Changes

In the current form, the final tournament is contested by 32 nations who, with the exception of the host nation, are required to qualify by beating others from their region in a preliminary tournament.  The defending champion of the men's World Cup in 2026 is Argentina, which defeated [[France]] on penalty kicks in 2022. [[Brazil]] has won the most World Cups, with its total of 5.

In the current form, the final tournament is contested by 32 nations who, with the exception of the host nation, are required to qualify by beating others from their region in a preliminary tournament.  The defending champion of the men's World Cup in 2026 is Argentina, which defeated [[France]] on penalty kicks in 2022. [[Brazil]] has won the most World Cups, with its total of 5.

An exciting race for the career scoring leader heated up on 2026. During the 2026 World Cup, as of July 5, Lionel Messi was the all-time leader with 20 career goals, while [[Kylian Mbappe]] was in a close second with 19 career goals.

An exciting race for the career scoring leader heated up during the 2026 World Cup. As of July 5, [[Argentina]]'s Lionel Messi was the all-time leader with 20 career goals, while [[France]]'s [[Kylian Mbappe]] was in a close second with 19 career goals.

==Tournament Winners (men's)<ref>http://www.sportingchronicle.com/divisions/worldcupwinners.html</ref>==

==Tournament Winners (men's)<ref>http://www.sportingchronicle.com/divisions/worldcupwinners.html</ref>==

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==Dominance by Christian Nations==

==Dominance by Christian Nations==

It is notable that strongly Christian nations have won every World Cup.  [[Atheistic]] and non-[[Christian]] nations have all fared poorly It is also noticable that as a Nation's Christian ways has diminished, like [[Brazil]]'s increasing acceptance of [[gay marriage]], their performance has suffered also. In fact, Brazil have been the favorites for two of the last four tournaments and failed every time. In 2026, Brazil was shockingly defeated in the round of 16 by [[Norway]], which had never advanced as far as to the quarterfinals before.

It is notable that strongly Christian nations have won every World Cup.  [[Atheistic]] and non-[[Christian]] nations have all fared poorly It is also noticable that as a nation's Christian ways has diminished, like [[Brazil]]'s increasing acceptance of [[gay marriage]], their performance has suffered also. In fact, Brazil have been the favorites for two of the last four tournaments and failed every time. In 2026, Brazil was shockingly defeated in the round of 16 by [[Norway]], which had never advanced as far as to the quarterfinals before.

Another case in point is [[Spain]], who were knocked out in 2006, were only able to win in 2010 after losing 1-0 in the first match and only winning by a goal in each of their four knockout matches and were beaten easily in the group stages in 2014.

Another case in point is [[Spain]], who were knocked out in 2006, were only able to win in 2010 after losing 1-0 in the first match and only winning by a goal in each of their four knockout matches and were beaten easily in the group stages in 2014.