Who Will Win the Potato Chip World Cup?

The 2026 World Cup is the most ambitious in the tournament's 96-year history, with 48 countries playing 104 games across 16 cities. It promised to go big — and has since fallen flat, with much of the global competitive spirit overshadowed by political conflict, immigration snafus, and ticket prices through the roof. But if you're looking for a international competition that offers 0% guilt, 100% guilty pleasure, look no further than the Chip World Cup.

About a month before the first kickoff of the football World Cup, HEIST editors began noticing special edition items popping up at our local Rewes, Edekas, and Spätis. Not the David Beckham Salt & Vinegar chips, but never-before-seen flavours that reach for some of the US, Mexico, and Canada's most refined national dishes. Could they possible be good?

HEIST invited a group of eight designated tasters representing five nationalities to sample all the World Cup editions we'd found. We were determine to let the chips fall where they may. Out of every World Cup special flavour available in Berlin, here is our champion chip.

GROUP STAGE

Game 1: American Burger (US) vs Buffalo Chicken Wings (US)

We tried American Burger Style first, starting with a sniff check. Both the smell and the burger on the packaging looked promising, so we were hopeful. The chips had an artificial, but very recognisable, taste, exactly like the sauce on a McDonald's burger. As each consecutive layer of burger hit our tongues, a new flavor was revealed.

"The pickle vibe is unbelievable," one compatriot admitted.

The Buffalo Wings were something of a letdown. The wing aroma was excellent, but the vessel itself just tasted like a Pringle. Someone remarked that they had clearly used Frank's Red Hot — points for authenticity. Another taster joked that they might see fit to spit it out, as if we were sampling Bordeaux: "It’s like a wine tasting — just a pile of chewed-up chips in the corner."

The results: Unfortunately in the group stage, it's not uncommon to see a wide split between competitors. American Burger, 6-2

Game 2: BBQ Brisket (US) vs BBQ Ribs (US)

Round two was the Lay’s Darby. Both flavours were drawn from American barbecue and were both ruffle-cut, making them smell and look similar. Brisket won the coin toss and elected to go first.

"I’m gonna get the meat sweats," one chip Ultra worried before lifting the chip to his lips.

The Brisket had "smoke off the charts" and a real depth of flavour. The Ribs were much the same, though maybe slightly less saccharine in taste. After some investigation, we discovered that both flavours were vegan and vegetarian safe. Go figure.

The results: These two teams were matched very tightly in talent, but one simply had more hustle on the field today. Ribs, 5-3

Game 3: Mexican Taco (MEX) vs Mexican Salsa (MEX)

We went into this thinking it was a friendly match, but both teams were at full force. We tried the Doritos first, which was refreshingly different — a load-bearing chip, much sturdier than the wispy, oily fried spud slivers. There was a heavy powder presence, almost as if the chip had very recently been dusted with taco seasoning. But it wasn't just the spice of the dish, it tasted "alarmingly like a taco" — very specifically, al pastor. We confirmed this suspicion with the pineapple featured on the packaging.

"It’s a well-matched medium for the message," said one taster of the corn-based Dorito choice.  

Mexican Salsa, which was sampled next, was met with audible gasps. "There’s the cilantro!" one woman cried. "We don’t have flying cars yet, but we do have chips that taste like salsa," her boyfriend — drinking a Corona — added.

Surprisingly for Germany, it wasn't mild salsa. There was definitely some kick, and a hint of lime. One tester called it "fresh," adding that he felt the salsa chips had longevity — that is, you could eat the whole bag easily.

"This is a hard group to compete, it’s like heavyweight vs welterweight," the Australian in the group remarked.

The results: It was "a huge upset." Salsa, 5-3

Game 4: Canadian Maple Paprika (CAN) vs Loaded Fries (CAN)

Canada is finally subbed onto the pitch. We were all a little suspicious, because nobody could figure out what national reputational meal the "Canadian Maple Syrup and Paprika" was meant to represent. "The 'style' implies an well-known national dish," said one confused chip assessor.

These tasted basically like someone coated chips in maple syrup. They had very little spice to them, and some at the competition thought they tasted like waffles. We wished Canada had fielded a squad with a more complex pool of talent — maybe maple bacon?

It was Canada's good fortune, however, that they were facing Loaded Fries. The field agreed that these were the most artificial-tasting, and raised questions about the process of making them — were they molded from a big potato stew? This prompted a Wikipedia search for Mr Pringle himself, which yielded the fact that the inventor of the Pringle was buried in a can of Original Flavor.

"It just tastes like Cheez Whiz," sums up the verdict.

The results: Some games have a clear favourite, and that favourite delivers. Canadian Maple Paprika, 7-1

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