Whale.io 🐳 | ⚽ FIFA World Cup 2026: Tournament Discussion Thread

[igebotz]

Cape Verde over 0.5 odds of 2.45 is quite high, can this underdog team penetrate Argerntina's defense? I'm a little doubtful.

Not going high stake on that but the odds is too good to be ignored - I feel Cape Verde could pinch in one goal before Argentina make it rain on them; we could see a 4-1 scoreline or something similar.

I'm probably going to contradict you, Portugal and Netherlands are likely to go through, I don't want to see Ronaldo disappointed again for failing... I don't think I'd want to bet on the underdogs here.

The Netherlands may pass; they have a good squad and are scoring a lot of goals, but Portugal plays like shit; they have Ronaldo and Bruno who can change games, but they haven't done enough in this tournament, and the entire team is in disarray, which Croatia could exploit; they have a really good squad and are having a good tournament.

I still think Portugal's journey ends in this stage and I'll be backing Croatia heavily.

[tokeweed]

So what are your bets in the Ro32..?  I got all the favorites qualifying to the next stage except for Egypt.  I think Australia snags the win via pens and get to Ro16. 

Btw..  If I haven't told you guys already, but I think I already did, place some bets at Hyperliquid's outcome markets for the World Cup.  Not sure if you guys are familiar with airdrop farming but Hyperliquid gave out a life changing airdrop for many users...  They could do it again.

I'm banking on Croatia and Morroco to progress to the next stage- nice odds on each games; they're both up against Portugal and Netherlands.

Share the link to hyperliqued

I think I should listen to you and make a small bet on Croatia.    I can't believe the Netherlands is out via how they went out.  The pens they missed were ridiculous.  And Germany too...  The biggest disappointment of this World Cup for sure.

Now I fear for England.

As for Hyperliquid, it's app (dot) hyperliquid (dot) xyz.  Check it out.

[igebotz]

I think I should listen to you and make a small bet on Croatia.    I can't believe the Netherlands is out via how they went out.  The pens they missed were ridiculous.  And Germany too...  The biggest disappointment of this World Cup for sure.

Now I fear for England.

As for Hyperliquid, it's app (dot) hyperliquid (dot) xyz.  Check it out.

Morocco are a more better team than Netherlands; they don't have all the hype and the best individual players but they're more of a "team". I've watched Netherlands, watched Morocco and no way they were going into survive that - lucky for them, Morocco didn't take their chances yesterday; it could have been disasterious

The only thing Portugal has over Croatia is the Ronaldo hype and the team is tactically non-existent, poorly managed and zero team work. This is a team that everyone on the team wants to be on the spotlight. Croatia is the opposite.

Croatia could cause an upset, they have a "team"

[JollyGood]

Portugal are going to struggle to beat Croatia unless they score a couple of goals in the very early stages of the match. This should be another match that is going to be settled without extra-time and penalties because both teams will try to score. It seems as though there will be goals 

I am not sure what went wrong with Germany and the Netherlands other than they played against teams that simply had more desire to win. Koeman has already resigned, I have no idea what Nagelsmann is waiting for. After the shocking way Germany played, Nagelsmann should resign or he will probably be sacked.

Morocco are a more better team than Netherlands; they don't have all the hype and the best individual players but they're more of a "team". I've watched Netherlands, watched Morocco and no way they were going into survive that - lucky for them, Morocco didn't take their chances yesterday; it could have been disasterious

The only thing Portugal has over Croatia is the Ronaldo hype and the team is tactically non-existent, poorly managed and zero team work. This is a team that everyone on the team wants to be on the spotlight. Croatia is the opposite.

Croatia could cause an upset, they have a "team"

[tokeweed]

I think I should listen to you and make a small bet on Croatia.    I can't believe the Netherlands is out via how they went out.  The pens they missed were ridiculous.  And Germany too...  The biggest disappointment of this World Cup for sure.

Now I fear for England.

As for Hyperliquid, it's app (dot) hyperliquid (dot) xyz.  Check it out.

