Zach Thompson gives his top studs and value plays for Monday’s four-game fantasy soccer slate on DraftKings.
The Group Stage of the 2026 World Cup continues on Monday with four more matches from Group I and Group J. Tomorrow wraps up the second matchweek of the Group Stage, with the final round of group play starting Wednesday and the Knockout Stage just around the corner. Monday’s slate kicks off at 1:00 p.m. ET and includes plenty of big-name goal-scorers. Let’s take a look at the eight national teams taking the pitch to start the work week and find some strong World Cup DFS picks for DraftKings contests.
Monday’s matches will go a long way to determine who is moving and who is heading home from these two groups. As a reminder, the tournament expanded from 32 teams to 48 teams this year, with the teams in groups of four for this stage. The top two teams in each group will automatically advance to the Knockout Stage along with the eight best third-place teams. Both of these groups are favored to have three teams move to the next stage, according to the current odds on DraftKings Sportsbook.
This article was written before starting lineups were announced, and it’s critical to be sure to confirm that the players in your lineup are in the starting lineup for Monday’s match. Using players off the bench is not impossible, but it is high-risk since the player’s role is more uncertain. With plenty of high-priced superstar options on the board to choose from, it should be a great day of fantasy action, so let’s dive in and pick out my top World Cup DFS picks this Monday.
Make your DraftKings World Cup DFS picks here: WC $100K Chip Pass [$20K to 1st]
Kylian Mbappe, France, $10,800 — Mbappe couldn’t quite match Lionel Messi’s ($11,400) hat trick from the first match of the tournament, but he still turned in a very impressive showing of his own to power France past Senegal. Les Blues started slowly in that match but found their way thanks to Mbappe’s two goals on four shots (four on goal). He finished with 28.3 FPTS in that match and remains one of the purest goal scorers in the world.
The brace moved him into the top spot as France’s all-time leading scorer, and he’s right in the mix for the most goals in World Cup history with Messi and Miroslav Klose. While he starts the day’s matches two goals behind Messi and Klose, Mbappe could be the better fantasy option on Monday since he is a little cheaper and has a much easier matchup against Iraq than Messi’s against Austria. Messi also got a boost from a penalty kick in his first game while Mbappe’s goals were in the typical game flow.
Coming into the tournament, Mbappe was in stronger form than Messi as well and looks sharp and ready to lead France on a long run. He should get opportunities to add to his total goals and his legacy in Monday’s match, and he’s a great option to build around if you can save salary in other spots.
Mousa Al Tamari, Jordan, $4,900 — In the last game of the day, Jordan takes on Algeria, in the only matchup of teams that lost their first match of the World Cup. Tamari looked strong against Argentina in his team’s 3-1 loss, and even though he didn’t directly have a hand in the goal, he looked like the team’s most dangerous piece of the offense. He finished with four shots (one on goal) and one chance created for 6.7 FPTS, but in the flow of play, he looked like a key creator and contributor.
During his club season, the 29-year-old plays left midfielder for Rennes in French Ligue 1, and he finished with six goals and six assists in his 33 appearances (25 starts). He has been even more impactful working for his national team, contributing an assist and a goal in a huge World Cup Qualifier against Palestine. He also played a key par tin Jordan’s surprise run to the final in the 2024 Asian Cup, contributing an assist and a goal in their semifinal against South Korea.
Tamari should be one of the key pieces in Jordan’s attack against Algeria in the late game and has a very high ceiling along with his running mate, Ali Olwan ($5,100), who scored Jordan’s goal and had 20.2 FPTS in the opener.
Michael Olise, France, $9,800 — Let’s stick with Les Blues in that juicy matchup against Iraq for another strong stud to build around. Fading Messi will be high-risk, but Olise has the potential to be part of an elite stack with Mbappe, and Messi will have a tough matchup against Austria.
