FIFA 2026 World Cup/Ticket Discussion Thread.

[Sarah Azhari]

Germany actually lost the match which was really disappointing but they still progressed to the next round of the competition finishing 1st in the group stage. They had quite a good start to the game but lost it all after an equaliser and a total loss towards the second half of the game.

It was quite obvious that Ivory Coast would win the game but I expected more goals from them. Ivory Coast has a really good form in this Word Cup with no loss during the start of the competition and it is quite outstanding. It would be entertaining to see how far they would go with this performance.

Germany decided to save their energy before the knockout round. their primary objective - first place in the group was already achieved so they could give a rest to their key players in the final group stage match to prevent injury and fatigue. however, this doesn't diminish Ecuador's efforts who were desperate to win and advance from the group. I think Ecuador will be a good performer in the knockout round so it would be a shame for such team to be eliminated so early.

That’s why Germany viewed the match against Ecuador as having no impact on their position in the group, so they chose to rotate their players to ensure their key players would be in top form for the knockout stage. So yes, it’s understandable that Germany lost to Ecuador.

By the way, Germany will face Paraguay in the Round of 32. I think Germany will easily defeat Paraguay. I don’t mean to underestimate Paraguay, but when you compare the two teams’ strength and performance in the group stage, it’s clear that Germany is much stronger. If I were to bet, I’d bet on a German victory.

[tygeade]

Haiti even being here was weird, and only happened because hosts were guaranteed, and of course they ended up with zero points, one thing I am shocked about is that Morocco ended up with zero points, I thought they would at least get one win or at least a draw, but was a very difficult group for them.

Iraq also had zero points, which was quite expected and normal, Jordan had zero points which is once again normal but maybe they could have beaten Algeria, or get a draw there so they had a chance to not be zero points, Uzbekistan finished with zero too, not shocking and lastly we had Panama which had zero points. These are the teams that finished with zero points, considering we have more teams now and everyone claimed many teams would suck, I think just these were bad, rest got points.

[Yabani]

Iran is currently ranked sixth among the best third-placed teams. Their fate—whether they advance or are eliminated—hinges on the results of the matches involving Croatia, Algeria, and DR Congo.
I would like to see Iran advance, given the treatment they received; if they make it to the Round of 32, they will play their matches outside the US, sparing them the need to travel back and forth solely for the games.
I hope the US is not granted permission to host any sporting events in the future. The treatment of Iran, along with the refusal to let the referee—whose name I’ve forgotten—into the country, cast a negative shadow over this tournament.

[Queen uloma]

England will surely win Panama because they are stronger than Panama so this match is a good match for England because they are going to win, Panama is not strong at all. I’m very sure that everyone who is betting on this match is going to bet on England to win and no one is expecting Panama to win England because is not possible, I’m expecting England to score 3 goals and above in this match and I’m sure Panama won’t score England.

[Fakhrulenclix]

England will surely win Panama because they are stronger than Panama so this match is a good match for England because they are going to win, Panama is not strong at all. I’m very sure that everyone who is betting on this match is going to bet on England to win and no one is expecting Panama to win England because is not possible, I’m expecting England to score 3 goals and above in this match and I’m sure Panama won’t score England.

England has already been confirmed to advance while Panama has definitely failed to move on from the group stage, so there’s not really any motivation left for England in this match. They might just be looking to hold on to their chance to win the group without any extra push to score lots of goals. 

A team like England might prioritize keeping their players from getting injured and staying in top form for the knockout rounds later. Even though I believe England will be able to win against Panama, I’m a bit doubtful that they’ll win by a big score.

[juttsab@]

Haiti even being here was weird, and only happened because hosts were guaranteed, and of course they ended up with zero points, one thing I am shocked about is that Morocco ended up with zero points, I thought they would at least get one win or at least a draw, but was a very difficult group for them.

