Brazil to Meet Japan, Netherlands Draw Morocco in World Cup Knockout Preview

The final round in Groups 5 and 6 completed another piece of the 2026 World Cup round of 32 picture. Ivory Coast reached the knockout stage for the first time in its history, Ecuador pulled off a major upset over Germany to advance from third place, the Netherlands finished top of its group, and Japan and Sweden also secured their places in the next round. Bosnia also qualified for the first time ever, as one of the four best third-place teams.

The newly expanded tournament format means eight of the 12 third-place finishers will advance, with the final list to be confirmed after the third group round. Tiebreakers are head-to-head points, goal difference, goals scored, fair play, and FIFA ranking, in that order. The projected round of 32 already includes Germany vs Paraguay, Netherlands vs Morocco, Brazil vs Japan, Mexico vs Scotland, Argentina vs Uruguay, Switzerland vs Belgium, Colombia vs Croatia, and others, with several matchups still dependent on final standings.

Several groups remain finely balanced. In Group 8, Spain and Uruguay were the favorites, but Cape Verde has shaken things up after taking two historic points from both. In Group 9, France and Norway have already clinched first place with two wins each and will meet to decide the group winner. In Group 10, defending champion Argentina has already secured first place, while Austria and Algeria are battling for second.

Group 11 leader Colombia will top the group with a draw against Portugal, while Portugal needs a win. In Group 12, England's goalless draw with Ghana left first place technically open, but England is heavily favored against winless Panama. The more important match there is Ghana against Croatia, which will likely decide second place.