The World Cup Does not Include Eight of the Ten most Populous Nations

On June 17, Argentina’s Lionel Messi scored his first 2026 FIFA World Cup goal by coolly putting the ball past the Algerian goalkeeper, causing chaos in the crowded crowd. However, there was not a single Argentine in the crowd; instead, the fans bouncing around, many of them sporting the well-known albiceleste (white and sky blue) shirt, were locals attending one of the numerous outdoor watch parties in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka.

Cities in India and Indonesia have also hosted similarly impassioned street gatherings. These supporters have embraced Messi and his countrymen, partly due to the fact that their own countries have consistently missed out on World Cup qualification.

Only two of the ten most populous nations in the world Brazil and the United States have advanced to the current competition. Nigeria and Russia are two more that have participated in multiple prior competitions.

China and Indonesia have only once taken part in the most popular sporting event on the planet.

Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Pakistan, and India the most populous country in the world have only fantasized about attending the party thus far, despite the fact that India officially qualified for the 1950 World Cup in Brazil but withdrew less than a month before the competition began.It is absolutely intolerable that a country with millions of football lovers should lag so far behind in football,” famed Bangladeshi actor, writer and football aficionado Audite Karim tells the BBC.

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