Morocco are a more better team than Netherlands; they don't have all the hype and the best individual players but they're more of a "team". I've watched Netherlands, watched Morocco and no way they were going into survive that - lucky for them, Morocco didn't take their chances yesterday; it could have been disasterious

The only thing Portugal has over Croatia is the Ronaldo hype and the team is tactically non-existent, poorly managed and zero team work. This is a team that everyone on the team wants to be on the spotlight. Croatia is the opposite.

Croatia could cause an upset, they have a "team"

Yeah, I know what you mean.  And upon doing a little digging on Portugal, til that their manager is Roberto Martinez.  The Wigan manager from back in the day who somehow could scam himself in decent jobs.    The guy is a hack.  So yeah...  I'm def onboard Croatia now. 

Just for a small bet to keep me entertained. 

[JollyGood]

After a brilliant set of games in the groups stage, the knockout games should be exciting to watch. Canada and Mexico (two of the three host nations) have already qualified for the round of 16. If the USA win their match against Bosnia tomorrow, all three host nations will qualify,

ROUND OF 32 GAMES:

Sunday 28th June
South Africa 0-1 Canada

Monday 29th June
Brazil 2-1 Japan
Germany 1-1 Paraguay (Paraguay won 4-3 on penalties)

Tuesday 30th June
Netherlands 1-1 Morocco (Morocco won 3-2 on penalties)
Ivory Coast 1-2 Norway
France 3-0 Sweden

Wednesday 1st July
Mexico 2-0 Ecuador
England 2-1 DR Congo

[igebotz]

Yeah, I know what you mean.  And upon doing a little digging on Portugal, til that their manager is Roberto Martinez.  The Wigan manager from back in the day who somehow could scam himself in decent jobs.    The guy is a hack.  So yeah...  I'm def onboard Croatia now. 

Just for a small bet to keep me entertained. 

Yeah Roberto Martinez, the manager who ruined Belgium golden era; that was a team that was projected to dominate Europe. I don't know how he keeps getting hands on big jobs like the one he's handling now.

He's about to ruin another high projected team and move on to another job.

Did any of you see the Senegal game? They had only 5 mins to defend a 0-2 to qualify to the next round and they bottled it.

[tokeweed]

^  He prolly has the same agent as Mourinho.  Lolol. 

Anyway, Ro16 matches are looking good.  Disappointed with Germany going out early.  France vs Germany would've been fun. 

I'm loving USA vs Belgium, Brazil vs Norway and Mexico vs England...  I think these matches' underdogs could go through to the quarterfinals imho.  Rooting for USA USA to annoy everybody. 

[BABY SHOES]

Yeah Roberto Martinez, the manager who ruined Belgium golden era; that was a team that was projected to dominate Europe. I don't know how he keeps getting hands on big jobs like the one he's handling now.

He's about to ruin another high projected team and move on to another job.

Could Roberto Martinez possibly ruin Portugal's golden era again? He's been handed a big project, but he hasn't handled it well.

I'm sure... after his failure with Portugal, he'll be given another big project. You could say he's always lucky to be drawn to big teams.

Did any of you see the Senegal game? They had only 5 mins to defend a 0-2 to qualify to the next round and they bottled it.

I was shaking my head at Senegal, how could they have conceded so easily?
Two goals in four minutes for Belgium... the drama didn't end there; in extra time, they conceded another penalty at the end of the match.

[JollyGood]

Senegal nearly won the match, they played much better than Belgium and deserved to win. With just seven minutes remaining, Senegal conceded the first and then less than three minutes later they conceded the equaliser. Just when it was heading to penalties, Belgium were awarded one and it was taken brilliantly by Tielemans.

I think the loss will be difficult for Senegal to take because they were very close to winning. I have a feeling Belgium will lose the next match.

Did any of you see the Senegal game? They had only 5 mins to defend a 0-2 to qualify to the next round and they bottled it.

[igebotz]

^  He prolly has the same agent as Mourinho.  Lolol. 

