The Coupe de France, a staple of French footballing tradition, is a competition that runs from the top division and down to the depths of the French lower leagues. Much like the FA Cup in England, this competition allows smaller clubs to gain notoriety, financial benefits and exciting ties against the giants of the competition. The Coupe de France however is slightly different, in fact, teams can travel thousands of miles to play a singular cup game.

The 2026 World Cup is now only two years away and already in some regions of the globe qualification for the tournament has begun, Africa, Asian and South America (Conmebol) have played numerous games with the usual suspects leading the way in most stages.

The likes of Argentina, Egypt and Japan currently sitting top of their respective groups. With this tournament to be like no other, the format expanding from 32 teams up to 48, but what does this mean?