Olise posted a hat trick against Northern Ireland in the final tune-up Friendly last week and carried over his success into the opening match against Senegal, earning 20.1 FPTS on one assist, two shots (two on goal), four chances created and three crosses.
The 24-year-old star helped Bayern Munich to its second straight Bundesliga title with 15 goals and 19 assists in his 32 matches (23 starts) in league play, and he looks ready to team up with Mbappe and push France deep into the World Cup. In this very gettable matchup, building around Olise and Mbappe could be the way to go, especially if Argentina and Austria play a defensive-focused match early in the day.
Iliman Ndiaye, Senegal, $4,100 — Senegal and Norway play the closest match of the four on the board today, according to the odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. When the lineups come out for the 8:00 p.m. ET kickoff, one very interesting name to watch for is Ndiaye, who came on as a sub in the opener but made an immediate impact and set up the team’s only goal against France.
He finished with 7.7 FPTS in only seven minutes and was very involved once he entered the match. He was actually expected to start for the team by many after an excellent season in the Premier League for Everton. The 26-year-old had six goals and three assists alongside 30 key passes and an impressive 70 tackles across 32 Premier League appearances. If he moves into the starting XI, he’ll be a great value play in an exciting match against Norway.
If he’s not in the starting lineup, his teammate Krepin Diatta ($4,100) is an easy pivot option, or you can swap to Fares Chaibi ($4,700) or Odeh Fakhoury ($3,900) in the late game.
Julian Ryerson, Norway, $6,800 — Ryerson is a great defensive pay-up play to build around on the other side of that match since he plays such a critical support role for Norway’s offense. He took most of the team’s set pieces in their 4-1 win over Iraq and racked up nine crosses, three chances created and 12.2 FPTS.
His very involved role gives him a high floor and a high ceiling as a defender who gets very involved in the offense. He played a similar role for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, racking up 15 assists and 56 chances created in his 31 games (26 starts).
The 28-year-old has helped Norway get to this point in the competition for the first time in a long time, and he and Erling Haaland ($10,600) seem likely to connect on scoring plays at some point in the tournament.
Ramy Bensebaini, Algeria, $4,400 — Algeria is favored over Jordan in the late game, and if they get the win and keep a clean sheet, their defense could be a great value source across the board. Bensebaini played alongside Ryerson for Dortmund this season and had seven goals and two assists over 30 appearances last season.
He was dealing with a foot issue, but was surprisingly in the starting lineup against Argentina as one of the center backs. He finished with two tackles (one won), three clearances and three interceptions for 6.3 FPTS while playing all 90 minutes. In a more favorable matchup, he could press forward and get more involved in set pieces against Jordan, giving him a high ceiling for a center back under $4,500.
If you’re looking for even cheaper plays that can bring value, Mohannad Abu Taha ($3,400) of Jordan and
Moussa Niakhate ($3,300) of Senegal are options to consider.
Mike Maignan, France, $6,000 — As the heaviest favorites on the board, France is expected to keep a clean sheet against Iraq, so Maignan is the most expensive keeper in the player pool. While he didn’t have his best game against Senegal, he still finished with 8.6 FPTS since his team got the win. He made two saves and had a relatively quiet day overall.
Against Iraq, he shouldn’t be called on for many saves since he has such a strong defense in front of him, but his chance at the win and clean sheet bonus make him worth building around if you have the salary. He is coming off a strong Serie A season for AC Milan, where he posted 13 clean sheets in 37 appearances.
Alexander Schlager, Austria, $3,900 — Schlager is a high-risk bargain option as he takes on Messi and Argentina. He did guide his team to a 3-1 win over Jordan in the opener to earn 9.5 FPTS with three saves, but he’ll be facing a much tougher opponent in the second game of group play.
Schlager is the main man for Red Bull Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga, and the 30-year-old is playing his first World Cup. He will likely get plenty of save chances against Argentina and could end up being a great leverage play and way to save salary if you’re trying to include multiple top stars in other slots.
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