World Cup 2018: Everything you need to know about all 32 teams competing for the biggest prize in football

World rank: No. 14

Odds to win group: 2/3

Odds to win World Cup: 30/1

Key players: Luis Suarez, Diego Godin

Best case scenario: Uruguay runs through Russia and the rest of its group to snag a cushy spot in the elimination bracket, then pulls an upset or two to reach the semifinal.

Worst case scenario: After falling to Russia's home field advantage and a Ballon d'Or worthy performance from Mohamed Salah for Egypt, Uruguay fails to escape the surprisingly winnable group.

World rank: No. 45

Odds to win group: 6/1

Odds to win World Cup: 200/1

Key players: Mohamed Salah, Ahmed Hegazi

Best case scenario: Mohamed Salah continues his astonishing year, leading Egypt to not only its first ever victory in a World Cup match, but a spot in the elimination stage of the tournament. Salah nets two goals in the first knockout game to upset Spain as he becomes even more of an international sensation.

Worst case scenario: Salah's injury suffered in the Champions League final is worse than initially suspected, forcing him play below his usual level. Losses to Uruguay and Russia leave the team with only its first win to play for in the final game of the group stage against Saudi Arabia.

World rank: No. 67

Odds to win group: 40/1

Odds to win World Cup: 1000/1

Key players: Mohammad al-Sahlawi, Fahad al-Muwallad

Best case scenario: With the eyes of the world watching, Saudi Arabia comes out swinging and pulls of a shocking win over the hosts in the first game of the tournament, securing the country's biggest victory in over 20 years.

Worst case scenario: The team fails to score a goal through its three group stage games, matching its disappointing last place finish in 2002 and leaving fans without even a highlight to hold onto until the next World Cup.

World rank: No. 4

Odds to win group: 2/1

Odds to win World Cup: 25/1

Key players: Cristiano Ronaldo, Rui Patricio

Best case scenario: Cristiano Ronaldo continues his astounding run by winning the biggest prize that's eluded his career thus far. Rui Patricio shows the same unbelievable flashes in goal that helped propel Portugal to the Euro 2016 title.

Worst case scenario: Portugal's defense disappoints and Ronaldo's goal-scoring prowess isn't able to keep pace alone, forcing the team into an early exit.

World rank: No. 10

Odds to win group: 4/9

Odds to win World Cup: 6/1

Key players: Diego Costa, David Silva, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Ramos

Best case scenario: Spain bests Portugal to win their group, gets a favorable path through the elimination stage, and wins a few toss-up matches against other international power houses to win the tournament.

Worst case scenario: Cristiano Ronaldo hangs a hat trick on Spain in the group stage, leaving the team to sweat out a second place finish and forcing them on a much tougher route to the championship.

World rank: No. 37

Odds to win group: 40/1

Odds to win World Cup: 500/1

Key players: Sardar Azmoun, Ehsan Hajsafi

Best case scenario: While escaping the group appears to be all but impossible, a win against Morocco would be a huge result for the country.

Worst case scenario: Iran matches its winless, one-goal performance from 2014.

World rank: No. 41

Odds to win group: 16/1

Odds to win World Cup: 500/1

Key players: Ayoub El Kaabi, Hakim Ziyech

Best case scenario: A win over Iran in the opening match ensures that group stage matches against Portugal and Spain will at least be worth something.

Worst case scenario: Morocco drops a heartbreaker to Iran and gets run over in subsequent matches. The team's biggest highlight of the tournament is being known as the squad that Ronaldo got his hat trick against.

World rank: No. 7

Odds to win group: 2/7

Odds to win World Cup: 6/1

Key players: Olivier Giroud, Hugo Lloris, Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe

Best case scenario: Les Bleus run undefeated through their opening matches of the tournament, get lucky with the elimination draw, and are able to waltz all the way to the semifinal, then take down Germany and Brazil or whichever other two powerhouses remain in between them and the trophy.

