With the first qualifiers, the World Cup round of 32 takes shape

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·25 June 2026

With the first qualifiers, the World Cup round of 32 takes shape

With the increase in participants from 32 to 48 teams, the tournament for the first time features a round of 32, a knockout stage bringing together 32 national teams and marking the start of the head-to-head road to the title, in which Argentina has already qualified.

The new format establishes that the top two teams from each of the 12 groups, along with the eight best third-place finishers, will earn their ticket to this stage. From there, the direct elimination phase will begin, which will take place between June 28 and July 3, 2026.

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Which teams have qualified for the 2026 World Cup round of 32

So far, 13 of the 32 national teams have qualified.

How the 2026 World Cup round of 32 will be played

The system will be the same one usually used in the decisive stages of World Cups. Each match will be single-elimination and, in the event of a tie at the end of the 90 regulation minutes, two extra-time periods of 15 minutes each will be played.

If the tie remains after extra time, the winner will be decided by a penalty shootout.

This is the trophy — as in every tournament — that the world champion will lift in 2026 (Mike Stobe – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images).

These are the 2026 World Cup round of 32 matchups

2nd Group A vs. Canada (2nd Group B) — Sunday, June 28, 4:00 PM (SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles).
Germany (1st Group E) vs. 3rd Group A/B/C/D/F — Monday, June 29, 5:30 PM (Gillette Stadium, Foxborough).
1st Group F vs. 2nd Group C — Monday, June 29, 10:00 PM (BBVA Stadium, Monterrey).
1st Group C vs. 2nd Group F — Monday, June 29, 2:00 PM (NRG Stadium, Houston).
1st Group I vs. 3rd Group C/D/F/G/H — Tuesday, June 30, 6:00 PM (MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford).
2nd Group E vs. 2nd Group I — Tuesday, June 30, 2:00 PM (AT&T Stadium, Arlington).
Mexico (1st Group A) vs. 3rd Group C/E/F/H/I — Tuesday, June 30, 10:00 PM (Azteca Stadium, Mexico City).

In addition, the schedule will continue as follows:

1st Group L vs. 3rd Group E/H/I/J/K — Wednesday, July 1, 1:00 PM (Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta).
United States (1st Group D) vs. 3rd Group B/E/F/I/J — Wednesday, July 1, 9:00 PM (Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara).
1st Group G vs. 3rd Group A/E/H/I/J — Wednesday, July 1, 5:00 PM (Lumen Field, Seattle).
2nd Group K vs. 2nd Group L — Thursday, July 2, 8:00 PM (BMO Field, Toronto).
1st Group H vs. 2nd Group J — Thursday, July 2, 4:00 PM (SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles).
Switzerland (1st Group B) vs. 3rd Group E/F/G/I/J — Friday, July 3, 12:00 AM (BC Place, Vancouver).
Argentina (1st Group J) vs. 2nd Group H — Friday, July 3, 7:00 PM (Hard Rock Stadium, Miami).
1st Group K vs. 3rd Group D/E/I/J/L — Friday, July 3, 10:30 PM (Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City).
2nd Group D vs. 2nd Group G — Friday, July 3, 3:00 PM (AT&T Stadium, Arlington).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.