Month: June 2026

The first full match day of the knockout stage delivered in a big way. Brazil and Japan played a thrilling game to open the slate, and then chaos ensued. Monday was just the fourth time ever that two shootouts took place on the same day. First, Paraguay pulled off one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. Then, Morocco equalized in stoppage time against the Netherlands before advancing on penalties. Here’s the best of Match Day 19 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup: BEST OF THE DAY Moments Of The Day Brazil started slowly in the first half against Japan and paid for it, going into halftime down 1-0. In the second half, though, the tides turned. Japan slowed down while the Brazilians continued to gain momentum. A Casemiro header drew the game level in the middle of the second half. Martinelli came on in the 65th minute and ultimately found the winner in stoppage time. Bruno Guimaraes found Martinelli in a great position, and the Arsenal attacker beat Zion Suzuki, who put on a show in goal for Japan throughout the game. Martinelli’s goal (95:00) is the latest winner in normal time of the World Cup knockout stages on record (since 1966). We have a top save for the “Save Of The Day,” but there was a deserving bit of brilliance in Brazil’s win over Japan, so we will instead highlight Gill here. Gill made six saves in the 120 minutes of open play, and then he saved two of the three penalty misses from Germany. He opened the shootout by saving Kai Havertz’s penalty, and then he also blocked Nick Woltemade’s effort three shots later. Goal Of The Day A dazzling stretch from Sano had Japanese fans believing that it would be their day in Houston. First, Sano won the ball off Brazilian defender Danilo. From there, he dribbled about 30 yards past midfielder Casemiro. Once he got within 25 yards of goal, he let loose on a shot that beat goalkeeper Alisson. Japan started the game well and deserved the lead, but it eventually ran out of gas against Brazil in the second half. Assist Of The Day Morocco controlled its round-of-32 matchup against the Netherlands. The Dutch had only six shots, and the last one came in the 72nd minute. That said, Morocco was trailing after a late goal from Cody Gakpo and needed a late moment of brilliance. It got that from Talbi. Talbi picked up the ball on the left wing and swung in a brilliant cross for center back Issa Diop, who was forward with Morocco in need of a goal. Diop used the pace already on the cross and sent it into the back of the net. After an extra-time period that only featured one shot from both teams, Morocco advanced to the round of 16 courtesy of a penalty shootout that saw Talbi make his penalty. Save Of The Day Vinícius Júnior would have scored the goal of the tournament on Monday in Houston if it wasn’t for Suzuki. Vini made a brilliant run down the left wing, dribbling past multiple defenders on multiple occasions before getting his shot off. Suzuki got a crucial touch with his left hand that put the shot onto the post before Japan was able to clear it. Unfortunately for Suzuki, Brazil equalized just minutes later through a header from Casemiro that he had no chance of stopping. Brazil vs. Japan Germany vs. Paraguay Netherlands vs. Morocco​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Just days after announcing the tragic news of the death of his unborn son, Netherlands star Cody Gakpo provided maybe the most emotional moment of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in his nation’s round of 32 match against Morocco. Gakpo opened the scoring in Monday’s round of 32 match. In the 72nd minute, the Netherlands forward won a chase to the ball along the edge of the box before somehow getting a shot off as he collided with Moroccan goalkeeper Bono. Just prior to the collision, Gakpo was somehow able to get the shot to travel between a Morocco defender’s and Bono’s legs. Right after Gakpo scored, several of his Netherlands teammates ran over to embrace him during the celebration. Gakpo also appeared to be fighting back tears after he scored. The Netherlands wasn’t able to walk away with the win following Gakpo’s goal, though. Morocco defender Issa Diop scored in stoppage time, forcing the match to go to extra time. Morocco was able to come away with the victory, winning in penalty kicks. Monday marked Gakpo’s first match since he and his partner, Noa van der Bij, announced that their unborn son passed away on Saturday. Van der Bij posted a photo on social media of the pair holding hands over a blanket and small knitted hat, with the announcement that the baby had passed away. “Thank you for your love and support. Elijay Raphael Gakpo. Forever loved. Forever our son,” Van der Bij wrote. The baby was expected to be born in October, and it would’ve been Gakpo and Van der Bij’s second child together. “We went to church to light a candle. Afterward, we walked to the church playground with our son Samuel,” Van der Bij wrote. “There was only one other child there. His name was Elijah. There could not have been a more beautiful sign from God. He reminded us that our little boy is never far away.” In his own post, Gakpo wrote, “This is an incredibly difficult time for our family. We kindly ask for our privacy and space. Thank you for your understanding.” Gakpo, 27, scored two goals in the group stage for the Netherlands, with both scores coming in its win over Sweden. It was also his sixth career World Cup goal, putting him one shy of Johnny Rep’s record for the most World Cup goals scored by a Netherlands player ever. The goal was also Gakpo’s 24th goal in 54 caps for the Netherlands. The Associated Press contributed to this report.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

If you want to see some of the best players in the world, then park yourself in front of Tuesday’s slate of round of 32 games at the 2026 World Cup. It’s time for some destination viewing. Ivory Coast and Norway open the day in Dallas with Norwegian superstar Erling Haaland facing a difficult test against an impressive team that is one of Africa’s best. The second game of the day takes us to New York New Jersey Stadium, where Sweden will need a shocking upset to advance past a powerful French team — headlined by Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise — that has expectations of playing in the final at the same stadium on July 19. Finally, Mexico will be looking to continue its perfect group stage campaign int the knockouts when it hosts Ecuador in Mexico City. Defense will tell the story in this game as Mexico has yet to concede at this tournament. Here is all you need to know for Tuesday at the World Cup: When: Tuesday, June 30, 1 p.m. ET Where: Dallas TV: FOX Stream: Watch three days free on