🎿⚽️🗻Only Two Remain: France and Switzerland Carry the League of Mountain Nations into the World Cup Quarter-finals🗻⚽️🎿
As the FIFA World Cup enters the quarter-finals, our unofficial Ready Steady Slope League of Mountain Nations has been reduced to just two contenders.
When we created Ready Steady Slope, we were not trying to predict footballing success. We wanted to celebrate some of the world’s greatest skiing and snowboarding destinations through a fast, family-friendly card game packed with real mountain spirit.
By coincidence, all five of the countries featured in our game also qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
France🇫🇷. Switzerland🇨🇭. Canada🇨🇦. Austria🇦🇹. Scotland🏴.
For a while, our mountain nations were carving their own path through the tournament. Now, after the latest knockout drama, only France and Switzerland remain. Canada’s brilliant run came to an end against Morocco. Austria had already bowed out against Spain. Scotland’s journey ended in the group stage.
That leaves two Alpine heavyweights still flying the flag for the mountains. 🇫🇷 France: still unbeaten, safely through to the quarter-finals 🇨🇭 Switzerland still standing. 🇨🇦 Canada, 🇦🇹 Austria and 🏴Scotland are all out.
It’s now France vs Switzerland for mountain bragging rights. Who’s going all the way? 👀
🇫🇷France: The Mountain Superpower Still on Course
If the League of Mountain Nations had been decided by ski resorts alone, France would have started as the clear favourite.
No country in Ready Steady Slope has a deeper bench of iconic winter destinations. Chamonix brings mountaineering history. Alpe d’Huez brings big-mountain energy and legendary pistes. Val d’Isère and Tignes offer high-altitude adventure. Les Trois Vallées, Courchevel, Méribel and Val Thorens bring some of the largest linked ski terrain in the world. Avoriaz, Les Arcs and La Plagne add even more Alpine pedigree.
France’s football team has matched that mountain reputation with another deep World Cup run.
Their latest step came with a narrow but important 1-0 win over Paraguay, sealed by Kylian Mbappé from the penalty spot. It was not the free-flowing statement some expected, but knockout football often comes down to control, patience and taking the moment when it arrives.
That sounds familiar to anyone who has played Ready Steady Slope.
Sometimes you cruise down a blue piste🔵. Sometimes you get hit by bad weather, lose your rhythm, and have to scrap your way to the finish. France are still moving, and in a tournament like this, that is what matters.
Next up: Morocco.
A huge quarter-final, and a serious test for the last French mountain nation standing.
🇨🇭Switzerland: Precision Under Pressure
Switzerland may only have one resort in Ready Steady Slope, but what a resort it is.
Verbier is steep, stylish and serious. It is famous for big terrain, off-piste lines and the kind of mountain confidence that comes from knowing exactly what you are doing.
That feels like a pretty good description of Switzerland’s World Cup campaign too.
Their Round of 16 tie against Colombia finished 0-0 after extra time, then went all the way to penalties. Switzerland held their nerve, won the shootout 4-3, and reached a World Cup quarter-final for the first time since 1954.
Swiss precision under pressure? Absolutely.
It was tense, controlled and dramatic in equal measure. Gregor Kobel made the key save, Ruben Vargas stepped up for the decisive penalty, and Switzerland kept their mountain nation dream alive.
Next up: Argentina.
That is a massive quarter-final, but Switzerland have already shown they can stay calm when the slope gets icy.
🇨🇦Farewell Canada: Whistler Still Stands Tall
Canada’s World Cup journey is over, but what a journey it was.
As the only North American country in our Ready Steady Slope resort list, Canada carried the Whistler flag with style.
Whistler is one of the great names in skiing and snowboarding. Huge terrain, legendary snowfall, forest runs, bowls, après-ski energy and a mountain village recognised around the world. It is exactly the kind of place that belongs in a game about building your dream ski or snowboard trip.
Canada may have lost 3-0 to Morocco, but their tournament still gave fans plenty to celebrate. They reached the knockout stages, gave their supporters a proper World Cup adventure, and helped make our League of Mountain Nations even more fun to follow.
They are out of the football tournament, but Whistler remains mountain royalty.
🇦🇹Farewell Austria: Alpine History Never Leaves the Table
Austria’s exit against Spain was a tough one for mountain fans.
In Ready Steady Slope, Austria is represented by St. Anton and Mayrhofen, two resorts with very different personalities and serious winter credentials.
St. Anton is one of the spiritual homes of alpine skiing, known for challenging terrain, deep snow and legendary après-ski. Mayrhofen brings big energy, varied slopes and the famous Harakiri piste, one of the steepest groomed runs in Austria.
Austria may be out of the World Cup, but in any mountain-themed competition, they will always have a place near the top table.
🏴Farewell Scotland: Cairngorm Spirit
Scotland’s World Cup ended in the group stage, but Aviemore and the Cairngorms still hold a special place in Ready Steady Slope.
The Scottish mountains may not have the height of the Alps or the scale of Whistler, but they have something just as important: character.
Anyone who has ridden or skied in Scotland knows the conditions can change fast. Wind, snow, sunshine and cloud can all arrive in the same day. When it is good, it is unforgettable.
That spirit belongs in the game.
Not every mountain has to be the biggest. Sometimes it is the one that made you fall in love with winter in the first place.
So Who Will Be the Last Mountain Nation Standing?
France and Switzerland are now the final two Ready Steady Slope mountain nations left in the World Cup.
France have the resort depth, the football pedigree and the attacking power.
Switzerland have discipline, resilience and penalty shootout nerve.
One side carries the weight of Chamonix, Alpe d’Huez, Val d’Isère, Tignes, La Plagne, Val Thorens, Courchevel, Méribel, Avoriaz, Les Arcs and Les Trois Vallées.
The other carries Verbier, Swiss precision and a growing sense that this could become a very special tournament.
Whatever happens next, the League of Mountain Nations has already given us a brilliant way to follow the World Cup through a Ready Steady Slope lens. Football gives us the drama. The mountains give us the backdrop. Ready Steady Slope brings them together on the table.
Mountains Bring People Together
One of the things we love most about skiing and snowboarding is that the mountains bring people together. You can be in a lift queue in France, sharing a gondola in Switzerland, grabbing coffee in Whistler, riding powder in Austria, or watching the weather roll across the Cairngorms. The flags may change, but the feeling is the same. That is why these resorts became part of Ready Steady Slope. The World Cup will crown one champion, but in the mountains, everyone chasing the next run already understands the same thing. There is always another slope. There is always another turn. And sometimes, there is always another card to play. Good luck to France and Switzerland. May the best mountain nation win.
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