Worst case scenario: France disappoints in the group stage with a second place finish, and is eliminated by a dominant Lionel Messi performance in its first elimination game.

World rank: No. 11

Odds to win group: 9/1

Odds to win World Cup: 200/1

Key players: Paolo Guerrero, Alberto Rodríguez, Pedro Gallese

Best case scenario: Peru secures a win early against Denmark — its first at the World Cup since 1978 — and needs only a good showing against Australia to escape the group stage.

Worst case scenario: Denmark steals the win in the opening match, leaving Peru in the unfortunate position of needing to take points off of France in order to advance to the knockout round.

World rank: No. 12

Odds to win group: 9/2

Odds to win World Cup: 100/1

Key players: Christian Eriksen, Thomas Delaney

Best case scenario: After failing to even qualify for Euro 2016, Denmark sweeps through the group with an upset of France in its final game of the stage, setting the team up for a favorable matchup in the elimination bracket. Eriksen plays the role of both creator and finisher, moving a newly found offense forward.

Worst case scenario: Flashbacks to the 2010 World Cup return as Denmark's trip to Russia is cut unceremonious short after coming out flat against Peru.

World rank: No. 36

Odds to win group: 20/1

Odds to win World Cup: 500/1

Key players: Tim Cahill, Aaron Mooy, Mathew Ryan

Best case scenario: Tim Cahill gives Aussie fans a reason to cheer with a thrilling goal at some point during the final World Cup of his career. The team nabs a result from one of its first two games to ensure the final match of the group stage is meaningful.

Worst case scenario: The Socceroos never recover after a devastating loss to France to open the tournament, repeating their 0-3 showing from the 2014 World Cup.

World rank: No. 5

Odds to win group: 4/7

Odds to win World Cup: 6/1

Key players: Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero

Best case scenario: Messi continues to prove why he's the best player in the world, winning the golden boot and getting enough help from his teammates to march all the way to the final. Sergio Aguero plays hero in an elimination game to finally find his first World Cup goal in his third trip to the competition.

Worst case scenario: After a tougher-than-expected group stage, Argentina faces strong team effort in the elimination stage of the tournament and falls short as Messi goes cold. Aguero misses at another crucial juncture.

World rank: No. 20

Odds to win group: 11/5

Odds to win World Cup: 30/1

Key players: Mario Mandzukic, Luke Mondric, Ivan Rakitic

Best case scenario: Mondric and Rakitic swarm the midfield and the team opens the tournament with a dominant performance over Nigeria and is able to steal a point off of Argentina to cruise into the elimination round.

Worst case scenario: Iceland takes down Croatia in the final game of the group stage in a 1-0 slugfest reminiscent of the one the teams played in World Cup qualifying, leaving the team to exit the pitch to triumphant SKOL chants from opposing fans.

World rank: No. 22

Odds to win group: 12/1

Odds to win World Cup: 200/1

Key players: Gylfi Sigurdsson, Albert Gudmundsson

Best case scenario: Iceland recreates the magic it captured at Euro 2016, stealing a draw from Argentina with a late goal in the opening match and then jumping out to an early 2-0 lead against Nigeria that proves good enough to hold. The team enters the knockout stage as the feel-good story of the tournament.

Worst case scenario: The smallest country to ever qualify for the World Cup gets exposed after everyone gets their hopes up, disappointing soccer fans the world over with a winless showing.

World rank: No. 48

Odds to win group: 11/1

Odds to win World Cup: 250/1

Key players: Mikel John Obi, Alex Iwobi

Best case scenario: Alex Iwobi plays hero to help Nigeria secure a victory over Iceland or Croatia — just the country's second World Cup win since 1998.

Worst case scenario: Nigeria falls to Iceland in the midst of another magical run, becoming a footnote to their story of the tournament.

