FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[longyenthanh]

After all the favouritism towards the Argentine side I honestly wish either France or England emerge as winners of this tournament.

We all saw the robbery right in front of us right?! I mean when the officials and VAR couldn't call back a foul which lead to goal for Argentine. If they can not have equal treatments, then the sports is gone and dead. I saw the English legend Alan Shearer also calling it what it is yesterday. The Egyptians where obviously robbed.

It is tough to watch a match where you feel the refereeing ruins the game. When big decisions go against a team like Egypt, it leaves a bitter taste for any football fan. VAR was supposed to fix these exact moments, so seeing it fail or stay silent is incredibly frustrating.

Alan Shearer never holds back, and his criticism shows that something went wrong. Equal treatment is what keeps the sport alive. Now, many neutrals want to see England or France lift the trophy instead.

[Wakate]

After a journey full of challenges, surprises and heart-pounding spectators, now 8 countries remain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. France, Morocco, Spain, Belgium, Norway, England, Argentina and Switzerland will face off against each other to secure a place in the next round. Whoever manages to sweep all the remaining 3 matches (Quarter Finals, Semifinals, and Finals) will be confirmed as world champions.

1. Left Lane:
-France vs Morocco.
As one of the favorites in this tournament, France will face a tough test from Morocco, the team representing the African continent, a semifinalist in the 2022 World Cup and full of surprises.

-Spain vs Belgium.
These two European giants will fight each other for victory. Spain is known for its incredibly solid defensive record, while Belgium boasts a formidable attacking force ready to tear apart the Spanish defense.

2. Right Lane:
-Norway vs England.
The Norway vs England match is one of the most anticipated by football fans, this game brings together Haaland and Harry Kane. These two players are the mainstay of each team to tear apart the opponent's goal, their sharpness in scoring goals makes this game full of high intensity and thrilling attacks. Whoever wins this duel has the potential to be a strong favorite to become the champion.

-Argentina vs Switzerland.
As defending champions, Argentina is relying heavily on the magic of Lionel Messi to repeat their success in the 2022 edition. Argentina had to overcome a Switzerland side that played spartan and managed to beat Colombia on penalties.

This time European teams dominated the quarter-finals with six teams representing the eight remaining teams. The favorite teams must be wary of surprises from dark horse teams like Morocco and Switzerland, they have proven that high determination can defeat the top teams.
In your opinion, out of these 8 teams, who will sweep the remaining 3 matches to become world champions.?

The remaining matches are not going to be easy at all but I can still guess some countries that will be scaling through this stage and moving to the next stage of the tournament. This is not going to be like the regular matches we have been watching all these while.
This is the time the match is going to become tough and countries that don't have strong defense and strikers would be missing out as soon as possible.

My few predictions

France vs Morocco:  France to win/qualify

Norway vs England: England to win/qualify

Argentina vs Switzerland: Argentina to win/qualify

Spain vs Belgium: Spain to win/qualify

This is based on my one analysis, not a financial advise!

[Female King]

This is something that made me feel like crying, imagine the pressure especially when all hope is lost, there comes Messi w d his warriors fighting to stay alive in this FWC... Can't say much, I think this should put the debate to bed.
Egypt is the version 2 of Senegal, leading and losing the game. Can't say more on this guys (Egyptians) because they are the cause of their own eviction.

#Messi_Greatest-Of-All-Time

It was a superb game, and you must respect the Argentinians even more after this. To fight like they did and to come back from 0:2 in the 80th minute is something almost equal to the magic night in Istanbul with Liverpool—it definitely had those vibes for me. Respect to Argentina, now they need to go all the way.

It was certainly a superb performance by Argentina; there’s no doubt they gave it their all right to the very end. But the match was heavily influenced by the referee’s decisions, which, in my opinion, were highly questionable.
Egypt played a fantastic match until the 79th minute, then mysteriously lost their focus and paid dearly for it with defeat and elimination from the World Cup.

Yes, Argentina's performance and strong attack was great, although they attacked until the last minute of the game and won. However, the referee's issue is really questionable in everyone's mind because we noticed that there was a lot of one-sided judgment here, especially in the case of goal disallowance. When the Egyptian team conceded a goal in the last minute, their attitude to the game changed a lot, especially their confidence was broken a little. In the end, they played completely defensively and Argentina's strong attack, which they failed to prevent. However, if the game could have been played longer, the Egyptian team could have definitely defeated the Argentine team, but there were many wrong decisions by the referee, especially in the case of fouls, the Egyptian players appealed a lot but they were not accepted. However, in any case, the Egyptian team lost a lot of attention from the game, as a result of which the Argentine team scored a goal in that opportunity and confirmed its place in the quarter-finals.

