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Who are the best low-owned differentials for Matchday 1 of World Cup Fantasy 2026?
We take a look at the best options, using projections to help inform our selections.
Differentials take on an added importance in this game, thanks to the Scouting Bonus system awarding two extra points to any player under 5% ownership who scores at least four points in a match.
All of the picks in this article were eligible for Scouting Bonus at the time of writing but keep an eye on them, as their popularity could rocket as the deadline nears.
Check out all our World Cup Fantasy content, including expert team reveals, group guides and booster strategy tips, in our Ultimate Guide.
🏆 <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/world-cup-fantasy-tips-ultimate-guide">World Cup Fantasy Ultimate Guide</a> 🏆
<h2>World Cup Fantasy Scouting Bonus picks: Goalkeepers</h2>
<ul>
<li>Maxime Crepeau ($4.0m) &#8211; Canada &#8211; 1.9%</li>
<li>Camilo Vargas ($4.3m) &#8211; Colombia &#8211; 3.7%</li>
<li>Hernan Galindez ($4.2m) &#8211; Ecuador &#8211; 3.3%</li>
<li>Yassine Bounou ($4.7m) &#8211; Morocco &#8211; 3.1%</li>
<li>Dominik Livakovic ($4.5m) &#8211; Croatia &#8211; 1.5%</li>
</ul>
Goalkeepers and defenders who qualify for Scouting Bonus could be a valuable asset, with a clean sheet worth nine points before save points are factored in.
Differential picks could have the edge over the more popular shot-stoppers, with many of them boasting decent clean sheet projections.
Canada boss Jesse Marsch handed fantasy managers a budget boost by declaring Crepeau his number one ahead of the tournament.
The co-hosts have a 43% chance of a clean sheet in Matchday 1 according to projections collated by <a href="https://www.fpljoe.com/?mode=world-cup&amp;stage=group">FPL Joe</a> &#8211; as good as England and Belgium.
Colombia and Ecuador keepers Vargas and Galindez could both creep over 5% come the deadline but if they don&#8217;t, could offer a chance of shutouts, saves and Scouting Bonus.
Vargas and Colombia have a 52% chance of a clean sheet against Uzbekistan, while Matchday 2 against Curacao offers the strongest opportunity for Galindez.
The opening matches are off-putting for Morocco&#8217;s Bounou and Croatia&#8217;s Livakovic &#8211; but the duo could be much better prospects in the remaining ties.
<div id="attachment_79708" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-79708" class="size-full wp-image-79708" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Crepeau.jpg" alt="Maxime Crepeau of Canada. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Crepeau.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Crepeau-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Crepeau-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Maxime Crepeau of Canada. Picture by Getty Images</div>
<h2>World Cup Fantasy Scouting Bonus picks: Defenders</h2>
<ul>
<li>Silvan Widmer ($4.2m) &#8211; Switzerland &#8211; 1.2%</li>
<li>Johan Vasquez ($4.7m) &#8211; Mexico &#8211; 2.0%</li>
<li>Johan Mojica ($3.9m) &#8211; Colombia &#8211; 3.9%</li>
<li>Piero Hincapie ($4.7m) &#8211; Ecuador &#8211; 3.1%</li>
<li>Sergino Dest ($4.3m) &#8211; United States of America &#8211; 1.8%</li>
<li>Mathias Oliveira ($4.3m) &#8211; Uruguay &#8211; 0.8%</li>
<li>Maxim De Cuyper ($4.7m) &#8211; Belgium &#8211; 4.5%</li>
</ul>
Mexico open the tournament on home turf against South Africa, with 54% clean sheet odds.
It was thought Raul Rangel ($3.9m) would be between the sticks, however 41-year-old Guillermo Ochoa ($4.2m) has emerged as a rival for the starting spot in what would be his record-breaking sixth World Cup.
In any case, both are approaching 5%, while Mexico&#8217;s defenders are escaping attention.
We&#8217;ve picked out centre-back Vasquez &#8211; who scored in both their recent friendlies &#8211; to get fantasy managers off to a flying start.
Budget makes Colombia full-back Mojica an enticing option. He contributed one assist in qualifying and is cheaper than Daniel Munoz ($4.6m), who may not be afforded as much opportunity to go forward as he has as wing-back at Crystal Palace.
Hincapie is an alternative route into the Ecuador backline over Galindez, while Uruguay&#8217;s Oliveira bypasses uncertainty over their starting goalkeeper.
Dest played out of position as a winger in the United States&#8217; friendly against Germany and as a wing-back against Senegal, in which he scored. Teammate Antonee Robinson ($5.0m) is in 3.1% and scored a thunderbolt against the Germans.
Finally, Brighton&#8217;s De Cuyper scored two and assisted two in qualifying for Belgian &#8211; but may not be completely nailed at left-back.