World rank: No. 2

Odds to win group: 2/9

Odds to win World Cup: 4/1

Key players: Neymar, Thiago Silva, Philippe Coutinho

Best case scenario: Brazil overcomes the ghosts that still linger from their 2014 collapse, decisively defeating Germany in the final to win a world-leading sixth World Cup title.

Worst case scenario: An unexpected stumble in the group stage sees Brazil finish behind Costa Rica or Switzerland, leading the team to be paired with Germany in its first elimination game of the tournament, where they suffer another devastating loss.

World rank: No. 6

Odds to win group: 7/1

Odds to win World Cup: 125/1

Key players: Haris Seferovic, Granit Xhaka, Stephan Lichtsteiner

Best case scenario: A solid game against Brazil gives the Swiss team confindence to escape the group, and a shocking upset in the elimination bracket sees Switzerland through to the quarterfinals for the first time since 1954.

Worst case scenario: Brazil throws a haymaker in the first game of the tournament for both teams, and a showdown with Serbia turns into an elimination match before the team can catch its collective breath.

World rank: No. 23

Odds to win group: 18/1

Odds to win World Cup: 300/1

Key players: Bryan Ruiz, Marco Ureña

Best case scenario: Costa Rica secures three points against Serbia, but loses to Brazil, setting up a win-or-go-home game against Switzerland to close out the group stage.

Worst case scenario: After dropping the opener to Serbia, Costa Rica gets blown out by a surging Brazil side and has no shot at the knockout stage heading into the team's final game.

World rank: No. 34

Odds to win group: 8/1

Odds to win World Cup: 200/1

Key players: Nemanja Matic, Aleksandar Mitrovic

Best case scenario: Brazil goes undefeated through the group stage, but the three remaining teams all go 1-1 against each other. Serbia sneaks into the knockout stage for the first time since 1998 on goal differential.

Worst case scenario: With the offense sputtering, Serbia stumbles against Switzerland or Costa Rica to leave the team with a must-win match against Brazil to close the group stage.

World rank: No. 1

Odds to win group: 2/7

Odds to win World Cup: 7/2

Key players: Mesut Ozil, Thomas Muller, Manuel Neuer

Best case scenario: The reigning champions dominate the whole way through the tournament, never trailing and tying Brazil with an all-time leading five World Cup titles.

Worst case scenario: It's tough to imagine any way Germany fails to make it to the quarterfinals, but in the late stages of the tournament, there are numerous teams — England, Portugal, and Spain to name a few — that would be nominal underdogs to Germany but definitely have the horses to take the team down during any given run of 90 minutes.

World rank: No. 15

Odds to win group: 11/2

Odds to win World Cup: 50/1

Key players: Javier Hernandez, Carlos Vela

Best case scenario: Mexico announces their arrival in their first game of the tournament, with Chicharito scoring early to take down the reigning champions before going on to sweep the group. After being knocked out in the round of 16 for six consecutive World Cups, El Tri finally bucks the trend to make a run to the semifinals.

Worst case scenario: Mexico survives the group but finish in second place, setting up a knockout round matchup with Brazil that quickly turns into a blowout, continuing the team's curse of disappointment when it matters most.

World rank: No. 23

Odds to win group: 7/1

Odds to win World Cup: 150/1

Key players: Marcus Berg, Andreas Granqvist, Emil Forsberg

Best case scenario: Sweden wins its opener over South Korea comfortably, and defeats Mexico to secure a spot in the elimination bracket.

Worst case scenario: South Korea shocks the Swedes in their first game, leaving the team with the daunting task of stealing points from Germany in order to stay alive in the tournament.

World rank: No. 61

Odds to win group: 20/1

Odds to win World Cup: 500/1

Key players: Son Heung-min, Ki Sung-yueng

Best case scenario: Competitive matches against Mexico and Sweden leave South Korea with a chance to sneak into the knockout bracket entering the final day of the group stage.

Worst case scenario: South Korea is swept out of an admittedly tough group, heading home empty-handed.

