A viral claim across social media suggests that the renowned American animated sitcom ‘The Simpsons’ predicted a World Cup 2026 final between Mexico and Portugal. A screenshot from the show is being widely shared in support of this assertion. In this article, we aim to fact-check the validity of the claim put forth in the post.
Claim: ‘The Simpsons’ predicted a World Cup 2026 final between Mexico and Portugal.
Fact: The Simpsons did not directly predict anything about the 2026 World Cup. The specific episode featuring a reference to the Mexico vs Portugal match did not specify the year of the event, contributing to its ongoing circulation. In fact, identical screenshots were shared during both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups as well. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
From the Trump presidency to Fox’s acquisition by Disney, the acclaimed show “The Simpsons” has been linked to several purported predictions that have seemingly come to fruition. Moreover, the USA is one of the three host nations for the FIFA World Cup 2026, alongside Mexico and Canada. Against this backdrop, the viral image suggests that the show foresaw a Mexico vs. Portugal final in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. However, the show did not explicitly make such predictions regarding the 2026 World Cup.
In the episode ‘The Cartridge Family,’ which aired in November 1997, the Simpson family is depicted lounging around watching TV when a commercial grabs their attention. It’s a promotional spot for a soccer match boldly claiming to determine ‘which nation is the greatest on earth: Mexico or Portugal.’ The match appears to take place in Springfield.
Nevertheless, the episode in question did not provide any clear indication of the year in which the match occurred. This ambiguity has led to the continued circulation of the same screenshot over the years. For instance, identical screenshots were shared during both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Nonetheless, the scene ought to be regarded as a coincidence rather than a prophecy or prediction, as the episode lacks any narrative elements that could be interpreted as foreseeing the events that would unfold years later.
As mentioned earlier, over the years, numerous false rumours have circulated about the show predicting the future. The writers of the show have dismissed these rumours regarding the show’s supposed ability to predict the future. Addressing the episode allegedly predicting Trump’s presidency, Al Jean, one of the show’s writers, remarked, ‘One of our writers, the individual whose episode predicted Donald Trump as president, put it best: “If you write 700 episodes, and you don’t predict anything, then you’re pretty bad. If you throw enough darts, you’re going to get some bullseyes.”‘
Moreover, he cited the World Trade Center episode, emphasizing that although the show’s writers frequently make informed conjectures drawn from contemporary events, trends, and their perceptions, the purported “9/11 reference” was purely coincidental. Thus, all these details affirm that the references in the show should be viewed as coincidences or well-informed speculations rather than predictions.
Further, as previously mentioned, the USA is one of the three host countries for the 2026 World Cup. However, the tournament’s fixtures have yet to be determined, and there is no match scheduled to take place in the city of Springfield, mentioned in the viral episode.
To sum it up, the Simpsons show did not forecast a Mexico vs Portugal final for the 2026 World Cup.
