From Mexico’s clean sweep in Group A to the United States’ strong run in Group D, the men’s World Cup group stage has set the bracket for the Round of 32. As teams advance to knockout play, several match results—including games decided on penalty kicks—have al
By the time the last group matches closed on Wednesday, June 24, the men’s World Cup bracket was no longer a question—it was a schedule.
In Group A. Mexico finished with a perfect record: 3 games played. 3 wins. 0 draws. 0 losses. 6 goals for and 0 goals against. for 9 points. South Africa had 4 points, South Korea 3, and Czechia 1. The results that built it were blunt: Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 on Thursday. June 11. then followed with a 2-1 win over Czechia on Thursday. June 18 (South Korea 2. Czechia 1). Mexico sealed the group with a decisive 3-0 victory over Czechia on Wednesday. June 24 (Czechia 0. Mexico 3) and ended the stage by defeating South Korea 1-0 (South Africa 1. South Korea 0).
Group B delivered its own kind of separation. Switzerland ended on top with 7 points after going 2-1-0 in three matches (7 goals for, 3 against). Canada finished with 4 points, Bosnia-Herzegovina with 4, and Qatar with 1. Switzerland’s decisive stretch included a 4-1 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina on Thursday. June 18 (Switzerland 4. Bosnia-Herzegovina 1) and a 2-1 win over Canada on Wednesday. June 24 (Switzerland 2. Canada 1). Qatar’s tournament looked tougher from the start. finishing with just one point after dropping to Canada 6-0 on Thursday. June 18 and suffering a loss to Switzerland in their opening draw (Qatar 1. Switzerland 1).
In Group C, Brazil and Morocco both landed on 7 points, but Brazil stayed steadier through scoring and results. Brazil went 2 wins, 1 draw, 0 losses with 7 goals for and 1 against. Morocco matched the points with 6 goals for and 3 against. Scotland finished with 3 points and Haiti finished winless with 0. Brazil’s path included a 3-0 win over Haiti on Friday. June 19 (Brazil 3. Haiti 0) and a 3-0 finish on Wednesday. June 24 (Scotland 0. Brazil 3). Morocco pushed harder late as well, beating Haiti 4-2 on Wednesday, June 24 (Morocco 4, Haiti 2).
The United States made its own case in Group D. The U.S. finished first with 6 points, going 2 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss, and outscoring opponents 8 goals to 4. Australia and Paraguay each finished with 4 points, while Turkey finished with 3. The turning points came early and in bursts: the United States beat Paraguay 4-1 on Friday. June 12 (United States 4. Paraguay 1). then beat Australia 2-0 on Friday. June 19 (United States 2. Australia 0). The U.S. closed with a tougher match against Turkey on Thursday. June 25. falling 3-2 (Turkey 3. United States 2). but it didn’t change the outcome of the standings.
Other groups tightened right to the end. Group E saw Germany finish with 6 points and Ivory Coast close behind on 6 as well. while Ecuador landed on 4 and Curacao on 1. Germany beat Curacao 7-1 on Sunday, June 14 (Germany 7, Curacao 1), then later edged Ecuador 2-1 on Thursday, June 25 (Ecuador 2, Germany 1). In Group F. Netherlands claimed the top spot with 7 points (2 wins. 1 draw. 0 losses). ending ahead of Sweden with 4 points and Japan with 5—despite Japan’s late results like a 4-0 win over Tunisia on Sunday. June 21 (Tunisia 0. Japan 4). Tunisia finished with 0 points.
Belgium and Egypt both finished with 5 points in Group G, while Iran ended with 3 points and New Zealand with 1. The standings reflected a season of swings: Belgium and Egypt drew 1-1 on Monday. June 15 (Belgium 1. Egypt 1). and then Belgium played to a 0-0 tie with Iran on Sunday. June 21 (Belgium 0. Iran 0). New Zealand’s only win came from late pressure. beating Belgium 1-0 on Friday. June 26 (New Zealand 1. Belgium 5 actually shows a New Zealand loss in that line—New Zealand’s win total in the table remains 0. with the match listed as New Zealand 1. Belgium 5). The bracket will treat those numbers as they stand: New Zealand finished 1 point after 3 games.
In Group H. Spain topped the table with 7 points after going 2 wins. 1 draw. 0 losses and holding opponents to 0 goals against (Spain 5 goals for. 0 against). Uruguay finished with 2 points, Saudi Arabia with 2, and Cape Verde with 3. Spain opened with a 0-0 draw against Cape Verde on Monday. June 15 (Spain 0. Cape Verde 0) and then surged on Sunday. June 21 with a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia (Spain 4. Saudi Arabia 0). Uruguay and Cape Verde also tied on Sunday. June 21 (Uruguay 2. Cape Verde 2). and the final Group H match on Friday. June 26 had Spain win 1-0 over Uruguay (Uruguay 0. Spain 1).
