World Cup knockout round takes
shape as US is set to play Bosnia-Herzegovina
[June 26, 2026]
The field for the elimination phase of the World Cup is beginning to
take shape, with co-hosts the United States and Canada finding out
their opponents in the next round.
The U.S. will face Bosnia-Herzegovina on July 1 in Santa Clara,
California, getting to stay on the West Coast after competing in the
Los Angeles area and Seattle during the group stage. The Americans
had already clinched a spot in the knockout round before a 3-2 loss
to Turkey on Thursday night in front of a raucous, celebrity-studded
Southern California crowd at SoFi Stadium.
Canada will head to Los Angeles to face South Africa.
Other marquee matchups are set, including Morocco vs. the
Netherlands and Japan vs. Brazil.
Several teams, including Argentina, Germany, Mexico, Switzerland and
Ivory Coast, have advanced to the knockout round but still waiting
to find out their opponents.
The round of 32 will be set on Saturday once the group-stage matches
are done and the final standings of the 12 groups are known. The top
two teams from each group, along with the eight best third-place
finishers, advance to the win-or-go home round.
Here's how it's looking so far:
US vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina, July 1
The Americans had their powerful momentum from two consecutive
victories stalled in the loss to Turkey. But in the knockout round,
they’ll face a Bosnia-Herzegovina team that is 62nd in the FIFA
rankings — the lowest-ranked World Cup qualifier from Europe. Bosnia
finished third in Group B with four points. U.S. star Christian
Pulisic entered as a substitute in the second half against Turkey.
He had not played since leaving an opening win over Paraguay at
halftime with a calf injury. “We play every game like a knockout
game,” said U.S. midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, who scored against
Turkey. “You saw that in our intensity and the way we worked. For
us, it’s keep doing what we’ve been doing.”
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Japan's Junya Ito (14) and Sweden's Ken Sema (13) battle for the
ball during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Japan and
Sweden in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026.
(AP Photo/Sam Hodde)
South Africa vs. Canada, June 28
These nations have already made history. It'll be the first time
both are in the knockout stage of the World Cup. Co-host Canada
advanced as runner-up in Group B with four points — one win, one
draw and one loss. South Africa was runner-up in Group A, also with
four points, including a surprising win over South Korea.
Brazil vs. Japan, June 29
Japan advanced as Group F runner-up with a hard fought 1-1 draw
against Sweden and the Samurai Blue's reward is a knockout match
against five-time World Cup champion Brazil. It'll be a full-circle
moment for Japan, which welcomed Brazilian soccer legend Zico in
1991. He was brought in to professionalize the country's new
domestic league and support Japan's successful bid to host the World
Cup in 2002. Now, the Japanese have a chance to show how far they've
come against a country that has set the standard.
Netherlands vs. Morocco, June 29
The Netherlands won Group F after playing to a draw with Japan and
outscoring Sweden and Tunisia by a combined 8-2. Morocco went
unbeaten to finish second in Group C in pursuit of becoming the
first African winner of the World Cup. Morocco reached the
semifinals four years ago in Qatar.
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