Now that the World Cup draw pots are set, the descending hours before the official draw is where the fun truly lies. The fact that it is just a draw out of a hat (or bucket) makes it more fun than a mock draft or trade deadline plug-and-play simply because it feels more tangible. There are no team’s needs or front-office politics to consider. This is literally the luck of the draw.
The group of death iterations seem endless, especially with seven of the eight Pot 1 nations looking this formidable. And the fact that there are three teams not yet known, due to the remaining playoffs to be played in June, adds extra intrigue to the mix. Not only are we waiting on two intercontinental playoffs, but Wales (ranked 19th in the world) could very well emerge from the remaining European playoff and will still come out of Pot 4, anyway.
Of course, all of this speculation comes to an end at Friday around 12 p.m. ET when the draw takes place. But for now while we still can, let’s expect the worst.
