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JUMP TO:
- Netherlands projected starting 11
- Japan projected starting 11
- Netherlands and Japan World Cup rosters
- Netherlands vs. Japan odds, prediction
- How to watch Netherlands vs. Japan
World Cup darlings Netherlands will open their 2026 FIFA World Cup slate with their toughest Group F match as they meet giant-killers Japan in their tournament opener on Sunday in Dallas.
The Dutch have never won the FIFA World Cup, having made three finals — the most of any team without a title — losing all three affairs.
Ranked eighth in the world by FIFA, coming into the 2026 tournament, the Netherlands have received significant chatter that this year's team could potentially be the ones to break the Dutch curse at the World Cup.
They will first have to get by 18th-ranked Japan, who downed both Spain and Germany in the World Cup group stage four years ago and are familiar with punching above their weight.
The Sporting News brings you a look at the projected starting lineups for both teams, as well as an overview of their World Cup squads, plus odds, predictions, and how to watch the game.
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Netherlands predicted starting 11
(4-3-3, right to left): 1. Verbruggen (GK) — 15. van de Ven, 4. van Dijk, 6. van Hecke, 22. Dumfries — 8. Gravenberch, 14. Reijnders, 21. de Jong — 24. Summerville, 18. Malen, 11. Gakpo.
- Injured: Timber (groin), de Ligt (back), Simons (ACL)
- Suspended: None
Head coach Ronald Koeman has made a number of big calls as the Dutch head closer to the start of their World Cup. The biggest was he left Liverpool full-back/winger Jeremie Frimpong off the roster, a surprise even as he struggled in his first season at Anfield. Also snubbed was veteran defender Stefan de Vrij, with Brighton standout Jean-Paul van Hecke seemingly chosen to start alongside captain Virgil van Dijk at the back.
Xavi Simons was a lock to make the World Cup roster, but tore his ACL down the stretch of the club season with Tottenham. Jurrien Timber was set to start at right-back, but after returning from injury to play in the Champions League final for Arsenal, seems to have re-aggrivated the issue and had to withdraw from the squad.
Starting goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen took a hard fall in the friendly win over Uzbekistan last weekend, but has returned to first-team training and therefore is likely to retain his place in net.
Japan predicted starting 11
(4-2-3-1, right to left): 1. Suzuki (GK) — 15. Tomiyasu, 22. Yoshida, 4. Itakura — 10. Doan, 6. Endo, 7. Tanaka, 13. Nakamura — 8. Kubo, 18. Ueda, 14. Ito.
- Injured: Mitoma (hamstring), Endo (foot).
- Suspended: None
Japan suffered two devastating injuries to their two best players, as both Kaoru Mitoma and Wataru Endo will miss the World Cup. Mitoma suffered a bad hamstring injury towards the end of the Premier League season, while Endo's season-long foot issues have extended to the summer, forcing him to retire from international duty at 33 years old.
That has left the side without a pair of leading members of the squad. They will have to lean heavily on former Real Madrid signing Takefusa Kubo and Feyenoord standout Ayase Ueda up front to create goal scoring chances. Ueda in particular is coming off a strong club season in which he led the Eredivisie in scoring with 25 goals over the 2025/26 campaign.
Netherlands and Japan World Cup rosters
Here are the names on the Mexico and South Africa World Cup rosters. All caps and stats are correct as of the date of their announcement in May 2026.
MORE: Every World Cup squad for all 48 participants
Netherlands World Cup squad
Head coach: Ronald Koeman
| GK | 23 | Mark Flekken | Bayer Leverkusen (Bundesliga, Germany) | 32 | 11 |
| GK | 13 | Robin Roefs | Sunderland (Premier League, England) | 23 | 0 |
| GK | 1 | Bart Verbruggen | Brighton (Premier League, England) | 23 | 27 |
| DEF | 5 | Nathan Ake | Man City (Premier League, England) | 31 | 58 |
| DEF | 4 | Virgil van Dijk | Liverpool (Premier League, England) | 34 | 90 |
| DEF | 22 | Denzel Dumfries | Inter Milan (Serie A, Italy) | 30 | 71 |
| DEF | 2 | Lutsharel Geertruida | Sunderland (Premier League, England) | 25 | 21 |
| DEF | 25 | Jorrel Hato | Chelsea (Premier League, England) | 20 | 7 |
| DEF | 6 | Jan Paul van Hecke | Brighton (Premier League, England) | 25 | 10 |
| DEF | 15 | Micky van de Ven | Tottenham (Premier League, England) | 25 | 19 |
| MID | 8 | Ryan Gravenberch | Liverpool (Premier League, England) | 24 | 25 |
| MID | 20 | Teun Koopmeiners | Juventus (Serie A, Italy) | 28 | 27 |
| MID | 21 | Frenkie de Jong | Barcelona (La Liga, Spain) | 29 | 64 |
