Thomas Tuchel isn’t just talking about “doing well” at the World Cup next summer he’s openly talking about winning it. And for once, it doesn’t feel like delusion. It feels… real.
Since taking over at the start of the year, Tuchel has turned England into a machine:
- 8 wins from 8 in qualifying
- 8 clean sheets
- A team that finally looks like it knows exactly what it’s doing, with and without the ball
You can feel this is England’s new dawn under Tuchel, a proper brave frontier for the national team, the kind of shift people have been dreaming about for years.
You can hear it in the way he speaks before the draw in Washington DC not arrogant, but absolutely fearless. He keeps coming back to one thing: team spirit. For Tuchel, tactics are huge, but mentality is everything.
If the players bring that fight for each other, anything is possible.
That’s classic Tuchel. This is a coach who’s lived Champions League knockout nights, who’s seen what happens when a group of players completely buy in. And right now, England’s players clearly have.
He’s not interested in “easy” draws either. No praying to avoid Brazil, Argentina, France – nothing like that. In fact, he hates the idea.
He calls wishing for weaker opponents “close to arrogance”. He’s seen enough tournaments to know: the moment you think you’re superior, football slaps you in the face. Group of death, group of life Tuchel’s message is simple: bring it on.
Scotland in the group? He shrugs: if it happens, it happens. Big game, big story, no fear.
What really shows his experience, though, is how he’s already thinking about the fine margins:
- Heat and humidity across the US, Canada and Mexico
- Long travel distances
- Thunderstorm delays
- Even keeping subs in the dressing room during extreme temperatures so they’re fresher when they come on
You only hear that level of detail from a coach who leaves nothing to chance.
Off the pitch, the FA is matching that energy. Kansas City is lined up as a potential base in the middle of the US, with a pre-tournament camp in Fort Lauderdale and warm-up games at Inter Miami’s stadium. Every scenario mapped. Every small edge hunted.
Put it all together and you feel it: Tuchel’s England aren’t just hopeful outsiders anymore they look like genuine World Cup 2026 contenders.
This isn’t just “hope England do well”.
This is: we’re going there to try and win the whole thing.
And for once, when you hear Tuchel say it… you can’t help but think:
