The World Cup Round of 32 Brackets Are Complete!

06/29/2026 3673

16 teams are officially out of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as the group stage concluded last night! Dozens more football matches left to play, however, as the Round of 32 begins tonight with South Africa vs Canada, followed by Brazil vs Japan tomorrow and more!

With all 32 teams seeded in the 1/16-finals of the World Cup, the best is yet to come for the tournament. Still, even up until now we already saw lots of surprises and fascinating matches. 9 out of the 10 African teams managed to qualify for the Round of 32, for example, making this potentially the most successful World Cup for African teams so far, especially if one or more teams manage to reach the semi-finals again, like Morocco did in 2022!

Among the other surprises was the early elimination of the Czech Republic, Türkiye, Uruguay and Scotland, while newcomers Cape Verde made history by qualifying past the group stage and are set to face Argentina!

But, let's take a look at each of the 1/16-finals in a bit more detail to find out what we can look forward to, how the likely dark horse teams Forebet predicted are expected to do, and more.

Germany vs Paraguay

Germany allowed themselves a 3-2 loss to Ecuador in the final match of Group E, but were very dominant against Ivory Coast and Curaçao before that. The European giants were a bit shaking in the qualifications for the tournament too, so, it remains to be seen if they will click into gear or will continue being somewhat inconsistent.

Paraguay, meanwhile, finished third in a tough group with the USA, Australia, and Türkiye, with the latter finishing 4th despite being favorites in the group. Paraguay managed a win, a draw, and a loss in the group and - apart from the 4-1 loss to the USA - their most recent matches haven't seen lots of goals in either direction.

Forebet will finalize our prediction for Germany vs Paraguay tomorrow, but the winner of the 1/16-final will face the victor of France vs Sweden in the next round.

France vs Sweden

After a 5-1 win versus Tunisia and a 5-1 loss to the Netherlands, Sweden managed to finish 3rd in Group F with a calm 1-1 draw with Japan. The Blågult were very underwhelming in the World Cup qualifications and their group stage performance doesn't inspire much confidence about getting past favorites France. It does look like we'll see quite a few goals, however, hopefully not just from the French attackers who already dismantled Norway, Senegal, and Iraq quite thoroughly in Group I.

South Africa vs Canada

South Africa vs Canada is the first 1/16-final we'll be treated to and Forebet has already prepared our prediction and match preview for it. The algorithm expects a very even game with 41% for a full-time draw and almost equal chances for either side to win in AET.

Both Canada and South Africa finished second in their group after a win, a draw, and a loss to their records. South Africa had the arguably harder Group A, however, having to content with Mexico, the Czech Republic and South Korea, while Canada didn't manage to defeat neither Switzerland nor Bosnia-Herzegovina, and only managed a 6-0 thrashing of Qatar.

Netherlands vs Morocco

One of the blockbuster football matches of the Round of 32 sees the Netherlands vs Morocco. The latter may have won the 2026 AFCON in rather controversial circumstances, but there's no denying that Morocco has been on a tear in recent years, including with their 4th-place finish in the 2022 World Cup.

The Atlas Lions will be hoping for another high-flying performance this year, but they'll have to go past a very dominant Oranje team. The Netherlands tore through Group F after a slow start with a 2-2 draw with Japan, but Morocco also gathered 7 points in a tricky group with Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti. Forebet is ready with our prediction and match preview for this match too, expecting 70% for 1X with 38% for a FT draw.

Portugal vs Croatia

Before the tournament had even started, Forebet predicted Portugal to win the 2026 World Cup. And, indeed, Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. progressed to the 1/16-finals without too many issues, despite not playing as well as expected so far.

Croatia loss to England in Group L but had a rather easy qualification after that with comfortable wins over Ghana and Panama. Lead once again by veteran Luka Modrić, the Checkered Ones will be looking for another dominant World Cup performance after their heroics in 2018 and 2022. Can they produce an upset versus a shaky Portugal?

Spain vs Austria

Spain began the 2026 World Cup as one of the heavy favorites to win the whole tournament and they certainly remain favorites after easily winning Group H and kicking Uruguay and Saudi Arabia out of the competition. Austria managed only 4 points in Group J with Argentina, Algeria, and Jordan, but those 4 points were enough for a 2nd place. Their only win was against Jordan, however, and the Austrian side are yet to perform well versus a more solid opposition.

USA vs Bosnia-Herzegovina

Bosnia-Herzegovina brought tears to Zlatan Ibrahimović's eyes and to their thousands of fans with their first-ever qualification past the World Cup Group Stage. They go against hosts USA who were looking at a 7- or 9-point record in Group D before Türkiye spoiled their celebrations with a last-minute goal for a 3-2 victory. The Americans are still favorites in this 1/16-final, of course, with Forebet predicting 47% for a full-time USA win and only 17% for the European side. An upset doesn't look impossible, however, and would certainly be one of the big talking points of the tournament if it happens!

