The Round of 32 is done and dusted.
There are only 16 teams left at World Cup 2026. Here’s a reminder of the major talking points from the knockout stages so far.
When does the Round of 16 begin?
Jesse Marsch declares his Canada players heroes for reaching the Round of 16. (Photo: FIFA via Getty Images)
(Sarah Stier – FIFA via Getty Images)
Right away. Co-hosts Canada open the round on Sunday (shortly after midnight) against African powerhouses Morocco while Paraguay face a tough ask trying to stop tournament favourites France at around 5am.
Canada v Morocco (5 Jul / 1am)
Paraguay v France (5 Jul / 5am)
Brazil v Norway (6 Jul / 4am)
Mexico v England (6 Jul / 8am)
Portugal v Spain (7 Jul / 3am)
USA v Belgium (7 Jul / 8am)
Argentina v Egypt (8 Jul / 12am)
Switzerland v Colombia (8 Jul / 4am)
Record breakers
Cristiano Ronaldo will lead Portugal out against Spain in the Round of 16. (Photo: Getty Images)
(Dan Mullan via Getty Images)
The Round of 32 saw a number of records tumble. We’ve picked out a few for you:
Lionel Messi’s goal for Argentina in the 3-2 extra-time win over Cape Verde makes him the only player to score in eight successive World Cup games. Messi is also the first to make 30 World Cup appearances.
Didier Deschamps picked up his 17th victory in the World Cup as France crushed Sweden 3-0 in the Round of 32. No other head coach has won this many matches in the tournament’s history.
Spain’s Unai Simon has kept five successive clean sheets at the World Cup, equalling Italy’s goalkeeping legend Walter Zenga’s record in 1990. However, in terms of minutes unbeaten, Simon has the outright record over Zenga (519 minutes and counting vs Zenga’s 517 minutes).
Croatia knocked out by a hair?
Luka Modric bows out in the cruelest of fashion after Croatia’s last-gasp goal equaliser was disallowed by VAR. (Photo: FIFA via Getty Images)
(Patrick Smith – FIFA via Getty Images)
It wouldn’t be the World Cup without some controversy – and 2026 was no different.
One moment from the knockout stages felt particularly harsh as Croatia appeared to have been penalised for a player’s haircut. Confused? Let’s recap.
Portugal dominated the first half but found themselves trailing after Ivan Perisic broke the deadlock eight minutes into the second period.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who earlier had a goal ruled out for offside, was then gifted the chance to equalise from the penalty spot which he did in the 68th minute.
Croatia regrouped and started to control the match, forcing Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa into action several times. The momentum was with Luka Modric and his team-mates – and they had two goals of their own disallowed during this period.
Here’s where things start to get a bit Hollywood.
Portugal go in front through Goncalo Ramos’ 94th-minute header from Rafael Leao’s pinpoint delivery.
Croatia think they’ve scored a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser in the 103rd minute via Josko Gvardiol, only for the goal to be called offside.
Countless TV replays of the incident seemed inconclusive but FIFA revealed that a snick-o-meter had detected the slightest of contacts between the ball and Igor Matanovic’s head (hair?) before it reached Gvardiol. No goal then.
“Football should be fair but we’ve gone too far with VAR. Croatia lost the match and I don’t want to talk about it any more,” Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic said.
Portugal manager Roberto Martinez disagreed and praised the VAR decisions which for the first time in World Cup history chalked-off four goals in the same game.
Heartbreakers
The World Cup knockout stage means penalty shootout heartbreak is never far.
Already in the Round of 32, we’ve seen Germany, the Netherlands and Australia fall to shootout losses.
Four-time champions Germany were the first team to go out on penalties, collapsing to Paraguay in a surprising result which revealed cracks inside their national team camp. (Liverpool legend Jurgen Klopp has been rumoured to lead Germany next).
The Netherlands saw their luck run out against Morocco who had goalkeeper Bono to thank for his continued dominance in the field of penalty stops.
Australia – Asia’s only remaining team – had their dreams dashed by Egypt with young Socceroos defender Lucas Herrington missing a crucial penalty. The 18-year-old Australian’s bravery to answer his country’s call earned him support from Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
“You stepping up there, you show a lot of courage. Not everybody would do that,” Ibrahimovic said. “My friend, you’re the best. Don’t listen to the rest.”
Social media winners
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated Portugal’s drama-filled win over Croatia with an impromptu victory party on a balcony in front of hundreds of fans in Toronto. The videos quickly racked up the views on social media.
England’s post-match singalong to the Oasis hit ‘Wonderwall’ continues to gain traction online. Fans have pointed out that Eberechi Eze doesn’t appear to know all the lyrics but ‘Wonderwall’ has become England’s World Cup anthem for 2026.
By the time you read this, Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha will likely have over 20 million Instagram followers. He had less than a million before a ball was kicked at the tournament.
And now that we’re on the subject of internet wins, can we take a few minutes to appreciate the incredible line-up graphics made by Belgium’s social media team during the tournament.
Exit interviews
Jurgen Klopp appears set to take over from Julian Nagelsmann who has left his position as Germany’s head coach. (Photo: Tom Weller/picture alliance via Getty Images)
(picture alliance via Getty Images)
A number of managers have lost their jobs during the tournament. Here’s what the World Cup casualty list looks like so far.
Julian Nagelsmann (Germany)
Ronald Koeman (Netherlands)
Miroslav Koubek (Czechia)
Sebastian Beccacece (Ecuador)
Hong Myung-bo (South Korea)
More World Cup coverage here.