The 23rd FIFA World Cup is halfway done! Out of 104 matches, 54 are over. So far, 13 teams have booked their spot in the knockouts. The group stage ends this weekend, and the real knockout action starts from Monday.
Florida (USA): The 23rd FIFAFootball World Cup has officially hit its halfway mark. The tournament kicked off on June 11, and out of a total of 104 matches, 54 are already done and dusted. With the final scheduled for July 19, we still have 50 exciting games left to go.
This year, a record 48 teams are in the fray, and 32 of them will move to the knockout stage. As of now, 13 teams have confirmed their spots, leaving 19 places still up for grabs. The group stage matches will wrap up by Sunday morning, and the do-or-die knockout rounds will begin on Monday.
Who’s in the Knockouts?
Based on the matches played until Wednesday, a total of 13 teams have made it to the next round. The list includes group toppers Mexico (Group A), Switzerland (Group B), Brazil (Group C), USA (Group D), Germany (Group E), and Argentina (Group J). Joining them are France, Norway, Canada, Morocco, Colombia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and South Africa.
The rule is simple, the top two teams from each of the 12 groups, plus the eight best third-placed teams, will advance. For teams like Qatar, Czech Republic, Turkey, Tunisia, Jordan, Panama, and Haiti, the journey has already ended.
South Africa Enters Knockouts for the First Time
In a huge moment for them, South Africa has entered the FIFA World Cup knockouts for the very first time. They secured their spot with a 1-0 victory against South Korea on Wednesday night. Thapelo Maseko became the hero, scoring the winning goal in the 63rd minute.
This win gave the team 4 points in Group A, enough to finish second and enter the final 32. In their previous World Cup appearances in 1998, 2002, and 2010, they had always been knocked out in the group stage.
Swiss Team Tops Group; Canada Also Through Despite 2-1 Loss
Switzerland beat host nation Canada 2-1 in their final group match to enter the knockouts as the top team from Group B. The Swiss team finished with 7 points from two wins and a draw in their three matches.
On the other hand, despite the loss, Canada also qualified for the knockouts with 4 points, finishing second in the group. This is also the first time Canada has made it past the group stage in a World Cup.