Belgium vs Senegal

Belgium were sitting rather uncomfortably with just 2 points in Group G before the weekend, but they managed a 5-1 thrashing over New Zealand in their last group match to jump to the top of the group. Draws with Egypt and Iran aren't the worst results, but 5 points were certainly less than expected for the European side.

They go against one of the 9 African teams to make it to the Round of 32, as Senegal finished 3rd in a tough group with France, Norway, and Iraq. The Lions of Teranga only managed a win over Iraq, however, and fell to both France and Norway, leaking 3 goals in each football match. They did make both games rather competitive, however, and will certainly hope to finally manage to break their next European opponent.

Brazil vs Japan

Brazil vs Japan looks like it'd be one of the more interesting 1/16-finals of this World Cup, as many people seeing the Blue Samurai as one of the potential dark horses of the tournament even without captain Wataru Endo. Brazil, on the other hand, have been shaky at times under Carlo Ancelotti, but that didn't stop them from topping Group C after a draw with Morocco and two 3-0 wins over Scotland and Haiti. Forebet's football prediction here is 48% for a FT Brazil win, with 76% for 1X, but Japan are certainly capable of making it interesting for Seleção.

Ivory Coast vs Norway

Solbakken decided to rest 10 of Norway's football players in their final match in Group I versus France, which led to a 4-1 loss. The Vikings don't look too bothered about it, however, as they seem to fancy their chances versus Ivory Coast in this 1/16-final and didn't mind finishing second to secure it.

The African side, on the other hand, had a similar record of 2 wins and a loss in group E, though their loss to Germany wasn't as easy to swallow or pre-accepted with a fully-rested main squad. Forebet will release our final prediction for Ivory Coast vs Norway, but it looks like it'd be a rather even and competitive match, with the winner set to face the victor of Brazil vs Japan.

Mexico vs Ecuador

After comfortably topping Group A, World Cup hosts Mexico now go against fellow Latin American side Ecuador. The latter had a tough time in Group E with Germany and Ivory Coast, but managed to collect 4 points with a shock 3-2 win over Germany in the final round. The German side arguably didn't have much to play for in that game, while Mexico look like they'll be very motivated to play at 100%, so, Ecuador will be in for a tough test.

England vs D.R. Congo

England topped Group L with 7 points, including a 4-2 win over Croatia. Their 0-0 draw with Ghana and timid 2-0 victory over Panama raised a few questions, however, but the Three Lions arguably weren't under too much pressure to play at their full potential.

Their 1/16-final with D.R. Congo doesn't look like it should be too much of a challenge, as the African side managed only 4 points and a 3rd place in Group K behind Colombia and Portugal. They did hold CR7 and Co. to a 1-1 draw in the opening game of the group, however, so another upset might not be all that unlikely.

Argentina vs Cape Verde

Newcomers Cape Verde are riding a wave of excitement after their qualification to the Round of 32 from Group H ahead of Uruguay and Saudi Arabia. They recorded 3 draws in their 3 group games, including an opening match draw versus Spain.

The island nation will face a highly-motivated and in-form Argentinian side, however, with the champions sweeping through Group J with ease, beating Austria, Algeria, and Jordan, and with Lionel Messi scoring 6 goals in those 3 matches.

Australia vs Egypt

This is Egypt's first qualification past the group stage of a World Cup in 92 years, with 1934 being the last time they managed it. Australia have managed that feat two times before, in 2006 and in 2022, but have never gone past the first round of eliminations. One of these two sides is set to make history in this Round of 32. Stay tuned with Forebet to see our prediction and match preview for Australia vs Egypt tomorrow.

Switzerland vs Algeria

Switzerland came to the World cup as favorites in Group B thanks to their dominant performance in the World Cup qualifiers. And, indeed, the Swiss side managed 7 points and topped Group B ahead of hosts Canada, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Qatar. Algeria, on the other hand, had a tough time in Group J with Argentina, Austria and Jordan, and managed only 4 points, with their only victory being versus an underwhelming Jordan side. We'll see Forebet's exact prediction for Switzerland vs Algeria, but the European side looks poised to for more success in the tournament.

Colombia vs Ghana

Ghana managed to qualify out of a tough Group L behind England and Croatia, while Colombia topped Group K ahead of Portugal, DR Congo, and Uzbekistan. The South American side is looking for a successful tournament, but the Black Stars are one of the more impressive African sides in the 2026 World Cup, which is saying a lot. Forebet will calculate our prediction for Colombia vs Ghana tomorrow, with this looking like it might be one of the tighter 1/16-finals of the tournament.

So, what can we expect from the World Cup Round of 32?

Before the 2026 FIFA World Cup, many people were skeptical that the expansion to 48 teams and the addition of a Round of 32 will be underwhelming, as it'd mean lots of easy-to-predict matches between tournament favorites and weak 3rd-placed teams. Looking at the World Cup Round of 32 brackets, however, we can see lots of very exciting clashes, many thin margins, and a ton of unpredictability. The tournament already produced several footballing upsets and surprises, so, while most of the favorites for the World Cup look set to reach the Last 16, we can also expect another surprise or two.