The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup semifinals are approaching, and Al Jazeera’s AJLabs evaluated nine top AI models to forecast the tournament’s outcome. The analysis factored in team strength, squad quality, coaching, historical performance, and current tournament results.
France secured the majority of AI predictions for the title, with five models (Gemini, Grok, DeepSeek, Le Chat, and Qwen) projecting them as champions. Argentina, the defending champions, received votes from four models (ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Meta AI). The runner-up race was tighter: France and Argentina each earned three votes, while England received two and Spain one. Spain dominated third-place predictions, with six models favoring them, compared to two for England and one for France.
The AI predictions highlight ongoing debates among models about recent form, squad depth, and momentum. France and Spain will clash in the semifinals on July 14 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. England and Argentina face off the next day, July 15, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The third-place playoff takes place on July 18, with the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Key Predictions Breakdown:
Champion: France (5 models), Argentina (4 models)
Runner-up: France (3 models), Argentina (3 models), England (2 models), Spain (1 model)
Third place: Spain (6 models), England (2 models), France (1 model)
