For a brief moment, it looked as if Iran had snatched a dramatic stoppage time winner against Egypt to secure their first ever berth in the FIFA World Cup knockout round. Iranian centerback Shoja Khalilzadeh pounced on a rebound off a free kick, with Egyptian goalkeeper Mostafa Shobier out of his goal and in a mad scramble after saving an earlier shot in the sequence.

Following a lengthy VAR review, the goal was ruled out for offside, much to the disbelief and dismay of Iranian players and supporters and reprieve for the Egyptians inside Seattle Stadium.

On the surface, this looks like a blown call given Khalilzadeh (No. 4) was clearly behind Egyptian defender Yassir Ibrahim (No. 2) at the top of the screen:

But when VAR overturned the goal, the line drawn was along Khalilzadeh and Hamza Abdelkarim (No. 9).

This may seem like a massive oversight, but this is actually the correct application of the offside law.

The second-last opponent, explained

Based on the laws of the game, as maintained and governed by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), Khalilzadeh is offside even though he’s not beyond the last defender. That’s because this is one of those rare times where there’s an offside call in which the goalkeeper is not the last person back.

”A player is in an offside position if:

Since the Egyptian goalkeeper vacated his net, the last opponent was Ibrahim and the second-last opponent was Abdelkarim. Therefore, Khalilzadeh was marginally beyond Abdelkarim and consequently the goal was chalked off.

How the disallowed goal affects Iran, Egypt

Iran hit the crossbar shortly after the restart and the game finished 1-1, which sensationally shifted the Group G standings.

Instead of Iran finishing second behind Belgium and advancing to the Round of 32, they will have to wait for Saturday’s results to determine whether or not they’ll be in the knockout phase.

Egypt began Friday as Group G leaders, briefly dropped to third when the would-be winner by Iran was initially given, and ultimately finished in second. The Egyptians will play Australia on July 3 in Arlington.

How Iran can still qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout round

The good news for Iran is that they are sixth out of the 12 third-place finishers entering Saturday, so they would advance as things stand. Unfortunately for them, their position is tenuous given three teams can still overtake them. Iran will qualify if any of the following results occur:

If Croatia draw or beat Ghana, Algeria and Austria draw, and DR Congo beat Uzbekistan, then Iran would be out of the World Cup, and the disallowed goal would go down as one of the most heartbreaking ways to exit the tournament.

Austria vs. Algeria isn’t exactly the kind of match that soccer fans have circled on their calendar when it comes to the World Cup. Set to take place at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday night, it’s not exactly a match brimming with star players, potential Golden Boot winners, or elite club talent — but it’s rich in historical hatred. That has transformed a relatively ho-hum Group Stage match into must-watch television when it comes to drama.

As it stands, both teams are tied with three points in Group J after beating Jordan and losing to Argentina. The only thing keeping Austria ahead is their 0 goal differential, to Algeria’s -2. This makes the math pretty darn easy for Saturday night: If Algeria wins, they’re through to the knockout round, if Austria either wins or ties, then they’re through. The drama comes from a similar scenario that happened in 1982 when Austria and Algeria shared a group, and an incident that’s so infamous it has its own title in three different languages, translating as: “The Disgrace of Gijón,” “The Shame of Gijón,” and “The Match of Shame.”

The 1982 World Cup in Spain was the first cup Algeria ever qualified for. Little was expected out of the debuting nation, especially when it was announced they would share Group 2 with Austria, Chile, and powerhouse West Germany. Written off by everyone outside of Algiers, things took a dramatic turn in the opening game when Algeria stunned West Germany in one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. The 2-1 win was so unimaginable that it was compared to South Korea’s win over Italy at the 1966 World Cup for the greatest upset of all time.

It immediately made Algeria stand out, and it seemed plausible they might actually be able to put up a fight. The team lost 2-0 to Austria in their second game, but fought back to beat Chile 3-2. At the time a win was worth two points and a draw was one, which left Algeria second in the standings behind Austria with one game to play. They would need to wait to see what happened between West Germany and Austria to decide their fate.

We don’t need to hundreds of years of world history to understand the relationship with Austria and Germany outside of the fact they were allies for generations, and the two German-speaking nations faced off in the final match of the group. The group had four possible outcomes depending on what happened.

There was one scenario, No. 3, that would cause both nations to guarantee they would advance. West Germany had to win the game, but not beat Austria so badly that it took their goal differential below Algeria. The Disgrace of Gijón was on.