Iraq also had zero points, which was quite expected and normal, Jordan had zero points which is once again normal but maybe they could have beaten Algeria, or get a draw there so they had a chance to not be zero points, Uzbekistan finished with zero too, not shocking and lastly we had Panama which had zero points. These are the teams that finished with zero points, considering we have more teams now and everyone claimed many teams would suck, I think just these were bad, rest got points.

Egypt finished 2nd in their group with 5 points the same as Belgium after a 1-1 draw against Iran in their last group stage match. Egypt qualifies for the Knockout stage for the first time in their history. As the match started Saber scored an early goal for Egypt and gave them a lead but after just 9 minutes Rezaeian scored an equalizer in the 14th minute.Egypt kept 61% of the possession, 0.84xG no big chance created and a total of 15 shots. On the other hand Iran with 39% possession created 5 big chances, 1.97xG and a total of 13 shots. They finished 3rd with 3 points and can qualify as the best 3rd place team. Yasser Ibrahim was named as player of the match for Egypt for his defense contribution.

[tiCeR]

England will surely win Panama because they are stronger than Panama so this match is a good match for England because they are going to win, Panama is not strong at all. I’m very sure that everyone who is betting on this match is going to bet on England to win and no one is expecting Panama to win England because is not possible, I’m expecting England to score 3 goals and above in this match and I’m sure Panama won’t score England.

Yes very good analysis you are delivering here and I am sure England will surely win Panama the same way they destroyed Ghana.

I think if there is one learning so far, no results are guaranteed. Several big nations have failed to beat the underdogs and Panama is not easily beaten. Usually England should beat them, but usually is no word anymore. Spain should have beaten Cape Verde, England should have beaten Ghana and yet they didn't.

And by the way I just noticed that it is still 0-0, no goals so far for Kane despite his great performance in the first match against Croatia. But all these matches have to be taken one by one. Against Croatia it was an impressive offensive match by both teams, but you can't simply carry over what happened in one match into the next one. Panama and Ghana have different approaches and they make it much harder for England to score whereas Croatia tried to attack themselves and thereby granted England far more room for their own attacks, also counter attacks.

[Ndabagi01]

England will surely win Panama because they are stronger than Panama so this match is a good match for England because they are going to win, Panama is not strong at all. I’m very sure that everyone who is betting on this match is going to bet on England to win and no one is expecting Panama to win England because is not possible, I’m expecting England to score 3 goals and above in this match and I’m sure Panama won’t score England.

In this World Cup, no one gives their full hope to any team again because the unexpected has always been the result of most cases in this tournament. No one thought that Ghana will be able to draw with England which they did to share one points each. The match today against Panama for England has so far still leveled. England has not being able to net any goal into the net of Panama and this is something we don’t really expect from them based on each team’s strength and how well each of them can come out in those matches. No result is certain until the end of the games because most games end up being the opposite of many has predicts for it to be.

[SensitiveEyes]

Panama can beat England because Thomas Tuchel made England boring. Panama have no points but they will try to upset England. The English beat Croatia because they expected a tough opener and got one but Ghana surprised them. The heat is on England because Croatia are beating Ghana.

[hyudien]

The match today against Panama for England has so far still leveled. England has not being able to net any goal into the net of Panama and this is something we don’t really expect from them based on each team’s strength and how well each of them can come out in those matches. No result is certain until the end of the games because most games end up being the opposite of many has predicts for it to be.

Actually they are very safe to go to the next phase, whatever result they get today, so maybe that's why until the second half they haven't been able to score, even I noticed in the first half the game was not so aggressive, because they were only able to create a few chances, they were not so sharp in attack, but they have to consider the position they will get in this group, if they can only end up in second place then their journey will be difficult in the round of 32 later because they will face the team that finished second in group K, between Portugal and Colombia, so they should target a victory in this match so that in the round of 32 later they can get an easier opponent.

Edit: they finally scored 2 goals, well done, England will definitely win.