FOX One While Norway is the favorite in Tuesday’s round of 32 matchup at Dallas Stadium, Ivory Coast will be difficult to beat and enters this game in strong form. Norway finished its group stage with wins over Iraq and Senegal before losing to France with a heavily rotated starting lineup that did not include Martin Ødegaard, Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland. Those players will all return for this game, and with them, Norway boasts one of the strongest attacks in the tournament. Haaland has scored braces in his first two matches and has lived up to expectation. Ivory Coast had lofty expectations heading into this tournament after defeating France in Nantes earlier this month. Since then, Les Elephants have only lived up to the hype. Emerse Faé’s team conceded just two goals in the group stage, despite facing Germany and Ecuador. Physically, the Ivory Coast is one of the best teams remaining in the World Cup, but it also has a lot of skill. Its front line consists of wingers Amad Diallo of Manchester United and Yan Diomande of RB Leipzig — who is heavily linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain — along with Villarreal’s Nicolas Pépé in the middle. While Norway, through Haaland, can score goals in droves, this game could be decided by its defense. Norway needs to improve in that area, as it has conceded at least one goal in each of the group stage games and has not kept a clean sheet in five matches. If Norway’s defense can raise its level, there is an outstanding chance it heads to the round of 16. Player to Watch Understandably, Haaland receives the most attention whenever talking about the Norwegian national team. But RB Leipzig winger Antonio Nusa is one of Norway’s most important players because he is one of the main scoring creators for Haaland. Nusa is going to be key in this game in making runs up the left side to get on the end of passes, typically from Martin Ødegaard or Sander Berge. If Nusa is effective with his crosses or passes, Haaland will be close to unstoppable. When: Tuesday, June 30, 5 p.m. ET Where: New York New Jersey TV: FOX Stream: Watch three days free on FOX One At the start of the round of 32, France looks almost unstoppable, and it will require something truly special from Sweden to pull off an upset when the teams meet on Tuesday at New York New Jersey Stadium. Les Bleus entered the World Cup as one of the favorites, and Didier Deschamps’ squad has done nothing to suggest that isn’t deserved. France scored at least three goals in each of its three group stage games. The star power of this French team is phenomenal. Kylian Mbappé has scored four goals and added an assist. Reigning Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé also has four goals and an assist. Michael Olise has been one of the tournament’s best midfielders in the group stage, and he has added three assists. Meanwhile, Sweden has some very good players but has done nothing to suggest it can come close to stopping the French squad. Graham Potter’s team has been very inconsistent while conceding seven goals in the group stage. Against a good Netherlands team, Sweden allowed five goals in a 5-1 loss. France’s defense must be careful, as Sweden has two elite forwards in Arsenal’s Viktor Gyökeres and Liverpool’s Alexander Isak, who can score against the best of teams. It is not impossible, but Sweden is going to need a lot of things to go right and a lot of luck to eliminate this French team. Player to Watch As the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, Ousmane Dembélé is a special player, but he didn’t score his first World Cup goal until this tournament. With that goal in the second game against Iraq, the floodgates opened, as Dembélé then scored a hat trick in the win over Norway in the group stage finale. Against a leaky Swedish defense, Dembélé could have a field day in this game. When: Tuesday, June 30, 9 p.m. ET Where: Mexico City TV: FOX Stream: Watch three days free on FOX One In its long and storied history, the Mexican national team has won just one knockout game at the World Cup. That was a 2-0 win over Bulgaria in the round of 16 in 1986 when it hosted the tournament. On Tuesday, exactly 40 years and 15 days since that win over Bulgaria, Mexico will have the chance to win its second knockout game when it takes on Ecuador at the same venue. Enthusiasm for the national team is very high right now after El Tri won Group A with a perfect nine points with wins over South Africa, South Korea and Czechia. In those games, Javier Aguirre’s team has not conceded a goal and has outscored its opponents 6-0. Mexico boasts an attack that does not rely on a single player to do the heavy lifting. In total, five different players scored the team’s six goals in the group stage, with Mateo Chávez, Álvaro Fidalgo, Raul Jiménez, Luis Romo and Julián Quiñones (twice) all finding the back of the net. Ecuador qualified for the knockout stages in surprising fashion as it needed a win over Germany in the group stage finale to advance. When Germany opened the scoring in the second minute, it did not seem possible. But Sebastián Beccacece’s team rallied for a comeback win behind goals from Nilson Angulo in the ninth minute and Gonzalo Plata in the 77th minute for the victory. Ecuador boasts one of the best defenses in the world. In the single-table CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying tournament, Ecuador was historically good, allowing just five goals and keeping 13 clean sheets. The team’s backline is led by Paris Saint-Germain’s Willian Pacho, Arsenal’s Piero Hincapié, and Club Brugge’s Joel Ordonez. In front of them is Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, who is one of the best defensive midfielders in the world. The problem for Ecuador, however, is on the offensive side, as it was shutout in its first two games. First a 1-0 loss to the Ivory Coast and then a shocking 0-0 draw with Curaçao. This game boasts two defenses that are tough to break down. Mexico has the advantage of playing at home and with several scoring options. But if Ecuador’s defense plays as well as it can, it might just win. But no one should be surprised if this game is decided on penalties. Player to Watch The Colombian-born attacker became a naturalized Mexican citizen in 2023 and has since become a very important player for El Tri. He was the Man of the Match in the opening win over South Africa and scored again in the win over Czechia. Now, he will be tasked with trying to find goals against a very good Ecuadorian defense. He has been in good form for most of the past year, and he recently finished as the top scorer in the Saudi Pro League for 2025-26 with 33 goals for Al Qadsiah FC.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports