This is our running World Cup 2026 tracker, updated after every round through the final on 19 July at MetLife Stadium. Instead of hunting for the day’s article, you’ll find the results that matter, the stories shaping the tournament and the road to the final here — with the official schedule and results always available on FIFA’s site.

How does the World Cup 2026 knockout stage work?

For the first time there is a round of 32 before the round of 16: the top two in each group advance along with the eight best third-placed teams, as we explained in our guide to the new knockout round. From there the bracket took shape, just as we anticipated when the match-ups first started to form.

Updates

20 July 2026

Spain are world champions: a 1-0 win over Argentina in extra time, Ferran Torres scoring in the 106th minute at MetLife — a second Spanish title, sixteen years after 2010. Mbappé took the Golden Boot with 10 goals and Messi said goodbye to World Cups without repeating 2022; the full story of the final is here. With the final whistle in East Rutherford this tracker signs off too — thanks for following the 2026 World Cup with us.

19 July 2026

Final night is here: Argentina-Spain kicks off at MetLife at 8pm Lisbon time, live on RTP1 in Portugal. Before kick-off, Argentina fans took over Times Square and stadium queues stretched for hours, with security beefed up for Trump, Sheinbaum and Carney in the stands. Around 80,000 fans are inside, with roughly 1.5 billion watching worldwide.

Hours before kickoff, the final doubled as a summit: Trump invited Sheinbaum and Carney to his MetLife box, the three host leaders’ first in-person gathering since December — we covered the diplomatic match inside the match. Half-time brings another first: the first ever World Cup final half-time show, with Madonna, Shakira, BTS and Justin Bieber in a Super Bowl-style eleven minutes. Kickoff is 8pm Lisbon time, on RTP1.

Final day: Argentina and Spain decide the 2026 World Cup today at 8pm Lisbon time at MetLife Stadium, free-to-air on RTP1 — kickoff times and channels are in our viewing guide. In the bronze match, England beat France 6-4 in a goal-fest where Mbappé broke records even in defeat.

The small hours brought the bronze verdict: England beat France 6-4 in Miami after leading 4-0 at half-time — England’s best finish since 1966. Mbappé scored twice to reach 22 career World Cup goals, a new all-time record, and now leads the Golden Boot on 10, while Olise broke Pelé’s assists record. Tonight the curtain falls: Argentina v Spain, 8pm Lisbon time, on RTP1.

18 July 2026

The eve of the final was all farewells and open ledgers: Messi spent it promising to give everything in the last final of his life, the France-England bronze match wrapped up tonight in Miami — Didier Deschamps’ goodbye after fourteen years on the French bench — and the Golden Boot reaches Sunday tied at eight goals between Messi and Mbappé, with assists as the tiebreaker. Tomorrow is the day: Argentina v Spain at MetLife Stadium, 8pm Lisbon time, free-to-air on RTP1.

On the eve of the final, the tournament has already broken the all-time record: around 6.7 million spectators in the stadiums, more than the previous two World Cups combined. The White House confirmed Trump will hand over the trophy with Infantino on Sunday, with FIFA debuting championship rings — we covered the records and the ceremony. Tonight in Miami, France and England settle third place.

Decision eve: England and France play off for third place tonight in Miami (10pm Lisbon), and tomorrow at 8pm Argentina and Spain settle the title at MetLife. On the eve, Messi spent Friday night at Fanatics Fest in New York promising Argentina will give it everything — with the Golden Boot still open between him and Mbappé.

Final eve with a bitter aftertaste: Portugal’s squad travelled during the tournament on a GlobalX aircraft used for ICE deportation flights, as we told in our story of the plane nobody chose. Tonight (10pm Lisbon, Miami) England and France contest third place, and Sunday at 8pm it’s the Argentina-Spain final, live on RTP1 and Sport TV.

17 July 2026

Two days from the final, the numbers frame the duel: Spain arrive at MetLife having conceded once with six clean sheets — an outright single-edition record — while Argentina have 48 hours to find the crack, as we cover in our look at Spain’s wall. The winner’s cheque: 50 million dollars.

17 July 2026

Two days from the final, the World Cup has its full cast: Slovenia’s Slavko Vinčić will referee Sunday’s Argentina-Spain final, resale tickets have surged to used-car prices, and the closing ceremony brings Tom Cruise, IShowSpeed and Jennifer Hudson to Hard Rock Stadium. On the pitch, the Golden Boot arrives level — Messi and Mbappé on eight goals each, with the tiebreaker smiling on the Argentine. First, England and France settle third place in Miami on Saturday.

Two days out from the final, the ticket market is the tournament’s parallel story: getting into MetLife for Argentina-Spain costs around $11,000 on average on resale, when the priciest seat at Qatar 2022 was $1,600. Even so, prices have fallen about 28% in a week since the semi-final peak. We did the maths in what a final ticket really costs. It is also confirmed that Slavko Vinčić will referee the final.

Two days from the final, FIFA confirmed Slovenia’s Slavko Vinčić as referee for Argentina vs Spain — the same man who refereed Argentina’s 2022 loss to Saudi Arabia. The closing party grew too: Tom Cruise, IShowSpeed, Post Malone and Robbie Williams join the ceremony, 90 minutes before kickoff. Saturday brings England vs France for bronze in Miami.

16 July 2026

The semi-final hangover came with barbs: Deschamps left questioning the referee’s level in Spain-France, while Spain prepare for Sunday’s final against Argentina (8pm Lisbon, free-to-air in Portugal). Saturday brings the bronze match, England vs France in Miami. On US resale sites, final tickets are listing between 6,130 and 34,100 euros — a fitting farewell for the dynamic-pricing World Cup. With both finalists locked in, we published the full preview of Sunday’s Argentina-Spain final — the first ever final between the two.

The final is set: Spain-Argentina goes Sunday 19 July at MetLife Stadium, after Argentina beat England 2-1 in stoppage time. Before that there’s bronze to fight for — England and France meet Saturday in Miami, and our third-place preview is up.

The final is set and it reads like a film script: Argentina vs Spain, Sunday, in New Jersey. Spain dispatched France 2-0 (Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro) while Argentina flipped their semi against England in stoppage time. Meanwhile, the 2007 photo of Messi bathing baby Lamine Yamal has gone round the world again — we told the full story of that improbable reunion.

15 July 2026

Argentina beat England 2-1 in the second semi-final in Atlanta to reach the final. Anthony Gordon put England ahead on 55 minutes, Enzo Fernandez levelled on 85 with a strike from the edge of the box and substitute Lautaro Martinez headed the winner on 92 — both goals assisted by Messi. The final is Sunday 19 July against Spain, with England facing France in Saturday’s third-place play-off. We covered how Argentina turned it around and why the final’s halftime is stretching to 20 minutes.

The semi-finals close today: Spain are already in the final after beating France 2-0 through an Oyarzabal penalty and a Pedro Porro goal, with England-Argentina deciding who joins them. Off the pitch, the tournament locked thousands of fans out over visas and bonds, and watch parties became where much of the diaspora ended up seeing the games. The final is Sunday at the New York New Jersey stadium.

England and Argentina settle tonight who meets Spain in the final, but the tournament’s least flattering picture came from off the pitch: the US travel ban covers 39 countries, four of them qualified, and fans from five participating nations — Cape Verde among them — faced a $15,000 bond to get in. We wrote up the fans the World Cup locked out and why it landed so hard from Lisbon to Setúbal.

Semi-final day: England and Argentina meet in Atlanta for the right to face Spain in Sunday’s final. Messi has eight goals at this tournament and 21 in World Cup finals overall, a record; on England’s side, Kane and Bellingham have six each. Our kick-off time, where to watch and what’s at stake preview has the details.

14 July 2026

Spain reach the final: they beat France 2-0 in the first semifinal, with goals from Oyarzabal (penalty) and Porro. La Roja await the England-Argentina winner; the final is set for 19 July.

13 July 2026

Everything to plan before the semis: for the first time in World Cup history, the top four in the FIFA ranking all reach the last four — France, Argentina, Spain and England, in that exact order. The historic detail is in our look at the four semi-finalists. France-Spain is Tuesday in Dallas; England-Argentina closes the bracket Wednesday in Atlanta.

Both semis kick off at 8pm Lisbon time and air free-to-air on RTP, SIC and TVI (and on Sport TV) — we rounded it all up in the guide to where and what time to watch the semi-finals in Portugal.

