New York's mayor has made his pick — and he's not hedging. In a video interview with The Guardian, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani predicted Morocco will win the 2026 World Cup — topping their group ahead of Brazil, beating Mexico and Colombia, and defeating France in the final.
Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York City, has picked Morocco to win the 2026 World Cup. Speaking in a video interview with The Guardian, the city’s mayor laid out a detailed bracket that ends with the Atlas Lions lifting the trophy — the first World Cup title in Moroccan football history. His prediction is unambiguous and his support for Morocco is well-documented: during the recent Africa Cup of Nations finals, Mamdani was spotted watching Atlas Lions matches at a Moroccan restaurant in New York and meeting members of the Moroccan community there.
Mamdani’s scenario begins in the group stage, with Morocco topping Group C ahead of Brazil. From there, he sees the Atlas Lions eliminate Mexico in the quarter-finals, beat Colombia in the semi-finals, and defeat France in the final — a rematch that would carry its own history, given France’s elimination at the hands of Morocco’s national team in the 2022 World Cup semi-finals.