It’s unclear when the teams made a non-aggression pact, but it was clear from the kickoff that this wasn’t going to be a normal game. West Germany scored within the first 10 minutes with relative ease, then the game ground to a halt. For 80 minutes, the sides passed the ball inside their own half — often kicking back to the keeper who would then deliver a long ball into the other side of the field, at which point the other team would just pointlessly pass the ball around. If anyone found themselves close to a scoring opportunity they would wildly shoot the ball off target, just to preserve the 1-0 score until the final whistle.

There was so much disgust from everyone observing that there were in-game protests. Booing rang out through the stadium as fans realized what Austria and West Germany were doing, while German radio announcer Eberhard Stanjek refused to commentate the game any longer. It was similarly decried in Austria, where TV announcer Robert Seeger told viewers to turn off the game.

After 90 minutes it was over. West Germany won 1-0, meaning they would go through to the knockout round with Austria. Algeria was left holding the bag, being eliminated by goal differential. Algeria appealed to FIFA, but the governing body said that neither team had broken the rules — even if they had gone against the spirit of the game.

This brings us to Saturday night. 34 years of anger over “The Disgrace of Gijón” has a chance to be rectified with vengeance. If Algeria beats Austria, they will advance and eliminate the team that screwed them over in 1982. Sure, the players on both teams might not remember — but Algerians do, and this would be a small measure of justice. That mans the game on Saturday night means much, much more than a simple Group Stage game, it’s for national pride.

The 2026 World Cup is now officially in its second week, and some teams are starting to play their second matches of group play.

Which means some teams are already clinching spots in the knockout round.

With the World Cup expanding to 48 teams for the 2026 edition, the knockout round begins with the Round of 32, instead of the familiar Round of 16. That means that, beyond the top two teams in each group advancing to the knockout portion of the tournament, the eight best third-place teams are also advancing. We are tracking the third-place standings here if you are looking to see what teams are still in the running despite sitting in third place.

As far as teams that have clinched, read on.

Mexico became the first team to book a spot in the Round of 32, thanks to Thursday night’s 1-0 win over South Korea. Mexico opened the 2026 World Cup with a 2-0 win over South Africa, and when South Africa and Czechia played to a 1-1 draw earlier in the day, it opened the door for the winner of Thursday night’s match to win Group A.

After a scoreless first half, Luis Romo took advantage of a miscue from South Korea keeper Kim Seung-gyu, who collided with a teammate in the box and lost the ball, giving Romo a chance to give Mexico the lead.

Then the hero was Raúl Rangel, as Mexico’s keeper made a pair of brilliant saves in the closing stages to deny South Korea the equalizer:

El Tri are not only the winners of Group A and set to play a third-place team from Group C/E/F/H/I, but they will also stay in Mexico for the Round of 32, as that match will be held in Mexico City.

One host team became the first nation to book a spot in the Round of 32 on Thursday night, when Mexico’s win over South Korea secured Group A.

Friday, the United States joined them as the second team through to the Round of 32.

The 2-0 win over Australia guarantees that the United States will finish as one of the top two teams in Group D. And by the end of the night, the United States may be the winners of Group D, depending on how the late match between Paraguay and Türkiye finishes. If Türkiye lose or draw against Paraguay, then the United States will win Group D, and be locked into a match against a third-place team in the Round of 32.

The 2-0 win was also the USMNT’s first shutout since a 2-0 win in a friendly against Japan last September.

Update: With Paraguay winning on Friday night, the United States clinched Group D.

Germany’s 2-1 win over the Ivory Coast on Saturday clinched a spot in the knockout round as one of the top two teams out of Group E. Ivory Coast scored first, taking a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute on a Franck Kessié goal. They carried that lead into the second half before Deniz Undav evened it at 1 in the 68th minute. A draw looked likely before Undav managed another goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

They won Group E later in the evening when Curaçao managed a draw against Ecuador. It marked the first time Curaçao has earned a point in the World Cup. Goalkeeper Eloy Room made 15 saves, which is the most by any goalkeeper in 90 minutes of a World Cup match since records began in 1966.

Lionel Messi made history on Monday against Austria, as his left-footed strike put the living legend atop the list of all-time goal scorers in World Cup history.

It also clinched a spot in the Round of 32 for Argentina.

With the 2-0 win – Messi added a second goal late in the contest to ice the match – Argentina is guaranteed to finish in one of the top two spots in Group J, and a visit to the knockout round awaits. Argentina could clinch the group later tonight, and a match against a third-place team, if Jordan loses or draws against Algeria in the other match in Group J today.

