World Cup Round of 32 Concludes With Key Matches Featuring Argentina, Egypt, Colombia

The Round of 32 in the 2026 FIFA World Cup concludes overnight with three decisive matches determining the teams advancing to the Round of 16. The fixtures include Australia versus Egypt, Argentina against Cape Verde, and Colombia facing Ghana.

Australia aims to continue its tradition of reaching the knockout stages, having advanced to the Round of 16 in 2006 and 2022. They face Egypt, who are competing in their first-ever World Cup knockout match. Egypt's star Mohamed Salah, likely playing his last World Cup, carries the weight of national expectations after a disappointing Africa Cup of Nations campaign and seeks a historic achievement with his national team.

Argentina, a strong favorite for the title, will mark coach Lionel Scaloni's 100th match in charge as they play Cape Verde. Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, the all-time World Cup top scorer tied with Kylian Mbappé, looks to secure its fourth World Cup trophy. Cape Verde, the second smallest nation ever to participate in the tournament, remains unbeaten and aims to defy expectations. Their coach Pedro 'Bobista' Leitão emphasized they are competing to win, not just to experience the event.

Colombia, having topped their group ahead of Portugal, welcomes back defenders Daniel Muñoz and Johan Mojica to face Ghana. Colombia plans to field their strongest lineup under coach Néstor Lorenzo. Ghana, led by Antoine Semenyo, is playing its first knockout match since the 2010 World Cup and seeks to achieve an unprecedented milestone under coach Carlos Queiroz, who is participating in his fifth consecutive World Cup.

These matches will finalize the Round of 16 lineup and set the stage for the tournament's next phase.