<div id="attachment_73299" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-73299" class="size-full wp-image-73299" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/De-Cuyper.jpg" alt="Maxim De Cuyper. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/De-Cuyper.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/De-Cuyper-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/De-Cuyper-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Maxim De Cuyper. Picture by Getty Images</div>
<h2>World Cup Fantasy Scouting Bonus picks: Midfielders</h2>
<ul>
<li>Marcel Sabitzer ($6.8m) &#8211; Austria &#8211; 3.3%</li>
<li>James Rodriguez ($6.5m) &#8211; Colombia &#8211; 4.1%</li>
<li>Luka Modric ($6.2m) &#8211; Croatia &#8211; 2.5%</li>
<li>Charles De Ketelaere ($5.6m) &#8211; Belgium</li>
<li>Maxi Araujo ($6.4m) &#8211; Uruguay &#8211; 0.2%</li>
<li>Martin Odegaard ($7.7m) &#8211; Norway &#8211; 4.4%</li>
<li>Hakan Calhanoglu ($7.1m) &#8211; Turkey &#8211; 2.7%</li>
</ul>
Sabitzer is an exciting mid-priced pick with a surprisingly low ownership. He scored in a warm-up friendly against Tunisia, has 17 goal involvements in his last 21 matches for his country and will be on set-pieces and perhaps penalties too.
Rodriguez managed three goals and seven assists in qualifying and is a cheap route into the Colombian attack, particularly if he stays under 5% ownership.
Modric&#8217;s first fixture against England looks to have limited his ownership. The 40-year-old could still have an impact on the tournament though and may take penalties. He scored against Slovenia on Sunday (June 7).
Belgium midfielder De Ketelaere scored twice and assisted three in qualifying. His appeal comes largely from the chance of him playing up front &#8211; as he did in the Red Devils&#8217; last two friendlies.
Expect Romelu Lukaku ($7.4m) to spoil this, with the injury returning striker coming off the bench against Tunisia. Lukaku&#8217;s expected minutes are unclear, else he would be in much more than 2.1% of teams.
Araujo led the way for Uruguay in terms of assists in qualifying (four), a metric Odegaard also led for among his teammates (seven). They face Saudi Arabia and Iraq respectively.
Turkey have an exciting young attacking lineup but the experienced Calhanoglu, on set-pieces and penalties, offers the most all-round potential.
<div id="attachment_64672" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-64672" class="size-full wp-image-64672" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Hakan-Calhanoglu.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Hakan-Calhanoglu.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Hakan-Calhanoglu-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Hakan-Calhanoglu-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Hakan-Calhanoglu-610x407.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Hakan Calhanoglu. Picture by Getty Images</div>
<h2>World Cup Fantasy Scouting Bonus picks: Forwards</h2>
<ul>
<li>Breel Embolo ($7.5m) &#8211; Switzerland &#8211; 2.5%</li>
<li>Cody Gakpo ($7.7m) &#8211; Netherlands &#8211; 3.1%</li>
<li>Dan Ndoye ($6.8m) &#8211; Switzerland &#8211; 0.7%</li>
<li>Endrick ($5.5m) &#8211; Brazil &#8211; 2%</li>
<li>Luis Suarez ($5.7m) &#8211; Colombia &#8211; 2.6%</li>
</ul>
Embolo leads the line for a Switzerland side with eye-catching attacking prospects, forecast to score 2.43 goals against Qatar.
He was the top goalscorer in qualifying on four goals, however Nottingham Forest&#8217;s Ndoye is also worthy of consideration. He had two goals and three assists and scored the only goal of the game in their warm-up match against Australia.
Embolo has only just been granted a visa to travel to the United States but should be ready in time for Switzerland&#8217;s opener.
The Netherlands as a whole have not received much attention among the World Cup Fantasy community, sitting lower down the goal projections list for Matchday 1.
But Gakpo has big-tournament history, scoring three times in Euro 2024 and World Cup 2022.
Brazil&#8217;s starting striker is not definite but Endrick is one to watch. Just 2% owned, he could be a differential for Matchday 2 if he impresses. He came off the bench to score in his audition against Egypt.
Our concluding pick is Colombia frontman Suarez, who has the same goal projection (0.44) as Luis Diaz ($8.1m) according to <a href="https://www.elevenify.com/p/free-world-cup-2026-predictions">Elevenify</a>. He scored four times in qualifying.
<div id=":qv" class="Am aiL Al editable LW-avf tS-tW tS-tY" tabindex="1" role="textbox" contenteditable="true" spellcheck="false" aria-label="Message Body" aria-multiline="true" aria-owns=":td" aria-controls=":td" aria-expanded="false">
<div id="attachment_51625" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-51625" class="size-full wp-image-51625" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Gakpo-Getty-Images.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Gakpo-Getty-Images.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Gakpo-Getty-Images-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Gakpo-Getty-Images-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Gakpo-Getty-Images-610x407.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Cody Gakpo. Picture by Getty Images.</div>
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Best Scouting Bonus differentials for World Cup Fantasy 2026 Matchday 1

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