Argentina played well but the referee was on there side I will just say that FIFA wants Argentina to win the title, so many wrong decisions but the referee Egypt second goal shouldn't have been disallowed but they disallowed it because they never wanted Messi and Argentina to be eliminated i believe it was same tackle that made the referee and the VAR to disallowed Egypt goal was same thing that happened to Salah but the referee acted like nothing happened and Argentina used that opportunity to secure there win over Egypt.

[Majestic-milf]

 It was a dramatic turn of events for Argentina and it looked like what every good game would look like; the losers would claim they were robbed and blame the officiator of the game for not doing it right. I'm more worried that yet another African team let the game slip from their hands and then started blaming others.

[longyenthanh]

It was a dramatic turn of events for Argentina and it looked like what every good game would look like; the losers would claim they were robbed and blame the officiator of the game for not doing it right. I'm more worried that yet another African team let the game slip from their hands and then started blaming others.

You nailed the intensity of these matches. It is the classic football drama where emotions run way too high.

Honestly, blaming the referee is just an easy way out. Every big tournament has controversial calls, but good teams adapt. It is definitely frustrating to watch African teams show so much incredible talent and passion, only to lose focus in crucial moments and let the victory slip away. They have the skill to win it all, but mental discipline under pressure is what separates champions from the rest.

[ruykeri]

It was a dramatic turn of events for Argentina and it looked like what every good game would look like; the losers would claim they were robbed and blame the officiator of the game for not doing it right. I'm more worried that yet another African team let the game slip from their hands and then started blaming others.

This kind of thing is normal. Because if a team is winning and then that team is  losing at the last minute in a very short time, then it is normal for them to say such things. And in the case of yesterday's Argentina and Egypt match, Egypt was seen blaming the match officiator . And the allegations they have made are not very baseless. If you look at the slow tackles, you will understand that no decision was wrong according to the rules. The match  referee took the decisions following the rules of FIFA. There is no way for making up words here.

[Supreme Donvic]

African countries are not making the African people proud in this world cup, they are not performing the way that we the African people want them to perform right now it is only Morocco that is still on and I believe them so much because they have confidence and determination to carry on and push on, I will not be surprised if Morocco ends up lifting the world cup because they play so well, Egypt had the opportunity to win Argentina but they did not use that opportunity very well, I think African teams have a lot of work to do for themselves if they really want to lift the world cup in the future.

[MuffinMaster]

African countries are not making the African people proud in this world cup, they are not performing the way that we the African people want them to perform right now it is only Morocco that is still on and I believe them so much because they have confidence and determination to carry on and push on, I will not be surprised if Morocco ends up lifting the world cup because they play so well, Egypt had the opportunity to win Argentina but they did not use that opportunity very well, I think African teams have a lot of work to do for themselves if they really want to lift the world cup in the future.

You are completely right, mate, and I totally feel your football passion. Seeing Egypt blow that 2-0 lead against Argentina was pure heartbreak; they had them on the ropes but just lost tactical focus late in the game. It is so frustrating because African talent is definitely world-class.

But man, Morocco is a different beast. Their confidence and defensive discipline are unreal. They are officially the only African team left, and they play with massive heart. If they keep this up, lifting that trophy is possible! Africa needs a tactical wake-up call.

[Ruttoshi]

African countries are not making the African people proud in this world cup, they are not performing the way that we the African people want them to perform right now it is only Morocco that is still on and I believe them so much because they have confidence and determination to carry on and push on, I will not be surprised if Morocco ends up lifting the world cup because they play so well, Egypt had the opportunity to win Argentina but they did not use that opportunity very well, I think African teams have a lot of work to do for themselves if they really want to lift the world cup in the future.

This is a big dream that I don't think will come to pass this year maybe, in the upcoming world cups. I haven't thought of Morocco winning this ongoing world cup because we have stronger teams than them. Their next clash will be with France and I don't think that Morocco will be able to win that match.

None of any Africa country has gone far in the world cup since history apart from Morocco. So, where they're currently is not a surprise to the world. Africa Nations are always been eliminated in the round of 16.

