24 days done, 14 more to go. That’s where we stand at the 2026 World Cup, which has now well and truly reached the business end of the competition.
Morocco and France became the first two countries to book their quarterfinal spots, beating Canada and Paraguay respectively, and the latter Saturday game saw Kylian Mbappé rejoin Lionel Messi atop the Golden Boot standings on seven goals—an amount few players have ever managed to score in a single World Cup.
Canada’s demise means the first of the World Cup’s co-hosts are out, but Jesse Marsch and his players will take great pride at reaching the round of 16 stage. There may be an element of ‘what if?’ in regards to the fitness of Alphonso Davies—or lack of it—but the Maple Leafs must remember it has made history simply by winning a game at this World Cup finals.
It’s the turn of Brazil, Norway, Mexico and England on Sunday—a blockbuster Sunday if ever there was one. The infatuation of whether Neymar will be fit enough to start—or be picked by Carlo Ancelotti over arguably better options—continues, while south of the border the talk has been all about the weather, altitude and FIFA debating a change of kickoff time.
England’s Declan Rice insists the Three Lions “don’t care” about Mexico’s alleged advantage—time will tell if he and his teammates have really been able to focus on the job at hand.
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