| MID | 14 | Tijjani Reijnders | Man City (Premier League, England) | 27 | 30 |
| MID | 3 | Marten de Roon | Atalanta (Serie A, Italy) | 35 | 42 |
| MID | 16 | Guus Til | PSV Eindhoven (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 28 | 6 |
| MID | 26 | Quinten Timber | Marseille (Ligue 1, France) | 28 | 6 |
| MID | 12 | Mats Wieffer | Brighton (Premier League, England) | 26 | 14 |
| FWD | 19 | Brian Brobbey | Sunderland (Premier League, England) | 24 | 10 |
| FWD | 10 | Memphis Depay | Corinthians (Serie A, Brazil) | 32 | 108 |
| FWD | 11 | Cody Gakpo | Liverpool (Premier League, England) | 27 | 48 |
| FWD | 7 | Justin Kluivert | Bournemouth (Premier League, England) | 27 | 11 |
| FWD | 17 | Noa Lang | Galatasaray (Super Lig, Turkey) | 26 | 15 |
| FWD | 18 | Donyell Malen | AS Roma (Serie A, Italy) | 27 | 51 |
| FWD | 24 | Crysencio Summerville | West Ham (Championship, England) | 24 | 0 |
| FWD | 9 | Wout Weghorst | Ajax (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 33 | 51 |
Japan World Cup squad
Head coach: Hajime Moriyasu
| GK | 1 | Zion Suzuki | Parma (Serie A, Italy) | 23 | 23 |
| GK | 12 | Keisuke Osako | Sanfrecce Hiroshima (J1 League, Japan) | 26 | 11 |
| GK | 23 | Tomoki Hayakawa | Kashima Antlers (J1 League, Japan) | 27 | 3 |
| DEF | 15/22 | Takehiro Tomiyasu | Ajax (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 27 | 42 |
| DEF | 4 | Ko Itakura | Ajax (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 29 | 39 |
| DEF | 2 | Yukinari Sugawara | Werder Bremen (Bundesliga, Germany) | 15 | 20 |
| DEF | 3 | Shogo Taniguchi | Sint-Truiden (Pro League, Belgium) | 34 | 37 |
| DEF | 20 | Ayumu Seko | Le Havre (Ligue 1, France) | 25 | 13 |
| DEF | 16 | Tsuyoshi Watanabe | Feyenoord (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 29 | 10 |
| DEF | 5 | Yuto Nagatomo | FC Tokyo (J1 League, Japan) | 39 | 144 |
| DEF | 21 | Hiroki Ito | Bayern Munich (Bundesliga, Germany) | 27 | 23 |
| DEF | 25 | Junnosuke Suzuki | Copenhagen (Superliga, Denmark) | 22 | 6 |
| MID | 10 | Ritsu Doan | Eintracht Frankfurt (Bundesliga, Germany) | 27 | 64 |
| MID | 13 | Keito Nakamura | Reims (Ligue 1, France) | 25 | 24 |
| MID | 14 | Junya Ito | Genk (Pro League, Belgium) | 33 | 68 |
| MID | 15 | Daichi Kamada | Crystal Palace (Premier League, England) | 29 | 49 |
| MID | 7 | Ao Tanaka | Leeds United (Premier League, England) | 27 | 37 |
| MID | 24 | Kaishu Sano | Mainz (Bundesliga, Germany) | 25 | 12 |
| FWD | 8 | Takefusa Kubo | Real Sociedad (La Liga, Spain) | 24 | 48 |
| FWD | 17 | Yuito Suzuki | Freiburg (Bundesliga, Germany) | 24 | 6 |
| FWD | 26 | Kento Shiogai | Wolfsburg (Bundesliga, Germany) | 21 | 1 |
| FWD | 11 | Daizen Maeda | Celtic (Premiership, Scotland) | 28 | 27 |
| FWD | 18 | Ayase Ueda | Feyenoord (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 27 | 38 |
| FWD | 19 | Koki Ogawa | NEC Nijmegen (Eredivisie, Netherlands) | 28 | 14 |
| FWD | 9 | Keisuke Goto | Anderlecht (Pro League, Belgium) | 20 | 3 |
Netherlands vs. Japan prediction, betting odds
| DraftKings (USA) | |
| Netherlands win | -105 |
| Draw | +250 |
| Japan win | +265 |
| Both teams to score | Y: -130 N: +105 |
| Over / Under 2.5 goals | O: -110 U: -115 |
| Netherlands -0.5 goals | -105 |
| Japan +0.5 goals | -120 |
- Prediction: Netherlands 1-1 Japan
The Netherlands shouldn't have any problem escaping group stage play, but they will have their hands full against Japan. The Dutch looked listless for most of their warmup friendly against Uzbekistan last weekend, a game in which the Netherlands dominated but had few clear-cut goal scoring chances and spurned many of those they did create.
Unless they up the tempo against Japan, it could be another long day for the Dutch to begin the tournament. Japan, meanwhile, are missing a number of key players, but defensively are still a strong team that enters this competition without having conceded a goal in five straight matches, dating back to a 3-2 friendly win over Brazil last October.
Where to watch Netherlands vs. Japan
- TV channel: FOX
- Live stream: fubo, Fox One, Fox Sports app/website
This match will be broadcast nationally on Fox in the United States with streaming options available on its dedicated platforms.
The best place to catch the match is on streaming service fubo, with new customers able to sign up a for a FREE trial.
Fubo offers a free trial for new subscribers, so you can try the service before you buy. Stream ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox and 100+ top channels of live TV and sports without cable. (Participating plans only. Taxes and fees may apply.)
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