World rank: No. 3

Odds to win group: 2/3

Odds to win World Cup: 10/1

Key players: Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Mousa Dembele

Best case scenario: Eden Hazard leads a confident side to an undefeated run through the group stage, and Belgium matches is best-ever World Cup finish with a trip to the semifinal.

Worst case scenario: And Panama draw and big loss to England shockingly runs Belgium out of the tournament before the elimination stage.

World rank: No. 13

Odds to win group: 5/4

Odds to win World Cup: 20/1

Key players: Harry Kane, Deli Alli, Raheem Sterling

Best case scenario: Harry Kane links up with Tottenham teammate Deli Alli in an unstoppable combination and finishes as the top goal-scorer in the tournament, striking a hat trick at just the right moment to carry England to a coin-toss matchup in the semifinal or final.

Worst case scenario: Panama catches England as off-guard as they caught the United States Men's National Team, and the Three Lions find themselves on the outside looking in as the tournament turns to the elimination stage.

World rank: No. 21

Odds to win group: 18/1

Odds to win World Cup: 500/1

Key players: Wahbi Khazri, Ferjani Sassi

Best case scenario: After a 1-1 draw against England in their opening match of the tournament, a series of teams splitting games leaves Tunisia with a shot to advance into the elimination stage heading into their final game of group play against Panama.

Worst case scenario: Tunisia loses its first two games, and England and Belgium secure the top two spots before the final game of group play, meaning their final game against Panama is played strictly for pride.

World rank: No. 55

Odds to win group: 50/1

Odds to win World Cup: 1000/1

Key players: Luis Tejada, Gabriel Torres, Jaime Penedo

Best case scenario: Panama brings some of the late-game magic that helped the team qualify for their first ever World Cup to the tournament, and the team enters its final game of the group stage still alive to advance. 36-year-old keeper Jaime Penedo provides a few memorable moments in his first World Cup match after 130 caps with the national team.

Worst case scenario: Panama is swept out of its first two games against England and Belgium without putting up much of a fight, and then stumble against Tunisia to leave the tournament still seeking their first World Cup victory.

World rank: No. 10

Odds to win group: 17/10

Odds to win World Cup: 40/1

Key players: Robert Lewandowski, Jakub Blaszczykowski

Best case scenario: Lewandowski builds on his astonishing 16 goals during World Cup qualifying and Poland rolls through the group stage to make it to the knockout stage for the first time since 1986. A well-timed hat trick earns Lewandowski the Golden Boot as he carries his team all the way to the semifinal.

Worst case scenario: Poland's shaky defense leaves the team in a do-or-die group stage match and with an unfavorable placement in the elimination bracket should they prevail in it.

World rank: No. 16

Odds to win group: 13/10

Odds to win World Cup: 40/1

Key players: Radamel Falcao, James Rodriguez

Best case scenario: After an undefeated run through their relatively easy group stage, Colombia storms through two games and reach its first ever World Cup semifinal.

Worst case scenario: Colombia drops one of its first two matches, making its third match of the group stage against Senegal a do-or-die affair.

World rank: No. 28

Odds to win group: 19/4

Odds to win World Cup: 200/1

Key players: Sadio Mane, Moussa Konate

Best case scenario: Senegal takes down Colombia to win the group, then pulls a shocking upset against Germany or England in the knockout round to match the team's quarterfinal run from 2010.

Worst case scenario: After a heartbreaking loss to Poland in the opening match, the team never recovers and leaves Russia without a win.

World rank: No. 60

Odds to win group: 7/1

Odds to win World Cup: 300/1

Key players: Shinji Okazaki, Shinji Kagawa, Eiji Kawashima

Best case scenario: Japan avenges its 4-1 loss to Colombia at the 2014 World Cup by eeking out a draw in the opening match, keeping the team alive through the final game of the group stage.

Worst case scenario: Colombia repeats its 4-1 dominance from four years ago and the team is done playing meaningful games before they could even begin.