FIFA World Cup 2026 · Knockout phase
The knockout phase opens with the brand-new Round of 32 on 27 June 2026 and ends at MetLife Stadium on 19 July. Below is every round with its match count and a link to the full draw — once the group stage finishes the teams will populate automatically.
R32
Brand new for 2026. The 24 group winners and runners-up plus the eight best third-placed sides — 16 single-elimination matches.
R16
32 → 16. The first round of straight knockouts every previous World Cup featured, now sitting one round deeper into the tournament.
QF
Eight teams left. Four matches across four cities. Winners advance to the semi-finals.
SF
Four teams, two matches. Winners play the Final at MetLife Stadium on 19 July 2026.
F
MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ. 19 July 2026. The eventual champions will have played eight knockout matches — more than any World Cup winner before them.
Want the full visual bracket with all 31 matches connected? Switch to the Bracket tab — it includes a predict mode that uses your group-stage picks to seed the Round of 32 automatically.
Open the bracket →