[Zaguru12]

African countries are not making the African people proud in this world cup, they are not performing the way that we the African people want them to perform right now it is only Morocco that is still on and I believe them so much because they have confidence and determination to carry on and push on, I will not be surprised if Morocco ends up lifting the world cup because they play so well, Egypt had the opportunity to win Argentina but they did not use that opportunity very well, I think African teams have a lot of work to do for themselves if they really want to lift the world cup in the future.

African teams are actually doing Africans well except people want to be biased, 90% of them got into the knockout stage although exited early there but how many world cups have we seen more than 3 African countries in the knockout stages? Most of them did had a great run with this been their first World Cup ever, which other continents had first timers that did that well. In this tournament I think Argentina have only been tested by the African nations only.

Personally I will say they were not decisive in the last few minutes of the game but just like how Morocco has been growing since they burst into the scene is the reason why I think that African teams will actually grow and that’s heavily dependent on how each country’s federation takes the football seriously from here. This World Cup actually shows the world how African football can grow and this will only bring in more players staying abroad to be proud to come and play for this team unlike in the past

[HelliumZ]

This is a big dream that I don't think will come to pass this year maybe, in the upcoming world cups. I haven't thought of Morocco winning this ongoing world cup because we have stronger teams than them. Their next clash will be with France and I don't think that Morocco will be able to win that match.

None of any Africa country has gone far in the world cup since history apart from Morocco. So, where they're currently is not a surprise to the world. Africa Nations are always been eliminated in the round of 16.

You are absolutely right because at this moment, the quarter-final match between France and Morocco will be the last match for Morocco because it may not be possible to compete with France and win in the quarter-finals.No matter how France performs this year, France will face Argentina in the final and in that case, the World Cup will be repeated in 2022. The biased look of the referee in favor of Argentina in the last match clearly shows that Argentina has been retained to become the champion in the final. However, in any case, the next match, i.e. the quarter-finals, we will see a tough match between Morocco and France. Although I supported Morocco, maybe my support team can dream of reaching the quarter-finals only.

[Shussainshah]

After a journey full of challenges, surprises and heart-pounding spectators, now 8 countries remain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. France, Morocco, Spain, Belgium, Norway, England, Argentina and Switzerland will face off against each other to secure a place in the next round. Whoever manages to sweep all the remaining 3 matches (Quarter Finals, Semifinals, and Finals) will be confirmed as world champions.

1. Left Lane:
-France vs Morocco.
As one of the favorites in this tournament, France will face a tough test from Morocco, the team representing the African continent, a semifinalist in the 2022 World Cup and full of surprises.

-Spain vs Belgium.
These two European giants will fight each other for victory. Spain is known for its incredibly solid defensive record, while Belgium boasts a formidable attacking force ready to tear apart the Spanish defense.

2. Right Lane:
-Norway vs England.
The Norway vs England match is one of the most anticipated by football fans, this game brings together Haaland and Harry Kane. These two players are the mainstay of each team to tear apart the opponent's goal, their sharpness in scoring goals makes this game full of high intensity and thrilling attacks. Whoever wins this duel has the potential to be a strong favorite to become the champion.

-Argentina vs Switzerland.
As defending champions, Argentina is relying heavily on the magic of Lionel Messi to repeat their success in the 2022 edition. Argentina had to overcome a Switzerland side that played spartan and managed to beat Colombia on penalties.

This time European teams dominated the quarter-finals with six teams representing the eight remaining teams. The favorite teams must be wary of surprises from dark horse teams like Morocco and Switzerland, they have proven that high determination can defeat the top teams.
In your opinion, out of these 8 teams, who will sweep the remaining 3 matches to become world champions.?

The top 8 stage is set and now we are in the quarter final. Both brackets are very interesting one side we can see a big match between France and Morocco and I think France is the better Team in that's matchs but I just Morocco can take revenge of has last worldcup semi but it's look difficult. The other side we can see a battle between English vs vikings it will a match to watch but at the end England can end the Norway good run as they beaten them in the real life the next brackets are gonna be easy matchs for Spain and Argentina. Is a worldcup not a single matchs are easy and no one can predict but I think Spain has still the upper hand on Belgium and Argentina has also an upper hand on Switzerland.  So I am thinking the top 4of this worldcup will be England,  Spain, France, Argentina.

[Zoomic]

African countries are not making the African people proud in this world cup, they are not performing the way that we the African people want them to perform right now it is only Morocco that is still on and I believe them so much because they have confidence and determination to carry on and push on, I will not be surprised if Morocco ends up lifting the world cup because they play so well, Egypt had the opportunity to win Argentina but they did not use that opportunity very well, I think African teams have a lot of work to do for themselves if they really want to lift the world cup in the future.