Group I saw France finish with 9 points, a perfect 3-for-3 record of wins, with 10 goals for and 2 against. Norway finished with 6 points, Senegal with 3, and Iraq with 0. France’s clean run included a 3-1 win over Senegal on Tuesday. June 16 (France 3. Senegal 1) and a 3-0 win over Iraq on Monday. June 22 (France 3. Iraq 0). Iraq’s tournament ended without a win after losing all three group matches. including a 4-1 defeat to Norway on Tuesday. June 16 (Iraq 1. Norway 4).
In Group J. Argentina closed with 9 points—an unbeaten 3-0-0 record—finishing on top with 8 goals for and 1 goal against. Austria had 4 points, Algeria 4 points, and Jordan 0 points. Argentina’s standout result was a 3-0 win over Algeria on Tuesday, June 16 (Argentina 3, Algeria 0). Jordan was held scoreless across the group. ending with 3 goals against and 0 points after a 3-0 loss to Algeria on Monday. June 22 (Jordan 1. Algeria 2 is listed; Jordan also lost 1-3 to Argentina on Saturday. June 27).
Group K put Colombia and Portugal level at 7 and 5 points respectively, with Congo on 4 and Uzbekistan on 0. Colombia finished 2-1-0 and scored 4 goals while allowing just 1. Uzbekistan’s campaign ended without a win despite scoring 2 goals. Portugal’s schedule included a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan on Tuesday. June 23 (Portugal 5. Uzbekistan 0). then Portugal and Uzbekistan played to a 0-0 draw in the last round on Saturday. June 27 (Colombia 0. Portugal 0 actually appears under the closing match list). Congo ended their stage with a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan on Saturday, June 27 (Congo 3, Uzbekistan 1).
Group L ended with England first on 7 points. Croatia finished with 6, Ghana with 4, and Panama with 0. England’s results included an opening 4-2 win over Croatia on Wednesday. June 17 (England 4. Croatia 2). followed by a 2-0 win over Panama on Saturday. June 27 (Panama 0. England 2). Croatia’s late push came from a 2-1 win over Ghana on Saturday, June 27 (Croatia 2, Ghana 1). Panama went winless, including a 0-1 loss to Croatia on Tuesday, June 23 (Panama 0, Croatia 1).
Once the group winners were established, the tournament’s pressure moved immediately into the knockout bracket.
The Round of 32 began Sunday, June 28, with South Africa 0, Canada 1. On Monday, June 29, Brazil defeated Japan 2-1. Two matches swung on penalty kicks: Germany 1. Paraguay 1. with Paraguay advancing 4-3 on penalty kicks; and Netherlands 1. Morocco 1. with Morocco advancing 3-2 on penalty kicks. Tuesday, June 30 brought Ivory Coast 1, Norway 2; France 3, Sweden 0; and Mexico 2, Ecuador 0. Wednesday, July 1 included England 2, Congo 1; Belgium 3, Senegal 2, OT; and the United States 2, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0. Thursday, July 2 featured Spain 3, Austria 0; Portugal 2, Croatia 1; and Switzerland 2, Algeria 0. Friday, July 3 delivered Australia 1, Egypt 1, with Egypt advancing 4-2 on penalty kicks; Argentina 3, Cape Verde 2, OT; and Colombia 1, Ghana 0.
The Round of 16 arrives right after, starting Saturday, July 4 with Canada 0, Morocco 3 and Paraguay 0, France 1. Sunday, July 5 has Brazil 1, Norway 2 and Mexico 2, England 3. On Monday, July 6, Portugal vs. Spain starts at 3 p.m., and the United States faces Belgium at 8 p.m.
On Tuesday, July 7, Argentina faces Egypt at 12 p.m., and Switzerland plays Colombia at 4 p.m. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Thursday, July 9 (France vs. Morocco at 4 p.m.), Friday, July 10 (W93 vs. W94 at 3 p.m.), and Saturday, July 11 (Norway vs. England at 5 p.m., and W95 vs. W96 at 9 p.m.).
Semifinals are set for Tuesday, July 14 (W97 vs. W98 at 3 p.m.) and Wednesday, July 15 (W99 vs. W100 at 3 p.m.). The third-place playoff is scheduled for Saturday, July 18 (RU101 vs. RU102 at 5 p.m.), and the final is Sunday, July 19 (W101 vs. W102 at 3 p.m.).
For teams, the group stage ended as a standings exercise. For fans, it ends as memory—because the next matches start with one simple rule: you don’t get to go back and redo it.
Men's World Cup Group A Group B Group C Group D Round of 32 Round of 16 penalty kicks United States Belgium schedule
Penalty kicks are always a coin flip anyway.
I can’t believe Mexico basically shut everyone out like that. 3-0 then 1-0? Sounds rigged lol but good for them I guess. Also why do they say bracket like it’s a schedule…?
US had a strong run but I’m confused, like did they actually win their group or just advance. They always make it sound like they’re winners set and then it’s still penalties and stuff. If Mexico got 0 goals against that’s wild though.
Mexico going perfect is cool but I swear the group stage never matters until Round of 32, then everybody plays different. Also South Korea only had 3 points? Seems wrong because I remember seeing them score earlier on some highlight. Maybe the article left out half of Group D or something. Either way I just want the US to not go to penalties again.