All matchups for the Round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, which is being held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, have been determined.
The first match of this round has already taken place: Canada defeated South Africa 1–0 and advanced to the Round of 16, where it will face the winner of the Netherlands–Morocco match.
All Round of 16 matchups for the 2026 World Cup:
June 28
South Africa – Canada – 0–1
June 29
Brazil vs. Japan
Germany vs. Paraguay
Netherlands vs. Morocco
June 30
Ivory Coast vs. Norway
France vs. Sweden
Mexico vs. Ecuador
July 1
England vs. DR Congo
Belgium vs. Senegal
United States vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina
July 2
Spain vs. Austria
Portugal vs. Croatia
Switzerland vs. Algeria
July 3
Australia vs. Egypt
Argentina vs. Cape Verde
Colombia vs. Ghana
Among the most notable matchups of the round are Brazil vs. Japan, the Netherlands vs. Morocco, France vs. Sweden, Portugal vs. Croatia, as well as the match between one of the tournament hosts, the U.S., and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Reigning world champion Argentina will kick off the knockout stage with a match against Cape Verde; Spain will face Austria; England will take on the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and Portugal will face Croatia.
The 2026 World Cup will be held for the first time in an expanded format featuring 48 national teams. A total of 104 matches will be played during the tournament, with the final scheduled for July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The 2026 World Cup kicks off on June 11 and will be held across three countries for the first time—the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The tournament will be the largest in history: instead of 32 teams, 48 national teams will participate.
The format has changed. Teams are divided into 12 groups of four. The top two teams from each group, as well as the eight best third-place finishers, will advance to the knockout stage. This makes the group stage less intense but increases the importance of goal difference and the final score, even in matches against the favorites.
2026 World Cup Groups
Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Czech Republic.
Group B: Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Qatar, Switzerland.
Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland.
Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Turkey.
Group E: Germany, Curaçao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador.
Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Tunisia.
Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand.
Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay.
Group I: France, Senegal, Iraq, Norway.
Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan.
Group K: Portugal, DR Congo, Uzbekistan, Colombia.
Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama.
The main favorites of the tournament are Argentina, France, Spain, Brazil, and England. Argentina enters the tournament as the reigning world champion, France remains one of the strongest teams in Europe, Spain boasts a strong generation of young players, Brazil is traditionally among the title contenders, and England remains one of the most expensive and balanced national teams in terms of its roster.
Portugal, Germany, the Netherlands, and Uruguay are also worth keeping an eye on. These teams may not always look like the top favorites, but they have enough quality to go far in the knockout stage.
Among the second-tier teams, Morocco, Croatia, Switzerland, Japan, Colombia, and Senegal are worth watching. Morocco has already proven at the 2022 World Cup that it can compete with European powerhouses, Croatia remains a tournament-ready team, and Japan is steadily improving and knows how to play against strong opponents.
From an economic standpoint, the 2026 World Cup will be not only a soccer event but also an infrastructure one. The U.S., Canada, and Mexico will see an influx of tourists, with hotels, airlines, restaurants, fan zones, the advertising market, and city services all experiencing additional demand for a month and a half.
The main intrigue of the tournament is whether the expanded format will maintain the quality of soccer. On the one hand, there will be more matches with clear favorites. On the other hand, smaller national teams will have a better chance of making it onto the world stage, and fans will have more unexpected storylines.
FC “Dynamo Kyiv” defeated FC “Chernihiv” 1–3 in the final and claimed the Ukrainian Football Cup, according to Suspilne Sport.
According to the report, Dynamo won the Ukrainian Cup for the first time in five years; the previous two Cup tournaments were won by Shakhtar, which was eliminated by Dynamo in the Round of 16 this season. On its way to the final, Chernihiv eliminated Metalist 1925 and became the first First League representative in seven years to reach the tournament’s decisive match.
For Dynamo, the Ukrainian Cup title is the 14th in the club’s history; the Kyiv team last lifted the trophy in the 2020/21 season under Mircea Lucescu.
Andrea Maldera, who previously worked for Italian soccer club AC Milan and, since 2016, has been part of the coaching staff for the Ukrainian national soccer team, has been named the new head coach of the Ukrainian national team.
As reported on the website of the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) on Monday, this marks the first time a foreign coach has led the Ukrainian national team.
“The Italian specialist’s candidacy was approved by the UAF Executive Committee upon the recommendation of the National Teams Committee. The contract with Andrea Maldera is for two years with an option to extend,” the statement reads.
Maldini was born on May 18, 1971. Throughout his career, he has served as an assistant head coach at AC Milan (Italy), Brighton (England), and Marseille (France). From 2016 to 2021, he served as Andriy Shevchenko’s assistant on the coaching staff of the Ukrainian national team.
As reported, Serhiy Rebrov has stepped down as head coach of the Ukrainian national team but will remain vice president and a member of the UAF Executive Committee. UAF President Andriy Shevchenko announced this on April 21.
Rebrov led the national team from 2023 to 2026; under his leadership, the team participated in the 2024 European Championship but failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
Ukraine defeated Georgia 1-0 and secured their first win in the Nations League soccer draw, Suspilnoe Sport reported on Friday night.
Despite the first victory, Ukraine continues to go in last place in the Nations League group, behind Albania in head-to-head meetings: 1. Georgia – 6 points (3 matches), 5:2 (goal difference); 2. Czech Republic – 6 points (3), 6:6; 3. Albania – 3 (3), 2:4; 4. Ukraine – 3 (3), 4:5.
It is reported that the next match Ukraine will play against the Czech Republic on Monday, October 14.
Ukraine’s national team played a 0-0 draw with Belgium in the third match of the 2024 European Football Championship.
In a parallel match, the national teams of Slovakia and Romania also played a draw 1:1.
Thus, all national teams scored four points, but Ukraine took the last place in the group on additional indicators – the worst goal difference.
Romania took the first place in the group, followed by Belgium and Slovakia. All of them will continue playing at the European Championship. Ukraine is eliminated from the tournament.
As reported, the first match Ukraine lost to Romania with a score of 0:3, and in the second – beat Slovakia with a score of 2:1.