12 July 2026

Rest day, conversation on fire: the eve of the semi-finals belonged to the generational duel between Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé — Spain’s prodigy has never lost to the Frenchman, and the 5-0 knockout record and stakes are in our Yamal vs Mbappé duel piece. A tournament footnote: Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former emir who brought the 2022 World Cup to Qatar, has died.

The semi-finals are set: England beat Norway 2-1 in extra time with a Bellingham brace and now face Argentina, who saw off Switzerland 3-1 — details in our England-Argentina preview. Off the pitch, FIFA confirmed the lineup for the first-ever final halftime show, with Madonna, Shakira, BTS and Coldplay, and USA-Belgium set a new US TV record for football, with 46 million viewers.

The semi-finals were locked in overnight: France-Spain plays Tuesday in Dallas, and Wednesday’s England-Argentina in Atlanta is the first ever World Cup semi between the two — our full preview, with times and history, is now live. From the quarter-final fallout: Embolo’s bizarre ‘mistaken identity’ red card and the Courtois injury that may have closed an era in Belgium’s goal.

The semi-finals are set: France-Spain and England-Argentina. Argentina beat Switzerland 3-1 after extra time, in a game marked by Breel Embolo’s sending-off — the first mistaken-identity card in World Cup history, confirmed by Portuguese referee João Pinheiro. England had booked their spot hours earlier with a Bellingham extra-time brace against Norway.

The bracket is set: Argentina beat Switzerland 3-1 in extra time, on a night marked by Embolo’s simulation red card, given by Portugal’s João Pinheiro. Semi-finals: France-Spain (Tuesday, Dallas) and Argentina-England (Wednesday).

England are in the semi-finals: a Bellingham brace in extra time beat Norway 2-1 in Miami, after Schjelderup had put Norway ahead. Only Argentina-Switzerland remains to close the bracket; the winner meets England.

11 July 2026

The semi-finals are taking shape: France meet Spain on July 14 in Dallas, the Euro 2024 rematch — the full preview is in our piece on the France vs Spain semi-final. The quarter-finals closed tonight with Norway-England in Miami and Argentina-Switzerland in Kansas City, refereed by Portugal’s João Pinheiro; the winners complete the bracket and land here in tomorrow’s update.

The day was marked by the death of Jayden Adams, the 25-year-old South Africa midfielder who played at the World Cup just weeks ago — the story is here. On the pitch, the night closes out the quarter-finals: Norway-England in Miami (22:00 Lisbon) and Argentina-Switzerland in Kansas City (02:00 Sunday), with João Pinheiro refereeing.

Spain claimed the first semi-final spot by beating Belgium 2-1, Merino decisive off the bench again and Courtois leaving injured and in tears — possibly his World Cup farewell. The quarter-finals wrap up on Saturday: Norway-England in Miami, with Prince Haakon in the stands, and Argentina-Switzerland in Kansas City (2am Sunday Lisbon time), with Portugal’s João Pinheiro refereeing.

Semi-final bracket day: holders Argentina face Switzerland in Kansas City and Haaland’s Norway take on England in Miami — both in the early hours of Sunday, Lisbon time, with Portugal’s João Pinheiro appointed to Argentina-Switzerland. We previewed the Kansas City clash, with Messi leading the Golden Boot race on eight goals. Spain-France is set for 14 July in Dallas.

10 July 2026

Spain beat Belgium 2-1 in Inglewood to become the second semi-finalists, through Fabián Ruiz and Mikel Merino — De Ketelaere ended Unai Simón’s record run at 650 minutes. Spain meet France in the semis, while Norway-England decides the other side of the bracket. The full match report is in the game article, and Lamine Yamal’s praise for Portugal is a story of its own.

World Cup 2026 is officially the best-attended ever: 3,605,357 spectators across the first 56 matches, beating the 1994 record. Mbappe’s France were first into the semi-finals, and tonight’s Spain-Belgium (8pm Lisbon) decides their opponent. The record and the 9,500-euro final tickets are covered in our stands-and-box-office round-up.

France are the first semifinalists: a 2-0 win over Morocco in Boston, with goals from Mbappé and Dembélé, and they now await the winner of Spain-Belgium, which kicks off tonight at 8pm Lisbon time. Saturday brings the other two quarterfinals: Norway-England, with Haaland and Kane head to head at 10pm, and Argentina-Switzerland closing out the round.

