Level 1 — Absolute Beginner
The FIFA World Cup 2026 knockout stage began this week. For the first time ever, forty-eight teams are playing in this World Cup. That means more matches and more countries than ever before.
On June 29, big teams played their first knockout matches. Brazil played Japan in Houston, Texas. Germany played Paraguay near Boston. The Netherlands played Morocco in Mexico.
A Canadian player named Stephen Eustaquio scored in the last minutes on June 28 to beat South Africa one to zero. Canada's fans were very happy.
- knockout
- a competition stage where the loser goes home
- match
- a game between two teams
- goal
- when the ball goes into the net to score a point
- team
- a group of players who play together
- stadium
- a large building where sports matches are held
- tournament
- a series of games to find the best team or player
- score
- to put the ball in the net; also the number of goals made
- host
- a country or city that organises and holds a big event
Level 2 — Elementary
The FIFA World Cup 2026 entered its knockout stage on June 29, with the first matches of the newly expanded Round of 32. This is the first World Cup to include forty-eight teams, increasing the number of first-round knockout matches from sixteen to thirty-two.
Three high-profile matches took place on June 29. Brazil faced Japan at NRG Stadium in Houston. Germany played Paraguay at Gillette Stadium near Boston. The Netherlands took on Morocco in Monterrey, Mexico. All three matches attracted enormous television audiences worldwide.
Canada made a dramatic entrance to the knockout round on June 28, when Stephen Eustaquio scored in stoppage time to give Canada a one-to-zero victory over South Africa. The match was held at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The United States also qualified from their group in first place, after defeating Turkey two-to-one on June 25.
- knockout stage
- the part of a tournament where teams are eliminated after a single loss
- expanded
- made bigger or larger than before
- stoppage time
- extra minutes added at the end of a football match to replace time lost to stoppages
- qualify
- to earn the right to compete in the next stage of a tournament
- venue
- the place where an event is held
- audience
- the people watching a performance, broadcast, or event
- eliminate
- to remove a team from a competition after a defeat
- dramatic
- exciting and full of sudden events
Level 3 — Intermediate
The 2026 FIFA World Cup's knockout phase commenced on June 29 with the inaugural Round of 32, a format unique to this expanded forty-eight-team tournament. The addition of sixteen more teams compared to the previous thirty-two-team format has stretched the knockout bracket from sixteen matches to thirty-two, extending the tournament calendar and creating sixteen additional slots for lower-ranked footballing nations.
The opening day of the Round of 32 featured three eagerly anticipated fixtures: Brazil versus Japan at NRG Stadium in Houston, Germany versus Paraguay at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, and the Netherlands versus Morocco at a venue in Monterrey, Mexico. All three matches were broadcast globally, with combined viewership figures expected to surpass those of any single match from the 2022 Qatar edition.
Among the notable results entering the round, Canada achieved a memorable win on June 28 when Stephen Eustaquio's goal in stoppage time secured a one-zero victory over South Africa at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The United States qualified as group winners following a two-to-one defeat of Turkey on June 25. The tournament, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico across sixteen venues, broke the 1994 group stage attendance record with more than three point eight million spectators.
- inaugural
- the first of its kind, marking an important beginning
- fixture
- a scheduled sports match between two teams
- bracket
- the structure showing who plays whom through the rounds of a tournament
- spectator
- a person who watches an event without taking part
- co-hosted
- organised jointly by more than one country or city
- surpass
- to go beyond or exceed a previous level or record
- edition
- one version of a regularly held event, such as a tournament held every four years
- anticipated
- expected and looked forward to with excitement
Level 4 — Advanced
The 2026 FIFA World Cup's knockout bracket opened on June 29 with the first round of the newly constituted Round of 32, a structural innovation necessitated by FIFA's decision to expand the tournament from thirty-two to forty-eight participants. The expansion deepens the elimination draw by one full round compared to 2022, generating sixteen additional matches, increasing the maximum number of games a champion must win from seven to eight, and theoretically broadening the competitive window for lower-ranked confederations that previously struggled to progress beyond the group stage.
Three marquee Round of 32 fixtures were contested on June 29. Brazil met Japan at NRG Stadium in Houston, Germany faced Paraguay at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, and the Netherlands confronted Morocco in Monterrey. The combined anticipated audience for the three matches exceeded projections from any equivalent first-knockout-round day in the tournament's history, reflecting both the enlarged field and the multi-continental hosting footprint of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
The tournament had already produced one of its early narratives when Canada advanced from Group H on June 28 via Stephen Eustaquio's stoppage-time strike at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, edging South Africa by a solitary goal. The United States meanwhile sealed top-of-group qualification on June 25 with a two-to-one win over Turkey. Through the group phase, cumulative attendance across the sixteen host venues surpassed three point eight million, eclipsing the 1994 United States record and validating the logistical premise of a tri-national co-hosting arrangement. The July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford is projected to draw over ninety thousand spectators, with global broadcast rights having surpassed five billion dollars in aggregate rights fees.
- constituted
- formally established or set up according to rules
- marquee
- the most prominent or important, used to describe headline events
- confronted
- directly faced or met in competition or conflict
- eclipsing
- surpassing and leaving behind a previous record or achievement
- tri-national
- involving three countries acting together
- logistics
- the practical organisation required to carry out a large-scale operation
- confederations
- the regional governing bodies of football, such as UEFA, CONMEBOL, and CAF
- solitary
- single; only one
