World Cup Round of 16 bracket: Updated schedule, results for second 2026 FIFA knockout round

World Cup Round of 16 bracket: Updated schedule, results for second 2026 FIFA knockout round originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The World Cup field has now been reduced from 48 teams to just 16.

A total of 32 progressed through the group stage to reach the first knockout round, and half of those have now been eliminated. The Round of 16 is where things start to get really interesting.

Most of the pre-tournament favorites are still alive, although Germany were shocked by Paraguay in the Round of 32, while the Netherlands also went home. Will we see any further surprises at this stage, or can we expected a quarterfinal lineup of all the remaining big guns?

Here’s a look at the Round of 16 bracket for the 2026 World Cup and the schedule of games to come over the next few days.

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World Cup Round of 16 bracket

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World Cup Round of 16 schedule

The matchups in the Round of 16 were predetermined and the bracket was filled out as each team progressed from their respective Round of 32 game. 

DateMatch No.MatchupSat., July 489France 1, Paraguay 0Sat., July 490Morocco 3, Canada  0Sun., July 591Brazil 1, Norway 2Sun., July 592Mexico vs. EnglandMon., July 693Portugal vs. SpainMon., July 694USA vs. BelgiumTue., July 795Argentina vs. EgyptTue., July 796Switzerland vs. Colombia

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World Cup bracket Round of 16

The bracket above comes in two halves. And each will produce a World Cup finalist.

One half of the bracket features the following teams, from which one lucky finalist will emerge:

• Paraguay (Group D third-place; elim. Germany in RO32)
• France (Group I winner; elim. Sweden in RO32)
• Canada (Group B runner-up; elim. South Africa in RO32)
• Morocco (Group C runner-up; elim. Netherlands in RO32)
• Portugal (Group K runner-up; elim. Croatia in RO32)
• Spain (Group H winner; elim. Austria in RO32)
• United States (Group D winner; elim. Bosnia and Herzegovina in RO32)
• Belgium (Group G winner; elim. Senegal in RO32)

The other half of the bracket will produce the other World Cup finalist from the following list:

• Mexico (Group A winner; elim. Ecuador in RO32)
• Switzerland (Group B winner; elim. Algeria in RO32)
• Brazil (Group C winner; elim. Japan in RO32)
• Colombia (Group K winner; elim. Ghana in RO32)
• Egypt (Group G runner-up; elim. Australia in RO32)
• Argentina (Group J winner; elim. Cape Verde in RO32)
• Norway (Group I runner-up; elim. Ivory Coast in RO32)
• England (Group L winner; elim. Mexico in RO32)

MORE: Teams qualified for the World Cup’s Round of 16

Teams in Round of 16

Canada was the first nation to reach the Round of 16 are defeating South Africa 1-0 in the first Round of 32 match.

The remaining 15 teams secured their progress by coming through their own knockout matchups, concluding with Colombia’s 1-0 victory over Ghana on July 3.

DateMatch No.MatchupSun., June 2873Canada 1, South Africa 0Mon., June 2974Paraguay 1 (pens 4-3), Germany 175Morocco 1 (pens 3-2), Netherlands 176Brazil 2, Japan 1Tues., June 3077France 3, Sweden 078Norway 2, Ivory Coast 179Mexico 2, Ecuador 0Wed., July 180England 2, DR Congo 181USA 3, Bosnia-Herzegovina 082Belgium 3, Senegal 2 (ET)Thurs., July 283Portugal 2, Croatia 184Spain 3, Austria 085Switzerland 2, Algeria 0Fri., July 386Argentina 3, Cape Verde 2 (ET)87Colombia 1, Ghana 088Egypt 1 (4-2 on pens) Australia 1

MORE: What are the best no-sweat bets in the 2026 World Cup?

How does Round of 16 work in World Cup?

The Round of 16 is the second round of the World Cup knockout stage.

As with the Round of 32, this part of the tournament sees games switch to a single-elimination format. There are no points earned. There are no standings or draws. There’s simply a winner or loser, with matches decided by extra time and penalty shootouts if necessary if the scoreline is tied after 90 minutes of regulation.

What happens if knockout matches finish tied?

Each Round of 16 matchup — and beyond — must be decided by the end of the match. If teams are tied after 90 minutes of regulation, the match goes into a 30-minute period of extra time. 

If the deadlock persists across the allotted time, the match then transitions to penalties. Five players from both sides line up for shots from the penalty spot. The team that finishes with more goals than their adversary is declared the winner, moving deeper into the competition. If the scores are level after those first five penalties, the teams continue to take alternating kicks until one side misses and the other scores.

The Round of 16 pairings are set in advance, with teams competing in the Round of 32 already knowing their possible opponents at this stage.

How teams advance in World Cup

There are 48 teams that reach the World Cup after emerging from qualifying matches in their respective regions. 

Group Stage

Once they get to the World Cup, the first obstacle awaiting them is the group stage. In 2026, the 48 teams were split up into 14 groups of four teams each.

The group stage consists of typical round-robin group play with each team playing the other three once. Three points are awarded for every win in the group stage, one for a draw, and none for a loss. If teams are tied on points, goal difference and goals scored represent the first tiebreakers.

The top two finishers in each group and eight-best third-place finishers advance to the knockout stage with each group winner, runner-up and qualified third-place finisher slotted into a predetermined bracket that starts with the Round of 32. 

Knockout Rounds

Beginning with the Round of 32 through to the final, every match is single elimination. Teams advance from the Round of 32 to the Round of 16, then to the quarterfinals, then the semifinals and lastly to the final. The losing semifinalists also play a third-place playoff game.

As explained above, if teams are tied at the end of the 90 minutes of regulation, the teams play 30 minutes of extra time followed by a penalty shootout, if necessary.