FIFA banned Jarell Quansah for two matches over his red card against Mexico — the centre-back misses Saturday’s Norway-England and a potential semi-final. The quarter-finals continue today in Los Angeles: Spain-Belgium at 8pm Lisbon time, with France already through and waiting on their side of the bracket.

9 July 2026

France are the first semi-finalists: a 2-0 win over Morocco in Boston, with goals from Mbappé (his eighth of the tournament) and Dembélé (his fifth). Les Bleus now await the winner of Friday’s Spain-Belgium — our France-Morocco report is here and the Spain-Belgium preview here. The quarter-finals wrap up Saturday with Norway-England and Argentina-Switzerland.

The quarterfinals begin: France-Morocco opens the last eight in Boston (Thursday), and on Friday the Spain side that knocked out Portugal meets Belgium in Inglewood — the Spanish arrive without conceding a single goal, on a record six straight clean sheets at finals.

8 July 2026

The quarter-final bracket is set: Switzerland knocked out Colombia on penalties, 72 years after their last quarter-final after a 0-0 that survived extra time, joining France, Morocco, Spain, Belgium, Norway, England and Argentina. The ties run Thursday to Sunday, opening with France-Morocco in Boston — the full schedule, with kick-off times in Portugal, is in our where-to-watch guide. Off the pitch, the FPF made Roberto Martinez’s exit official, with Jorge Jesus lined up to succeed him, and Portugal donated 87,000 euros to the FIFA-Global Citizen fund for Venezuela’s children after Shakira’s appeal.

7 July 2026

Portugal are out — beaten by Spain (0-1, Mikel Merino in stoppage time) and the tournament moves to the quarter-finals. The bracket: France–Morocco (Thu 9 Jul), Spain–Belgium (Fri 10 Jul) and Norway–England (Sat 11 Jul), with the fourth quarter-final on Sunday 12 Jul settled by the last team through from the round of 16. Spain, who knocked Portugal out, face Belgium.

The morning after: Roberto Martínez confirmed he is stepping down as national team coach following the elimination, and by evening the succession had a name: Jorge Jesus is Pedro Proença’s choice for a four-year cycle, with a deal on track to close by Sunday. The night wraps up the round of 16 with Argentina-Egypt and Switzerland-Colombia settling the last quarter-final places.

6 July 2026

Portugal are out: Spain won 1-0 in Dallas through a Mikel Merino goal, the match that ended the national team’s run. It was also Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup farewell, after the captain had confirmed on the eve of the game that this would be his last.

4 July 2026

A Saturday of knockouts: Morocco thrashed Canada to send one of the hosts out of the tournament, while France took on Paraguay in the same slate.

3 July 2026

Cape Verde went out on their shield: in the first knockout tie of their history, the Blue Sharks took Messi’s Argentina to extra time and lost only 3-2, to a cruel late goal.

2 July 2026

Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in Toronto — a Ronaldo penalty and a Gonçalo Ramos header in the 94th minute — in the reunion with an old rival from the big occasions, setting up the Iberian derby nobody wanted this early.

1 July 2026

The start of the knockout rounds confirmed this as the World Cup of upsets: Norway knocked out Brazil 2-1, Belgium hammered hosts USA 4-1 and Morocco made history by beating the Netherlands on penalties.

29 June 2026

The knockout phase kicked off with South Africa v Canada and Portugal learned their path: mission accomplished in the group stage, Croatia on 2 July.

28 June 2026

Goalless in Miami: Portugal drew 0-0 with Colombia and finished Group K in second. Cape Verde did even better — an unbeaten group stage and a historic qualification at their first World Cup.

23 June 2026

A big night in Houston: Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan, with a Ronaldo double that made him the first player to score at six World Cups, as we covered at the time. The same day, Messi overtook Klose to become the tournament’s all-time top scorer.

22 June 2026

Cape Verde surprised again: 2-2 against Uruguay, a first-ever World Cup goal and qualification in their own hands, after already holding Spain in their opener.

20 June 2026

A stumble at the start: Portugal 1-1 DR Congo, João Neves’s early goal cancelled out on the stroke of half-time — the first World Cup point in Congolese history.

15 June 2026

The countdown: Portugal arrived at the tournament with Ronaldo’s sixth World Cup and the memory of Diogo Jota — and the eternal question: would this be the last dance?