed Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz and can certainly score goals when called upon. Amidst some controversy, Iran was late in naming its roster but did so — one short of the maximum 26 allowed, and with four goalkeepers compared to most nations opting for three. 

A name to remember (who might not be on your radar) 

If you’ve read my book, you might remember Queiroz was the architect of Project 2010, a plan to elevate the U.S. to World Cup contender status. Though some of his Q-Report recommendations are, in a word, fanciful, staples of USMNT development like the Generation Adidas program and the longstanding youth camp in Bradenton, Florida — launching the likes of Landon Donovan, DaMarcus Beasley and Jozy Altidore, and more recently, Kellyn Acosta, Paul Arriola and Chrisitan Pulisic. 

Quieroz has been something of a traveler in world soccer: In addition to coaching Iran, which he did from 2011 to 2019 and then resumed again this year, he’s coached a number of other international squads, including Colombia, Egypt, Portugal, South Africa, and United Arab Emirates — as well as helming Real Madrid for 10 months in 2003-2004, serving as a Manchester United assistant for two different stints and, going way back into the MLS history books, overseeing the MetroStars (now the Red Bulls) in 1996. 

Phil West’s Mascot Fight Corner

Who would win in a battle royal among all four mascots? 

This all comes down to whether you believe in fantasy or whether you are mired strictly in real life, and it also probably depends on how much Dungeons & Dragons you played in your youth (or, ya know, now). 

Wales is represented by the dragon that also lives on its flag. England, of course, is the Three Lions (so count of three of them working together). Iran has adopted the cheetah as its mascot. The U.S. goes by the Yanks, which stems from the word Yankee. According to National Geographic, the term was an insult given to Union loyalists from Confederates during the Civil War before its wider post-war applications, and may derive from the Cherokee word eankke, which means coward.

In a fight scenario, it’s likely that cheetahs run (because they’re fast) and Yankees run (because of the etymology), leaving an indeterminate number of dragons to fight three lions. As someone who has played Dungeons & Dragons (and will do so in the future), I’m giving this to Wales.  

Who is most likely to advance from the group?

Going with just the FIFA rankings, it would be the Three Lions and the Yanks, but September’s pair of friendlies in Europe did not instill a lot of confidence in American fans. It all might hinge on the final pair of matches on Nov. 29, which has an England-Wales border war as well as a U.S.-Iran match that might not be as emotionally pitched as the disastrous 1998 one but will still carry loads of tension. While we’ll go with chalk here, any of the four teams could credibly advance in what has a claim — with all four teams in FIFA’s top 20 — as a Group of Death.