The former football player and commentator on the Socceroos’ World Cup tilt, the multicultural legacy of the sport and what it might take for the team to one day win the tournament

On a drizzly Tuesday morning at Sydney Harbour, I am doing something that would make me the envy of a great many football-fevered Australians: quizzing Craig Foster on his World Cup opinions.

Foster is, as ever, being a good sport about it. As we huddle under the Harbour Bridge for shelter, the beloved Socceroo turned commentator is telling me rapid fire who he thinks should win the 2026 trophy now that Australia’s out (Spain or France), the best match so far (that shock Belgium v Senegal twister) and his take on penalty shootouts (“I don’t agree with people who say they’re just a lottery – they are the best test of nerve in all of world sport”). Then there’s the players he roots for, and the ones he doesn’t.

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