Anyway, Ro16 matches are looking good.  Disappointed with Germany going out early.  France vs Germany would've been fun. 

I'm loving USA vs Belgium, Brazil vs Norway and Mexico vs England...  I think these matches' underdogs could go through to the quarterfinals imho.  Rooting for USA USA to annoy everybody. 

Roberto Martinez and Mourinho are like wine, the older they get the better offers they get- they must have the best agent.

Easy money on USA, difficult call on Brazil and Mexico to progress to the next stage; the English team is not special, they're just lucky to be here- take out Harry Kane and Bellingham and you have 8 dead woods left running sideways.

Pochettino has done a great job with the USA national team; they're are well coached, no hypeman, just 11 players playing good attacking football as a team..

Could Roberto Martinez possibly ruin Portugal's golden era again? He's been handed a big project, but he hasn't handled it well.

In the next World Cup 80% of the team will be over 30 - they're on the cliff, this is the last dance before everyone turns 30+

I think the loss will be difficult for Senegal to take because they were very close to winning. I have a feeling Belgium will lose the next match.

The Belgium team is so bad, they won't be lucky in the next game

[tokeweed]

^  He prolly has the same agent as Mourinho.  Lolol. 

Anyway, Ro16 matches are looking good.  Disappointed with Germany going out early.  France vs Germany would've been fun. 

I'm loving USA vs Belgium, Brazil vs Norway and Mexico vs England...  I think these matches' underdogs could go through to the quarterfinals imho.  Rooting for USA USA to annoy everybody. 

Roberto Martinez and Mourinho are like wine, the older they get the better offers they get- they must have the best agent.

Easy money on USA, difficult call on Brazil and Mexico to progress to the next stage; the English team is not special, they're just lucky to be here- take out Harry Kane and Bellingham and you have 8 dead woods left running sideways.

Pochettino has done a great job with the USA national team; they're are well coached, no hypeman, just 11 players playing good attacking football as a team..

Well at least Mourinho won titles during his hey day and I wouldn't be surprised if he won some trophies in his second stint at Real Madrid.  What I'd love to see tho is for him to manage the Portuguese national team...

And yeah, I'd love to see the US reach the semis at least.  That would be funny and annoying as hell for many football fans as US 'soccah' is starting to get noticed. 

[JollyGood]

These are the results in the round of 32:

ROUND OF 32 GAMES:

Sunday 28th June
South Africa 0-1 Canada

Monday 29th June
Brazil 2-1 Japan
Germany 1-1 Paraguay (Paraguay won 4-3 on penalties)

Tuesday 30th June
Netherlands 1-1 Morocco (Morocco won 3-2 on penalties)
Ivory Coast 1-2 Norway
France 3-0 Sweden

Wednesday 1st July
Mexico 2-0 Ecuador
England 2-1 DR Congo

Thursday 2nd July
United States of America 2-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Spain 3-0 Austria

Friday 3rd July
Portugal 2-1 Croatia
Switzerland 2-0 Algeria

[igebotz]

Well at least Mourinho won titles during his hey day and I wouldn't be surprised if he won some trophies in his second stint at Real Madrid.  What I'd love to see tho is for him to manage the Portuguese national team...

And yeah, I'd love to see the US reach the semis at least.  That would be funny and annoying as hell for many football fans as US 'soccah' is starting to get noticed. 

Mourinho is a serial winner, he has done so much that will keep him at the top till he retires. He's old fashioned and is not going to play the best attacking football but just give him the right players and be rest assured he's winning titles..

I'd also love to see them progress to the quarters as a good host but the Semi is quite overstretched as they'll have to beat Spain/Portugal to achieve that. Now no more Balogun for the US.

