Thursday's World Cup warm-up predictions and previews including France vs. Ivory Coast

Today's 2026 World Cup warm-up predictions include a contest between France - two-time winners of the Jules Rimet trophy - and African giants Ivory Coast.

Panama vs. Dominican Republic (Thursday, 1.45am)

Aiming to build on an impressive display at the Maracana, Panama welcome Dominican Republic to Estadio Rommel Fernandez on Wednesday night for an international friendly.

Panama City will witness its heroes in action for the final time before Los Canaleros head off to the World Cup across the United States, Canada and Mexico this summer.

We say: Panama 3-1 Dominican Republic

After going toe-to-toe with Brazil on the weekend, Panama should be extremely confident of putting Dominican Republic to the sword in Panama City.

Los Quisqueyanos stumbled through the CONCACAF Series on home soil and face a difficult away assignment on Wednesday night.

> Click here to read our full preview for Panama vs. Dominican Republic, including team news and predicted lineups

South Korea vs. El Salvador (Thursday, 2am)

South Korea conclude their 2026 World Cup preparations with a warm-up match against El Salvador at America First Field in Utah on Thursday.

The two nations meet for the first time since June 2023 when they played out a 1-1 draw in a friendly held in Daejeon.

We say: South Korea 3-0 El Salvador

South Korea are in high spirits after their convincing victory last weekend and they will be regarded as firm favourites to beat a defensively frail El Salvador outfit, who have conceded in 13 of their last 16 international matches.

Seventy-five places separate these two nations in the FIFA World Rankings and we expect Hong’s side to dispatch their Central American counterparts with the attacking quality at their disposal.

> Click here to read our full preview for South Korea vs. El Salvador, including team news and predicted lineups

Sweden vs. Greece (Thursday, 6pm)

Sweden conclude their schedule before the World Cup with an international friendly against Greece on Thursday.

At a time when Graham Potter's side are looking forward to an appearance on the biggest stage, Greece have already started preparations for the next UEFA Nations League which starts in September.

We say: Sweden 1-1 Greece

With a key player likely to be rested and his teammates looking ahead to the tournament, Sweden may not play this contest at the intensity that Potter is expecting. Nevertheless, we still think that the Scandinavian nation will have enough quality to earn a share of the spoils, despite their opponents having a point to prove.

> Click here to read our full preview for Sweden vs. Greece, including team news and predicted lineups

Spain vs. Iraq (Thursday, 8pm)

Spain’s 2026 World Cup preparations begin on Thursday night when they welcome Iraq to the Estadio Municipal de Riazor in A Coruna for a warm-up fixture.

While La Roja are ranked second in the world by FIFA, only behind France, the Lions of Mesopotamia are down in 57th place in the current standings.

We say: Spain 3-0 Iraq

Even if Spain do not field their strongest starting lineup, they boast impressive strength in depth and should have enough quality to beat a nation ranked more than 50 places below them in the world.

Iraq only just edged past European minnows Andorra last month, while La Roja have enjoyed a strong run of form dating back to 2024. With that in mind, expect De la Fuente’s troops to begin their World Cup preparations on a positive note.

> Click here to read our full preview for Spain vs. Iraq, including team news and predicted lineups

France vs. Ivory Coast (Thursday, 8.10pm)

France kick-start their preparations for the 2026 World Cup on Thursday night when they play host to Ivory Coast in a warm-up match at the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes.

The two nations meet for the first time since March 2022 when Les Bleus claimed a narrow 2-1 friendly victory, with Aurelien Tchouameni netting a stoppage-time winner.

We say: France 3-1 Ivory Coast

Ivory Coast are certainly no pushovers and will back themselves to make the net ripple, having scored 13 goals across their last five games. However, they will enter Thursday’s contest as underdogs.

France should still field a talented lineup, even if Deschamps decides to rest some key players. When taking into account the fact that they have never lost in 10 previous matches played in Nantes (W9 D1), we can see Les Bleus navigating their way to another victory on home soil.

> Click here to read our full preview for France vs. Ivory Coast, including team news and predicted lineups