IN BRIEF
- The FIFA World Cup 2026's Round of 16 will start early on Sunday morning (AEST) with the Canada-Morocco match.
- Spain versus Portugal on Tuesday (Australian time) is one of the most anticipated matches of the round.
After a dramatic Round of 32, with some big names being knocked out of the running, the race for the FIFA World Cup 2026 trophy is now down to 16 teams.
The first round knockout stage has now wrapped up, delivering no shortage of surprises.
Heavyweights Germany and the Netherlands were both eliminated after shock defeats to Paraguay and Morocco, respectively, in matches that both ended in penalty shootouts.
While Spain and France advanced with comfortable wins, England, Argentina, Portugal and Brazil had to fight tooth and nail to secure their places in the next stage.
For the Socceroos, it was the end of their World Cup journey after losing to Egypt in a nail-biting contest that ended in a penalty shootout.
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While Australian fans may still be licking their wounds, the tournament goes on — and it's only going to get more exciting.
Read on for what's coming in the Round of 16.
Paraguay dreaming of another miracle
The Round of 16's first day kicks off with host-nation Canada versus Morocco at 3am Sunday morning (this and all following times are AEST).
Canada likely faces a tough challenge against the North African side, which made it all the way to the semi-final of the 2022 World Cup and is so far unbeaten in this year's tournament.
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The victor of that match will take on whichever side emerges from the France-Paraguay stand-off, set for 7am Sunday.
France has performed strongly in this year's tournament and enters the Round of 16 undefeated, while Paraguay achieved the unexpected by eliminating Germany in the first knockout round.
Brazil and England facing tough opponents
Round of 16 kicks on with Brazil going against Norway at 6am on Monday morning.
Brazil has won more World Cups than any other nation and, save for a 1-1 draw with Morocco, has won every match of the tournament thus far.
Still, the South American champions are unlikely to have a walk in the park against the Norwegians and star striker Erling Haaland.
The winner of that match will advance to the quarter-finals, where they will face either Mexico or England, who meet at 10am on Monday at Mexico City Stadium, a venue that has already hosted some of the tournament's most memorable matches.
Wake up for this one
If you're only planning to watch some of the Round of 16, it's fair to say it could be worth setting your alarm for 5am on Tuesday to witness Spain and Portugal go head to head.
After being held to a draw by underdogs Cape Verde in the first group-stage game, Spain has gone on to win every match since.
While Portugal had a less flattering set of group-stage results, Cristiano Ronaldo's squad pulled out a dramatic comeback against Croatia in their Round of 32 match.
The other match of the day will be the United States against Belgium at 10am, with the hosts looking to secure a place in the quarter-finals against Portugal or Spain.
It could've been us
And to wrap up the Round of 16, Argentina will face Egypt at 2am on Wednesday.
This is the match that Australia would be playing had the Socceroos beaten Egypt. Now, Mo Salah's side will face off against Lionel Messi's Argentina.
Then at 6am, Switzerland will face Colombia, with the winner claiming the final spot in the quarter-finals.
You can watch all 104 matches of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ live, free and exclusive on SBS, SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand.
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