[Slow death]

England will surely win Panama because they are stronger than Panama so this match is a good match for England because they are going to win, Panama is not strong at all. I’m very sure that everyone who is betting on this match is going to bet on England to win and no one is expecting Panama to win England because is not possible, I’m expecting England to score 3 goals and above in this match and I’m sure Panama won’t score England.

England failed to score in the first half; they weren't efficient in attack, but they improved in the second half, and as I was writing, they managed to score two goals. In less than 7 minutes they scored two goals. It was a tough blow for Panama, who will leave this competition without a single victory; it will be three consecutive defeats, a very sad scenario for Panama. For England, if the game ends with a victory for them, then they will finish in first place in the group. As it's the 70th minute and they've already scored two goals, there's still time for England to score another goal, and if that happens, then your prediction would have been correct.

[SensitiveEyes]

The match today against Panama for England has so far still leveled. England has not being able to net any goal into the net of Panama and this is something we don’t really expect from them based on each team’s strength and how well each of them can come out in those matches. No result is certain until the end of the games because most games end up being the opposite of many has predicts for it to be.

Actually they are very safe to go to the next phase, whatever result they get today, so maybe that's why until the second half they haven't been able to score, even I noticed in the first half the game was not so aggressive, because they were only able to create a few chances, they were not so sharp in attack, but they have to consider the position they will get in this group, if they can only end up in second place then their journey will be difficult in the round of 32 later because they will face the team that finished second in group K, between Portugal and Colombia, so they should target a victory in this match so that in the round of 32 later they can get an easier opponent.

Edit: they finally scored 2 goals, well done, England will definitely win.

Panama is a small country with a small team thad nothing to play for so they made their fans proud in the FWC. They were drawn in the group with England, Croatia and Ghana so knew their fate. This world cup should be a memorable experience for fans from each participating country. Panama fans should be happy they played against England with no fear.

[mv1986]

Panama is a small country with a small team thad nothing to play for so they made their fans proud in the FWC. They were drawn in the group with England, Croatia and Ghana so knew their fate. This world cup should be a memorable experience for fans from each participating country. Panama fans should be happy they played against England with no fear.

Considering what everyone thought about these games before the World Cup started, the smaller countries did very well. I thought we would see more games that end like the Curacao - Germany game, but no. They fought back, they had their fun and to be honest, it was quite impressive how many of those fans supported their teams. I saw the crowd cheering for Curacao and it was insane how much effort they put into supporting their team. Pretty much a great example for many other fans.

[SensitiveEyes]

Panama is a small country with a small team thad nothing to play for so they made their fans proud in the FWC. They were drawn in the group with England, Croatia and Ghana so knew their fate. This world cup should be a memorable experience for fans from each participating country. Panama fans should be happy they played against England with no fear.

Considering what everyone thought about these games before the World Cup started, the smaller countries did very well. I thought we would see more games that end like the Curacao - Germany game, but no. They fought back, they had their fun and to be honest, it was quite impressive how many of those fans supported their teams. I saw the crowd cheering for Curacao and it was insane how much effort they put into supporting their team. Pretty much a great example for many other fans.

Curaçao had their fans from home but other supporters were cheering for Curaçao because the world cup fans love supporting less favoured teams. The best stories involving fans in the FWC are about how people come together to put differences like religion, culture, race and nationality away to cheer for smaller countries. Germany took advantage of Curaçao to boost the goal differences. Curaçao with Ecuador was no goals but Curaçao lost 2-0 to Ivory Coast. Curaçao should be proud of their FWC run.

[Varnquister]

Jordan lost to Argentina and finished last in the group. Argentina, which went into halftime leading 2-0 thanks to goals from Giovani Lo Celso and Lautaro Martinez, went on to defeat its opponent 3-1 with a spectacular free-kick goal by Messi. Jordan thus managed to score in every match it played in the group stage. Argentina had not conceded a goal until this match, but after conceding a goal in this game, they have now conceded a goal. Argentina won all three of its group matches, achieving a perfect 3-0 record.

