Well, here’s the big day for local interest in the first knockout round: both England and the USA in action. The nations are expecting, on both sides of the Atlantic.
I will be at the US game in Santa Clara, and I’m quite excited for that.
ENGLAND vs. DR CONGO
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 27: Thomas Tuchel, Manager of England, looks on before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group L match between Panama and England at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 27, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 27: Thomas Tuchel, Manager of England, looks on before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group L match between Panama and England at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 27, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
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On paper, this looks to be a laugher for the Three Lions. But Thomas Tuchel’s outfit haven’t exactly looked the well oiled machine we might have been expecting, and they’ve struggled a bit too much for anyone’s liking despite the unbeaten run through the group stage (with only just the two goals to Croatia conceded in the first 45 minutes at the tournament). And they’ll be without Reece James, who’s nursing a minor hamstring problem. Might Trevoh Chalobah factor in as a result in some way?
Meanwhile, DR Congo have been anything but an easy out, holding Portugal to a 1-1 draw and only just losing to Colombia by the narrowest of margins, 1-0. A 3-1 win over Uzbekistan on the final day of group stage ensured their participation in the knockout rounds for the first time ever, and now they’re looking for a major upset and some more history.
Date / Time: Wednesday, July 1, 2026, 12pm EDT; 5pm BST
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA, USA
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
On TV: FOX, Telemundo (USA); BBC One (UK); elsewhere
Streaming online: FOX One, Peacock (USA); BBC iPlayer (UK)
BELGIUM vs. SENEGAL
TORONTO, ON - JUNE 26: Forward Nicolas Jackson (11) of Senegal is seen with the ball during second-half stoppage time of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match between Senegal and Iraq on June 26, 2026, at Toronto Stadium in Toronto, ON. (Photo by Mathew Tsang/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - JUNE 26: Forward Nicolas Jackson (11) of Senegal is seen with the ball during second-half stoppage time of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match between Senegal and Iraq on June 26, 2026, at Toronto Stadium in Toronto, ON. (Photo by Mathew Tsang/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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Similarly to England, Belgium have failed to get pulses racing with their one win and two draws in the group stage, but they’ve still got some proven winners who can step up at the right time to make a difference. Romelu Lukaku has twice come off to bench to make nearly immediate impact, for example.
Senegal’s World Cup has been a bit of a rollercoaster. They looked great at first, but lost to France anyway, then looked less great but almost beat Norway before losing by the odd goal in five. They ensured their participation in the Round of 32 by running up the score against Iraq, 5-0, in the third game. Nicolas Jackson’s still looking for his first goal (he does one assist); Mamadou Sarr’s looking for his first minutes.
Date / Time: Wednesday, July 1, 2026, 4pm EDT; 9pm BST
Venue: Lumen Field, Seattle, WA, USA
Referee: Saíd Martínez (Honduras)
On TV: FOX Sports 1, Telemundo (USA); ITV 1 (UK); elsewhere
Streaming online: FOX One, Peacock (USA); ITVx (UK)
USA vs. BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 26: Head coach Mauricio Pochettino of the United States watches during a training session at Great Park Sports Complex on June 26, 2026 in Irvine, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 26: Head coach Mauricio Pochettino of the United States watches during a training session at Great Park Sports Complex on June 26, 2026 in Irvine, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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I had someone ask me earlier today, how is it fair that we (i.e. the US) are playing against two countries in this game? Massive knowledge gaps in geography aside, thankfully we only have to play against one team to advance. And that one team is one of the weaker teams to have made it out of the group stage, thanks to a perfunctory win against Qatar after suffering a beatdown from Switzerland and getting a lucky draw against Canada.
But strange things can happen in single-elimination games, as we’ve already seen from Paraguay. Bosnia could certainly frustrate the US. And lest we forget, they had the best (unofficial) World Cup song, which contained the prophetic line “take me to Golden Gate”. Well, they are here, in the Bay Area, in the shadow of the Golden Gate (the Golden Gate bridge spans the mouth of San Francisco Bay, at the bottom of which is Santa Clara, where the match is being played).
Christian Pulisic looks to have recovered from his injury and is set to start for the Stars & Stripes, who played largely a B-team against Turkey in the final, meaningless group game, and still almost pulled off a win. Mauricio Pochettino has got the good vibes going, hopefully straight into the next round.
Date / Time: Wednesday, July 1, 2026, 8pm EDT; 1am BST (next day)
Venue: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA, USA
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
On TV: FOX, Telemundo (USA); BBC One (UK); elsewhere
Streaming online: FOX One, Peacock (USA); BBC iPlayer (UK)