Inasmuch as I agree with your opinion to an extent, I don't think their failure to do better than they've done in the ongoing FIFA World Cup is entirely down to their poor performances. For instance in Egypt vs Argentina game yesterday, there were decisions of the referee that questionable.

Egypt had the opportunity of reaching the quarter finals yesterday but they blew up their chance and were unfortunately for them, the referee decisions were against them.

Morocco are still in the competition and facing France in the quarter finals, I doubt that they'll reach the semi finals.

[longyenthanh]

This is a big dream that I don't think will come to pass this year maybe, in the upcoming world cups. I haven't thought of Morocco winning this ongoing world cup because we have stronger teams than them. Their next clash will be with France and I don't think that Morocco will be able to win that match.

None of any Africa country has gone far in the world cup since history apart from Morocco. So, where they're currently is not a surprise to the world. Africa Nations are always been eliminated in the round of 16.

You are absolutely right because at this moment, the quarter-final match between France and Morocco will be the last match for Morocco because it may not be possible to compete with France and win in the quarter-finals.No matter how France performs this year, France will face Argentina in the final and in that case, the World Cup will be repeated in 2022. The biased look of the referee in favor of Argentina in the last match clearly shows that Argentina has been retained to become the champion in the final. However, in any case, the next match, i.e. the quarter-finals, we will see a tough match between Morocco and France. Although I supported Morocco, maybe my support team can dream of reaching the quarter-finals only.

It is true that France is a football powerhouse, but do not count Morocco out just yet!

Football is full of surprises, and Morocco already made history in recent years with their incredible teamwork and defense. Even against top teams, their passion can create a miracle. While the path to the final looks difficult, and rumors about referee bias always spark debates, anything can happen in 90 minutes.

Morocco has earned their place in the quarter-finals, and they will surely fight until the last second.

[Adbitco]

You guys still think Columbia an underdog team, like it's obvious you're not watching those guys play, for Portugal to even hold them to drew was a miracle, like if you had watched that game you'd know that those guys are not in this year FIFA world cup to play, even after the group stage they still play real good to tell you that it's not just the group stage they dominated, if you are talking about teams that are in mad for in this world then Columbia should be one of them, never the Less they have Argentina to play in the round of 16 let's see how things goes with them, because if you ask me I'd say Columbia is winning Argentina no doubt.

If Portugal had played up to expectations, this columbian wouldn't have been a match to them let alone playing draw against them. I knew what happened in that match and Columbia was far better than Portugal and even deserved to win . I was referring to if Portugal were more of a team than individual, they would easily have demolished columbia, that was my point. Look at how Switzerland were able to hold them for 2 hours before eventually eliminating them through penalty shootout, against a proper team, Columbia wouldn't last 90 minutes that was the point I was trying to make regarding them and Portugal match.

[noormcs5]

No country should be underestimated in the remaining games of this world cup. Though I believe this is a temporary setback for Argentina, as the second half could be very devastating for Egypt if care is not taken. Argentina is used to this kind of situation, and before you know it, they might have scored 2 goals.

That might not be easy at this stage and Egypt would defend so well. However, if they (Egypt ) are successfully wit this, they would have my respect.

When Egypt scores their second goal, thoughts raise that it is going to be the last match of Lionel Messi, as three legends are set to retire in three days. Yesterday, Ronaldo retired and the day before yesterday, we also lost Neymar from the World cup. However, Argentina is still save and qualified for the Quarter Finals and hope so they will also qualify to the Semi-Finals, they are getting closer to the trophy day by day.  

[Accardo]

This is a big dream that I don't think will come to pass this year maybe, in the upcoming world cups. I haven't thought of Morocco winning this ongoing world cup because we have stronger teams than them. Their next clash will be with France and I don't think that Morocco will be able to win that match.

None of any Africa country has gone far in the world cup since history apart from Morocco. So, where they're currently is not a surprise to the world. Africa Nations are always been eliminated in the round of 16.

Yesterday's game was so unbearable for the Pharaohs, losing to Argentina 3:2 at that time of the game, just 12 minutes away, deserves questioning, their coach was fully devasted and mentioned being rigged, but the question remains, how does a team like Egypt concede more than 3 goals in less than say 15 minutes, probably, the game should have gone to the extra time, at 2:2 atleast.