Update: With Jordan’s loss to Algeria, Algeria has clinched Group J.

It took a little longer than expected, due to a lengthy weather delay, but France punched their ticket to the Round of 32 with a convincing win 3-0 against Iraq in Philadelphia.

Kylian Mbappé’s first goal of the match, coming in the first half, was all France would need on this day. But following a long halftime break, Mbappé and company added two more in the second half, as the French star continued climbing the record books.

France is now guaranteed a spot in the Round of 32 as one of the top two teams out of Group I. But they cannot clinch the group until their final match of group play, when they take on Erling Haaland and Norway later this week.

Norway qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 1998, and now they are through to the Round of 32 thanks to Monday’s 3-2 win over Senegal.

Erling Haaland’s first goal of the match gave Norway a 2-0 lead, but Senegal clawed a goal back, thanks to a lovely bit of skill from Ismaïla Sarr. But Haaland scored again, a right-footed deflection after a splendid reaction and turn, giving Norway a 3-1 lead in the second half.

Norway is guaranteed to be one of the top two teams out of Group I, but the job is not done. Friday’s heavyweight clash with France will determine the winner of the group. If there is a winner of that match, that team will claim Group I. If the match ends in a draw it will be decided by tiebreakers, where at the moment France has the advantage.

Colombia’s 1-0 win over DR Congo late Tuesday clinched a spot in the Round of 32. Colombia heads to the final day of group play in Group K guaranteed to finish as one of the top two teams in the group.

Colombia can still win the group and book a spot against a third-place team in the Round of 32, with a win or a draw against Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal next Saturday.

Rubén Vargas found the back of the net almost immediately after halftime, giving Switzerland a 1-0 lead over Canada.

That put the Swiss on a path to winning Group B, and a goal from Johan Manzambi in the 57th minute gave Switzerland a two-goal lead, and eventually held up to clinch both the match, and Group B, for Switzerland.

The Swiss will now get to stay in Vancouver, as they will meet a third-place team from Group E, F, G, I or J in the same stadium on July 2.

Canada began play on Tuesday needing a win or a draw against Switzerland to win Group B, but goals from Rubén Vargas and Johan Manzambi early in the second half propelled Switzerland to a 2-1 victory. Promise David found the back of the net with a lovely first-touch goal with his right foot in the 76th minute, but Canada could not complete the comeback.

Even with the loss, Canada clinched the second spot in Group B thanks to the goal differential tiebreaker against Bosnia and Herzegovina, who beat Qatar. That means Canada finishes second in the group, and they will take on the second-place team from Group A, which will be determined later Wednesday night.

Brazil booked a spot in the Round of 32 with Wednesday’s 3-0 win over Brazil. A pair of first-half goals from Vini Jr. gave Brazil a 2-0 lead at the halftime break, and Matheus Cunha scored in the 60th minute to provide some insurance.

In addition, Neymar came off the bench to replace Cunha in the 76th minute, for his first action of this World Cup.

The win was also enough to clinch the top spot in Group C, as Brazil’s goal differential was enough to finish above Morocco. As such, Brazil will meet the second-place team from Group F – either the Netherlands, Japan, or Sweden – in the Round of 32.

Morocco’s 4-2 win over Haiti was not enough to catch Brazil in Group C, but the side moves on to the Round of 32 as the second-place team in the group. They will face the winners of Group F in Monterrey on June 29.

In perhaps the biggest twist of Wednesday’s action South Africa clinched the second spot in Group A.

For the first time, South Africa is heading to the knockout round. Despite entering Wednesday’s matches sitting in fourth place in Group A, their 1-0 win over South Korea gave them a chance to advance as the second-place team in the group. Then, when Mexico beat Czechia, it locked up that second spot.

South Africa will face the second-place team from Group B in the Round of 32.

With a 2-0 win over Curaçao, Ivory Coast clinched the second spot in Group E. They will face the runner-up in Group I, which will likely come down to the massive tilt between Norway and France later this week.

Ecuador’s 2-1 win over Germany was enough for the South American side to become the first team to book a spot in the Round of 32 as a third-place team. The win moved Ecuador to the top of the standings among third-place teams, ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina on tiebreakers due to goal differential.

Even if the remaining third-place teams all win their matches, Ecuador will only drop to eighth among the third-place teams, enough to advance to the Round of 32.

