2026 World Cup Predictor: Day 18 (knockouts begin!)
We've officially reached the knockout stage of the World Cup which is where things really heat up both on the pitch and on Superbru.
There's proper jeopardy in every single tie from here on, as even in the more one-sided looking ties, one costly mistake, particularly from a defender or goalkeeper, can see a team eliminated.
The final day of the group stage saw a bit of drama as the final knockout places were decided. Here's your overview of yesterday and a look ahead to today's opening Round of 32 tie. It's very strange to only have one match to focus on for a change!
A very Croatia result as even in an uneventful game that had few chances, they found a way to score a couple of goals with the legendary Luka Modric creating the all-important winner. That corner goal was the second of two set-piece goals in the match as Ghana scored from an indirect free-kick, while Petar Sucic's opener was a strike from range.
Croatia climbed to 2nd in the group as a result of this win and will now face Portugal, but Ghana's surprise draw with England in Round 2 has earned them a place in the knockouts too where they'll face Colombia.
England's best players got them through this game in the end, as Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane scored the goals, but this was a second consecutive match where Thomas Tuchel's team haven't impressed as much as many England fans would hope.
While there's no getting away from the fact that the Three Lions haven't been a great watch against Ghana and Panama, it doesn't really matter so long as the results keep coming, as all teams now head into the Round of 32 on equal footing. As an England fan, I'm still slightly more concerned with the defensive vulnerability being shown at times than I am about the lack of creativity from the wings.
England have won Group L and will face Congo DR on Wednesday.
Not quite the classic I was hoping for, but this was still a very good game for a 0-0 and Colombia largely had the better of things. The first half was particularly end-to-end and entertaining but Colombia could never quite find that touch of quality to find the win.
Still, a draw was enough for the South Americans to top Group K ahead of Portugal. Having beaten Uzbekistan so convincingly, Portugal will be a bit disappointed not to have looked more threatening than they were in this one, and an awkward tie against Croatia now awaits where they're going to have to be far more incisive in attack.
Job done for DRC who have made that excellent draw with Portugal in Round 1 count. This victory sends them through to the knockout stage as a 3rd-placed team and they'll now face England on Wednesday in Atlanta.
There was some good resilience shown in this game too from DRC as though they ended up dominating throughout, they had fallen behind initially to a surprise Uzbekistan goal. This response and a few goals will have done them good, and we've already seen from that Portugal game that they're very capable of defending well and hitting on the counter which will be the blueprint vs. England.
A remarkable game. I, like many, predicted the draw since it was mutually beneficial, but 3-3 seemed impossible in such circumstances! When Algeria scored in the 93rd minute, Austria were heading out of the tournament with Iran ahead of them as a 3rd-placed side, but they then found an even later goal themselves to level things up and progress as runners-up.
Bizarrely, Algeria will have also been OK with that late equaliser as it means Austria are now facing Spain in the Round of 32 instead of them. A tie with Switzerland is certainly preferable for the African side.
Algeria's progression also means that 9 of the 10 African nations in this World Cup are through to the knockouts which is very impressive and could we see them continue to thrive with temperatures expected to increase across the US over the next couple of weeks?
Finally, this was the win that everyone expected for Argentina, but fair play to Jordan on getting a goal to round off a respectable maiden appearance at a World Cup. Their main downfall, harsh as it is to say, has been their keeper I think! Gio Lo Celso's opening free-kick was excellent but why was Yazeed Abulaila already rushing over to the other side of the goal? For Messi's goal, which was a slightly more disguised free-kick, he then did the same thing.
Argentina now find themselves with what looks like an incredibly generous pathway to go deep in this tournament. Obviously no win is guaranteed, but assuming they keep progressing, they'll face Cape Verde, then Australia or Egypt, then likely Switzerland or Colombia in a quarter-final.
The Round of 32 stage is filled with some genuinely excellent ties, so I'm very excited for the drama we'll have throughout the next week.
Today's schedule:
After a reasonable round in Round 3 including 6/6 correct (not exact) predictions yesterday, I've hopefully built up some momentum for the knockout stage!
To me, this is a really intriguing opening knockout tie because while I think Canada will progress, it's far from guaranteed when they're having to play outside of Canada for the first time in this tournament.
Neither team has any World Cup knockout experience to call upon, so it will be about who can execute their plans best on the day when under pressure, and I think Canada are slightly better placed to do so having had a mentality of going far in this tournament from the off.
In Round 1, Bafana Bafana were really disappointing on the opening night. The fact that they've turned things around certainly means they could win this game having built up a bit of confidence, especially since they might see this as a free hit. However, I just wonder if having already made history by reaching this stage, they might lack the belief that they can go any further.
If Canada start by playing the way they did towards the end of the Switzerland game, they'll win this quite comfortably in my opinion. I'm not sure they will fly out of the blocks though, so I'm going 0-2 with an expectation that the goals will come in the second half after a fairly resilient opening hour or so from Bafana.
Best of luck to all! How do you see today's game going?
There's proper jeopardy in every single tie from here on, as even in the more one-sided looking ties, one costly mistake, particularly from a defender or goalkeeper, can see a team eliminated.
The final day of the group stage saw a bit of drama as the final knockout places were decided. Here's your overview of yesterday and a look ahead to today's opening Round of 32 tie. It's very strange to only have one match to focus on for a change!
🇭🇷 Croatia 2-1 Ghana 🇬🇭
Outcome predicted by 56% of users | Scoreline predicted by 27.6% of usersA very Croatia result as even in an uneventful game that had few chances, they found a way to score a couple of goals with the legendary Luka Modric creating the all-important winner. That corner goal was the second of two set-piece goals in the match as Ghana scored from an indirect free-kick, while Petar Sucic's opener was a strike from range.