[TastyChillySauce00]

After a journey full of challenges, surprises and heart-pounding spectators, now 8 countries remain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. France, Morocco, Spain, Belgium, Norway, England, Argentina and Switzerland will face off against each other to secure a place in the next round. Whoever manages to sweep all the remaining 3 matches (Quarter Finals, Semifinals, and Finals) will be confirmed as world champions.

1. Left Lane:
-France vs Morocco.
As one of the favorites in this tournament, France will face a tough test from Morocco, the team representing the African continent, a semifinalist in the 2022 World Cup and full of surprises.

-Spain vs Belgium.
These two European giants will fight each other for victory. Spain is known for its incredibly solid defensive record, while Belgium boasts a formidable attacking force ready to tear apart the Spanish defense.

2. Right Lane:
-Norway vs England.
The Norway vs England match is one of the most anticipated by football fans, this game brings together Haaland and Harry Kane. These two players are the mainstay of each team to tear apart the opponent's goal, their sharpness in scoring goals makes this game full of high intensity and thrilling attacks. Whoever wins this duel has the potential to be a strong favorite to become the champion.

-Argentina vs Switzerland.
As defending champions, Argentina is relying heavily on the magic of Lionel Messi to repeat their success in the 2022 edition. Argentina had to overcome a Switzerland side that played spartan and managed to beat Colombia on penalties.

This time European teams dominated the quarter-finals with six teams representing the eight remaining teams. The favorite teams must be wary of surprises from dark horse teams like Morocco and Switzerland, they have proven that high determination can defeat the top teams.
In your opinion, out of these 8 teams, who will sweep the remaining 3 matches to become world champions.?

It will be like this

Semis
Argentina vs Norway

France vs Spain

Final
Argentina vs France

There is no better thing than seeing Mbappe to fight Messi in the final. I know others may disagree with my prediction, but it's what i prefer to see. That will build the hype for the final because we know Mbappe and Messi are competing to become the top scorer.

[Adbitco]

I don't think I have watched any game that is as interesting as thus game between Switzerland vs Colombia, both sides showed that hunger to book a tick to the next round, counter after counter, if not for this hydration break I don't see these guys stop running just to make something happen. So sad to see Colombia go in this competition, they have all the chances to get a goal but that final touch is the problem, all they did ended up against them and I would have love to see them play Argentina because they are the best match for them, if they play against each other the Argentina side would reduce the speed at which they operate because Colombia are familiar with their style of play but unfortunately Switzerland won the game at the end of the day.

It's been hard for teams to easily take down these Columbians, they fight with all they have and I have been noticing them for some time. If they don't score you, they wouldn't allow you to score easily. I see them as a pain in the ass of other teams. Although, I rooted for them to qualify because of their resilience in the game, they have this hunger of not pulling back even though they are playing a bigger team with more stars than them, we saw that in the Portugal game but Switzerland maybe were in another level and help them to a draw for the full 120 minutes. Of course the penalty shootout as I have always said is for anybody. Here there's no master in it because even the best around the world do miss from the spot.

Switzerland are really going to be a pain in the ass like you said but Argentina will have a test of it first and if they manage to get pass Argentina then anything can happen because Argentina too are like them, enduring pressure and if you score them it becomes hard because they will come in full force to get a goal just like what we saw against Egypt. Well I don't have issues with Messi missing the penalty but is like this guy doesn't want any of his goals to come from the spot and that is how it has been right from the start, but they need to be careful because all what we saw yesterday between Egypt vs Argentina and Switzerland vs Colombia is never going to repeat itself, it will be a different ball game and hopefully it will end at 90'mins.

After that Argentina Vs Egypt game, I'm afraid there's no hope anymore for Switzerland, wether they play well or not, it all going to end in favour of Argentina. It was so obvious even for the blind to see what happened to Egypt in that match, so basically I won't be wrong to say Switzerland will be playing against Argentina, referee, VAR and FIFA if they play well, if they don't play well they might just play against 12 men. Either way, there's no chance for them in that game. It's no more hidden again about what's going on in the world cup. At Qatar people raised concern about this but no manu of paid attention to it and this year same thing is going on right under our noise.

[uneng]

This world cup got boring suddenly. And it will be quite annoying in case there will be another final between France and Argentina. But there is still hope something different can happen. Maybe Morocco can surprise us this time. Let's keep in mind that if it wasn't for a foul which created an opportunity of penalty for France, Paraguay could have sent them home on penalties.

Even England or Norway have a chance against Argentina on the next stage. A final between France and England wouldn't be bad too, considering the historical rivalry between these two countries.