The United States Men’s National Team got off to a rousing start at the 2026 World Cup, with a 4-1 win over Paraguay. The USMNT was dynamic, creative, and showed to the entire soccer world that they could be a force to be reckoned with at this tournament.

Now, on the verge of their second match of group play, they have a chance to accomplish another item on this year’s to-do list.

Here are the clinching scenarios for Group D ahead of the final matches in group play.

What are the Group D standings?

Here are the current Group D standings, ahead of the final two matches set for June 25.

What are the next Group D matches?

There are four matches left in Group D, starting with two on Friday, June 19.

United States 2, Australia 0
Paraguay 1, Türkiye 0

Türkiye vs. United States
Paraguay vs. Australia

What are the scenarios for Group D?

By winning Group D, the United States has already booked a spot in the Round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup.

So who will they play in the knockout round?

That … is a complicated question. A complicated question that involves brackets, Annex C of the FIFA Rules and Regulations, a matrix, and 495 potential combinations of the eight third-place teams advancing out of group play and into the knockout round.

So, let’s try to answer that question the best we can, starting with the World Cup bracket itself.

Wednesday could be pivotal for the United States at the 2026 World Cup. While the USMNT is not playing today, Wednesday is the final day of matches in Group B. Read on to see why that could determine who the United States plays in the Round of 32.

Update: And with Bosnia and Herzegovina clinching third in Group B, while it is not set in stone, they are the most likely opponent for the United States in the Round of 32. Read on for why.

The 2026 World Cup bracket

Let’s start here, with this World Cup bracket courtesy of USA Today.

Group L and Group K round out the second set of matches in group play on Tuesday.

And in Group L, England and Ghana square off in a match that could not only see a winner clinch a spot in the knockout round, but also win Group L entirely.

Then in the other match between Panama and Croatia, a loser could see dreams of a World Cup title shattered early.

Here are the scenarios for Group L ahead of the second set of matches.

Update: Following the 0-0 draw between Ghana and England, both teams are closer to clinching a spot in the Round of 32, but nothing has been finalized. In addition, the winner of Group L will come down to the final day of group play.

Regarding Croatia-Panama later tonight, if that match does have a loser, the losing team will be eliminated.

Update (Tuesday night): With Croatia’s 1-0 win over Panama, Panama has been eliminated.

What are the Group L standings?

Ahead of the matches set for Tuesday, June 23, here are the standings in Group L.

What are the next matches in Group L?

Here are the remaining matches in Group L, starting with the two matches set for Tuesday, June 23. All times listed are Eastern.

England 0, Ghana, 0
Croatia 1, Panama 0

Panama vs. England, 5:00 p.m.
Croatia vs. Ghana, 5:00 p.m.

What are the scenarios in Group L?

Ahead of the matches set for Tuesday, June 23, here are the scenarios in Group L.

Fresh off a command performance against Croatia, England can clinch a spot in the Round of 32, and potentially Group L, on Tuesday. With a win against Ghana, England is through to the Round of 32. In addition, if England beats Ghana, and Panama loses or draws against Croatia, England will win Group L. More on that in a moment.

A draw against Ghana does not clinch a spot in the knockout round for England.

Along the same lines, the Black Stars can also book a spot in the knockout round and potentially win Group L on Tuesday. With a win against England, they will clinch a spot in the Round of 32 as one of the top two teams in the group. With a win, Ghana will win Group L provided Croatia loses or draws against Panama.

A draw against England does not clinch a spot in the knockout round for Ghana.

Croatia can be eliminated on Tuesday with a loss to Panama, provided Ghana draws or wins against England.

Panama can be eliminated on Tuesday with a loss to Croatia, provided England draws or wins against Ghana.

What about tiebreakers in Group L?

Now we get to the tiebreaker scenarios that come into play with Group L, starting with the matches set for Tuesday, June 23.

Here is how tiebreakers work at the World Cup this year. If two or more teams in the same group are equal on points following the group stage, a three-step process will be followed to determine tiebreakers.

In the first step, the greatest number of points in the group matches between the tied teams will be applied. Then, the superior goal difference from the group matches between the tied teams will be applied, and finally, the greatest number of goals scored in all group matches between the tied teams will be applied.

If that cannot determine a tiebreaker, then the teams that are still equal will advance to step two. In this stage, the first step is the goal difference in all group matches, then the greatest number of goals in all group matches, and finally the highest team conduct score (relating to yellow and red cards) will be applied.