[reagansimms]

Germany decided to save their energy before the knockout round. their primary objective - first place in the group was already achieved so they could give a rest to their key players in the final group stage match to prevent injury and fatigue. however, this doesn't diminish Ecuador's efforts who were desperate to win and advance from the group. I think Ecuador will be a good performer in the knockout round so it would be a shame for such team to be eliminated so early.

That’s why Germany viewed the match against Ecuador as having no impact on their position in the group, so they chose to rotate their players to ensure their key players would be in top form for the knockout stage. So yes, it’s understandable that Germany lost to Ecuador.

By the way, Germany will face Paraguay in the Round of 32. I think Germany will easily defeat Paraguay. I don’t mean to underestimate Paraguay, but when you compare the two teams’ strength and performance in the group stage, it’s clear that Germany is much stronger. If I were to bet, I’d bet on a German victory.

Julian Nagelsmann doesn't want to take any risks when Germany faces Ecuador, whatever the result in the match will not affect their position. He preferred to keep some of his first-team players on the bench to maintain their fitness, but the defeat to Ecuador was a significant evaluation of the backline as key defender Nico Schlotterbeck was ruled out due to injury.

Although Germany is the favorite on paper, the potential for an upset remains as Paraguay also has the ambition to win. Julian Nagelsmann must field his best squad to maintain their chances of qualifying for the next round. Furthermore, Paraguay qualified for the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams, a record that will certainly increase their motivation to play with more discipline.
Germany squad quality is superior to Paraguay , so it's understandable why many bettors are favoring Germany. I also had no hesitation in betting on a German victory, even if the outcome didn't go as predicted, that's another story.

 

[dezoel]

Germany wins 7:1 against Curacao and Curacao vs Ecuador ends in a draw and now Germany loses against Ecuador 1:2? Something smells off here. Did Germany lose on purpose?

Probably these are the things happening that some gamblers are saying there are some matches in football are fixed. It is possible in a scenereo like this when the Team loss have already secured the next round. For the other team to also secure their ticket to the next round, there will be behind scene discuss and if they agree with financial dealing, the strong team would loss the match but they have forgotten that gamblers will loss money from it. But if there was no negotiation, then I don't think they loss it on purpose. But poor performance.

There will always be people who will claim that some games are fixed, when Spain failed to win, they said the same thing, when other teams failed to win, they said the same thing as well.

Basically, whenever team is suppose to win and have odds like 1.6 or even better, and they fail to win, people just claim that it's a match fixing. When Spain failed to beat Cape Verde, that was a big talking point about match fixing as well. But I doubt that's the case, not in world cup at least, that's not going to happen.

[Varnquister]

Colombia and Portugal played to a draw. It’s fair to say that both teams put up a good fight; in fact, I think Colombia was the side closer to winning the match. Despite taking twice as many shots as their opponent, Colombia was unable to capitalize on their chances. With this draw, Portugal finished the group stage in second place, while Colombia managed to finish as the group leader with 7 points. Frankly, I didn’t expect Portugal—despite being the favorite in this match—to fail to win. Colombia is truly a strong opponent, and they proved it once again.

[meser#]

I watched the highlights of the Argentina vs. Jordan match; even the fact that Jordan scored a goal came as a surprise to me. They scored a really beautiful goal, the result of a well-organized attack.
Messi came on as a substitute but took two free-kicks, scoring on the second attempt. The defensive wall Jordan set up for both Argentina's first and last goals was very poor. The goalkeeper couldn't see the ball in either instance because the wall was positioned incorrectly.
Argentina won comfortably, having already secured their place in the next round. Today, they essentially just went through the motions—it was nothing more than a light workout on the pitch.

[Varnquister]

Croatia managed to defeat Ghana and, with this victory, finished second in the group. To be honest, we can’t say Croatia played an impressive game against Ghana, but we can say they won because they had a superior roster. Although Ghana had the potential to earn a draw in this match, they were unable to do so. Croatia, at least, finished the group stage in second place with two wins following their heavy defeat against England.