World Cup 2026 knockouts: Canada out, England head to the Azteca as the last 16 heats up
Co-hosts Canada are eliminated by Morocco and France advance, with England vs Mexico in Mexico City the marquee Round of 16 tie on a loaded weekend.
The first World Cup staged across three nations has reached its knockout weekend, and the field of 48 is down to the last 16 with the drama already reshaping the bracket. Co-hosts Canada, who had reached the Round of 16 on home soil, were eliminated by a resurgent Morocco, ending one of the three home nations' campaigns and leaving the United States and Mexico to carry host hopes forward. France came through against a stubborn Paraguay to move into the quarterfinals.
Sunday delivers the tie the tournament has been waiting for. England travel to Mexico City to face co-hosts Mexico at a reworked Estadio Azteca, a cauldron that has staged two previous World Cup finals and now hosts a last-16 meeting with a quarterfinal place on the line. Earlier in the day, Brazil open proceedings against Erling Haaland's Norway in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the same stadium that will stage the final.
Monday closes out the round with two more heavyweight fixtures: Portugal against Spain in Arlington, Texas, an Iberian showdown with continental bragging rights at stake, and the United States facing Belgium in Seattle as the co-hosts try to keep their run alive on home soil.
From there the tournament accelerates. The quarterfinals run from July 9 to 11 across US venues, the semifinals follow, and it all resolves on Sunday, July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. With a co-host already out, a Mexican fortress in play and an Iberian derby looming, the expanded World Cup's knockout rounds are set to test whether scale and spectacle can still deliver the old jeopardy.