Croatia climbed to 2nd in the group as a result of this win and will now face Portugal, but Ghana's surprise draw with England in Round 2 has earned them a place in the knockouts too where they'll face Colombia.
🇵🇦 Panama 0-2 England 🏴
Outcome predicted by 98.4% of users | Scoreline predicted by 24.5% of usersEngland's best players got them through this game in the end, as Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane scored the goals, but this was a second consecutive match where Thomas Tuchel's team haven't impressed as much as many England fans would hope.
While there's no getting away from the fact that the Three Lions haven't been a great watch against Ghana and Panama, it doesn't really matter so long as the results keep coming, as all teams now head into the Round of 32 on equal footing. As an England fan, I'm still slightly more concerned with the defensive vulnerability being shown at times than I am about the lack of creativity from the wings.
England have won Group L and will face Congo DR on Wednesday.
🇨🇴 Colombia 0-0 Portugal 🇵🇹
Outcome predicted by 23% of users | Scoreline predicted by 0.3% of usersNot quite the classic I was hoping for, but this was still a very good game for a 0-0 and Colombia largely had the better of things. The first half was particularly end-to-end and entertaining but Colombia could never quite find that touch of quality to find the win.
Still, a draw was enough for the South Americans to top Group K ahead of Portugal. Having beaten Uzbekistan so convincingly, Portugal will be a bit disappointed not to have looked more threatening than they were in this one, and an awkward tie against Croatia now awaits where they're going to have to be far more incisive in attack.
🇨🇩 Congo DR 3-1 Uzbekistan 🇺🇿
Outcome predicted by 72% of users | Scoreline predicted by 2.5% of usersJob done for DRC who have made that excellent draw with Portugal in Round 1 count. This victory sends them through to the knockout stage as a 3rd-placed team and they'll now face England on Wednesday in Atlanta.
There was some good resilience shown in this game too from DRC as though they ended up dominating throughout, they had fallen behind initially to a surprise Uzbekistan goal. This response and a few goals will have done them good, and we've already seen from that Portugal game that they're very capable of defending well and hitting on the counter which will be the blueprint vs. England.
🇩🇿 Algeria 3-3 Austria 🇦🇹
Outcome predicted by 38.6% of users | Scoreline predicted by 0.08% of usersA remarkable game. I, like many, predicted the draw since it was mutually beneficial, but 3-3 seemed impossible in such circumstances! When Algeria scored in the 93rd minute, Austria were heading out of the tournament with Iran ahead of them as a 3rd-placed side, but they then found an even later goal themselves to level things up and progress as runners-up.
Bizarrely, Algeria will have also been OK with that late equaliser as it means Austria are now facing Spain in the Round of 32 instead of them. A tie with Switzerland is certainly preferable for the African side.
Algeria's progression also means that 9 of the 10 African nations in this World Cup are through to the knockouts which is very impressive and could we see them continue to thrive with temperatures expected to increase across the US over the next couple of weeks?
🇯🇴 Jordan 1-3 Argentina 🇦🇷
Outcome predicted by 99.2% of users | Scoreline predicted by 6.4% of usersFinally, this was the win that everyone expected for Argentina, but fair play to Jordan on getting a goal to round off a respectable maiden appearance at a World Cup. Their main downfall, harsh as it is to say, has been their keeper I think! Gio Lo Celso's opening free-kick was excellent but why was Yazeed Abulaila already rushing over to the other side of the goal? For Messi's goal, which was a slightly more disguised free-kick, he then did the same thing.
Argentina now find themselves with what looks like an incredibly generous pathway to go deep in this tournament. Obviously no win is guaranteed, but assuming they keep progressing, they'll face Cape Verde, then Australia or Egypt, then likely Switzerland or Colombia in a quarter-final.
Today
It's knockouts time, everyone.The Round of 32 stage is filled with some genuinely excellent ties, so I'm very excited for the drama we'll have throughout the next week.
Today's schedule:
- 🇿🇦 South Africa vs. Canada 🇨🇦 | Kick-off 12:00 local, 20:00 UK, 21:00 CET/CAT
After a reasonable round in Round 3 including 6/6 correct (not exact) predictions yesterday, I've hopefully built up some momentum for the knockout stage!
To me, this is a really intriguing opening knockout tie because while I think Canada will progress, it's far from guaranteed when they're having to play outside of Canada for the first time in this tournament.
Neither team has any World Cup knockout experience to call upon, so it will be about who can execute their plans best on the day when under pressure, and I think Canada are slightly better placed to do so having had a mentality of going far in this tournament from the off.
In Round 1, Bafana Bafana were really disappointing on the opening night. The fact that they've turned things around certainly means they could win this game having built up a bit of confidence, especially since they might see this as a free hit. However, I just wonder if having already made history by reaching this stage, they might lack the belief that they can go any further.
If Canada start by playing the way they did towards the end of the Switzerland game, they'll win this quite comfortably in my opinion. I'm not sure they will fly out of the blocks though, so I'm going 0-2 with an expectation that the goals will come in the second half after a fairly resilient opening hour or so from Bafana.
Best of luck to all! How do you see today's game going?
Superbru on X
Other games were good too, though I tapped out at half time in Jordan v Argentina. I might have watched the second half of Algeria v Austria so seems I missed a cracker. Still, got a result for that as I predicted 1-1.
5/6 correct outcomes yesterday, but no exacts.
I got 27.5 in the final round of group games. Despite tinkering lowering my scores here and there, I have been consistent, with scores of 28.5, 26 and 27.5 so far to make 82.
For tonight, I am thinking either 1-0 or 2-1 Canada.
If they beat Cape Verde they'll play Australia or Egypt, and then it's Switzerland, Algeria, Colombia or Ghana.