[JollyGood]

ROUND OF 32 GAMES UPDATED RESULTS:

Sunday 28th June
South Africa 0-1 Canada

Monday 29th June
Brazil 2-1 Japan
Germany 1-1 Paraguay (Paraguay won 4-3 on penalties)

Tuesday 30th June
Netherlands 1-1 Morocco (Morocco won 3-2 on penalties)
Ivory Coast 1-2 Norway
France 3-0 Sweden

Wednesday 1st July
Mexico 2-0 Ecuador
England 2-1 DR Congo

Thursday 2nd July
United States of America 2-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Spain 3-0 Austria

Friday 3rd July
Portugal 2-1 Croatia
Switzerland 2-0 Algeria
Australia 1-1 Egypt (Egypt won 4-2 on penalties)
Argentina 3-2 Cape Verde (AET)

Cape Verde deserved to have won the match against Argentina. Cape Verde were not intimidated by Argentina. At the very least, after the equalising goal for the second time (in extra time) the game should ended with penalties. Argentina were fortunate to have won in extra time.

[igebotz]

Cape Verde deserved to have won the match against Argentina. Cape Verde were not intimidated by Argentina. At the very least, after the equalising goal for the second time (in extra time) the game should ended with penalties. Argentina were fortunate to have won in extra time.

Yeah, they played well but Argentina also deserved the win - let not take that away from them.    that was the best game I've seen so far in this tournament.

I honestly didn't care about the result; Cape Verde won our heart and did themselves and Africa proud. They have a good goalie but he's already 40+ not sure any serious club would want to sign him at that age.

[tokeweed]

You guys watch Brazil vs Haaland?    So good...  Who's the big Belgian striker who was supposed to replace Drogba?  Haaland is what that guy was supposed to be!  He's like a battering ram going against two defenders and getting the best of it.

I wonder why Guradiola acquired him.  He's so much unlike the usual striker that plays under his philosophy.

Anyway, couple of good matches in Ro16 now.  France vs Morocco and Haaland vs England. 

[JollyGood]

Yeah, they played well but Argentina also deserved the win - let not take that away from them.   that was the best game I've seen so far in this tournament.

I honestly didn't care about the result; Cape Verde won our heart and did themselves and Africa proud. They have a good goalie but he's already 40+ not sure any serious club would want to sign him at that age.

That match went way beyond a game of football and became something else. Cape Verde were carrying the weight of a continent on their shoulders and they nearly went to a penalty shootout with current World Cup winners Argentina. The whole world was proud of the way Cape Verde played and had the match ended with penalties, it is impossible to know what would have happened.

You guys watch Brazil vs Haaland?    So good...  Who's the big Belgian striker who was supposed to replace Drogba?  Haaland is what that guy was supposed to be!  He's like a battering ram going against two defenders and getting the best of it.

I wonder why Guradiola acquired him.  He's so much unlike the usual striker that plays under his philosophy.

Anyway, couple of good matches in Ro16 now.  France vs Morocco and Haaland vs England.  

Brazil under Ancelotti are not playing well. If he remains manager, he will have to play with young dynamic players rather than those that are past their best. If he makes changes now, they will have a chance when the Copa America is played after two years.

Norway deserved to win the match. The reaction from Haaland after he scored his second goal was hilarious. He did not know whether to celebrate or query if he was dreaming  

[tokeweed]

^  Yup..  T'was pretty good.    I'm kinda finding myself rooting for Norway now.  Them vs Norway will def by a test.  I wonder what the odds are gonna be.  But I could imagine Norway being the slight underdog here.

Anyway, the US lost against Belgium.  It was almost a trashing with the scoreline ending with 4 - 1.  So I guess we'll be seeing a better match up in the Ro16 with Spain vs Belgium. 

[BABY SHOES]

Anyway, the US lost against Belgium.  It was almost a trashing with the scoreline ending with 4 - 1.  So I guess we'll be seeing a better match up in the Ro16 with Spain vs Belgium. 

The USA wasn't playing like usual, playing poorly. It's unknown why. Initially, the bookmakers gave them odds that were almost equal to Belgium's, but after the match, everything changed.

Could it be that public pressure over Balogun's rescinded red card was putting them under pressure? Perhaps some of you can relate to how bad the USA was, getting thrashed by Belgium.