Matchday three of the World Cup group stage kicked off on Wednesday night and into the early hours of Thursday in more rushed fashion than over the last two weeks of play as three group – 12 teams – played their final group games as FIFA hurries to wrap up the first stage and move the tournament to the elimination rounds.
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For many teams the end of the group stage is a sigh of relief, as the top two finishers in each of the 12 groups gain automatic entry into the elimination rounds. But, for many others, this is where the anxiety begins.
With this year’s expanded World Cup format featuring 48 teams and 6 weeks of competition, not only are the top two places in each group going through to the Round of 32, but also eight of the best third place finishers.
Here is a roundup of all six games that took place last night and this morning:
Switzerland v Canada
The Swiss and Canadian teams were the first to take to the pitch on Wednesday night for a top of the table clash, going into the match tied at four points apiece and looking for a final win to finish top of their group.
Both teams traded attacks and threatening moments in the first half but the match remained deadlocked at a goalless draw going into the halftime break with not much separating the two teams in Group B.
Switzerland had the higher possession percentage and completed more passes than their Canadian tournament co-hosts, playing on home turf in Vancouver, but the Canadian team registered more shots on target but couldn’t find the back of the net.
It was in the first minute of the second half however where Switzerland’s Ruben Vargas was able to open the scoring.
A ball crossed into the box from forward Johan Manzambi found an unmarked Vargas in plenty of space where he had enough time to bring the ball to a stop before firing in a bottom left corner shot, which deflected off the post and made its way past the line.
It was soon after in the 57th minute that Switzerland’s striker, Breel Embolo, found himself through on goal after Canada’s defence blundered a loose ball and failed to clear it. But, in a selfless display, Embolo controlled the ball and turned to find teammate Manzambi free on the right side and laid the ball off to him.
Manzambi was decisive on the ball when it mattered, firing a ball at goal which just about made its way past keeper Maxime Crepeau to make it 2-0.
Canada who have enjoyed good performances thus far, particularly last week with their 6-0 thrashing of Qatar, joined the party soon after, as forward Promise David capitalised on a stunning assist from Nathan Saliba in the 76th.
Saliba beautifully controlled a ball lobbed over Swiss defences and pushed it over to David who neatly slotted the ball into the net.
Switzerland held out to maintain its slim lead over Canada, with it ending their group stage at seven points, Canada and Bosnia are tied at four points each, with Canada clinching the second place ranking on goal differential.
Bosnia v Qatar
The second match of Group B saw Qatar and Bosnia, vying to keep their World Cup hopes alive, as they looked to secure a final three points to push their tallies to four and maybe make it into the next round as one of the third place hopefuls.
Bosnia was able to get passed Qatar convincingly with a 3-1 performance and looked the dominant side consistently.
Midfielder Kerim Alajbegović opened the scoring in the 29th minute of the clash. A solo effort saw him dribble from the far left side to the far right before striking from well outside the box to find the top right corner and beat Qatari keeper Mahmud Abunada.
An own goal by Qatari defender Sultan Al-Brake just minutes later threatened to end the run of the last hosts of the World Cup in 2022 early.
But a defiant Qatar struck back in the 42nd minute after striker Hassan Al-Haydos converted an easy tap in, capitalising on a Bosnian defensive error which saw a dangerous pass go out of possession inside their own box and into the feet of forward Edmilson Junior.
The match resumed after the halftime break albeit at a much slower tempo as Bosnia looked to hold onto its one goal lead. They were however able to add one more for security after 21-year-old Ermin Mahmić drove a chaotic ball in Qatar’s box into the net, securing what could be a renewed lifeline for the nation.
Morocco v Haiti
Soufiane Rahimi and Gessime Yassine came off the bench to help Morocco rally for a 4-2 victory over Haiti on Wednesday and erase the Caribbean nation’s hopes of a first ever point at the World Cup.
Morocco, which became the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinals four years ago in Qatar, twice came from behind against a team playing on football’s biggest stage for the first time in 52 years.
Rahimi’s deflected shot in the 78th minute put Morocco ahead 3-2 and Yassine killed off any chance of an upset with a goal in the 89th.
Morocco advanced to the round of 32 in second place behind Brazil in Group C and will next play the runner up in Group F — Netherlands, Japan or Sweden — in Monterrey.
“At times we lacked humility and paid the price for it,” Morocco midfielder Bilal El Khannouss said. “We weren’t fully committed in the duels, we gave them confidence and allowed them to grow into the game and score twice. At halftime, the coach told us we needed to be more aggressive, win the second balls and bring greater intensity to our attacking play.”
Morocco, which won the most recent Africa Cup of Nations, has ambitions to go deep again after making history at the last World Cup. But the team was given a scare by Haiti, which took a surprise lead in the 10th minute with a goal that was more than five decades in the making.
PSG star Achraf Hakimi levelled the score in the 39th minute for his side. It was only three minutes later when Morocco conceded again to give Haiti a 2-1 lead. The North African nation was however quick to respond, scoring in the first minute of the first half’s stoppage time to once again level the game going into the halftime break.
Morocco now officially goes through to the knockout stages after a seven point performance which sees them level with Brazil – who they drew with on matchday one – on points, but fall into the second place slot on goal difference.
Brazil v Scotland
Brazil played its final group stage match in the early hours of Thursday, facing off against Scotland for a chance to maintain its top position in Group C after an opening draw with Morocco followed by a win over Haiti.
Real Madrid superstar forward Vinicius Jr opened the scoring for Brazil, capitalising on heavy pressing from teammate Rayan who forced a defensive error which saw a dangerous loose ball go inside Scotland’s box. A stunning dribble around keeper Angus Gunn saw the Brazilian facing off with an empty net, slotting the ball in to give his side a 1-0 lead in the 7th minute.
It was all Vinicius in the first half after his own pressing saw him intercept a ball minutes later on the edge of the box before elegantly guiding it to the far bottom left corner past the keeper. Unfortunately for him however, the referee disallowed the goal referring to VAR for an offence committed in the leadup to the goal.
Vini Jr however remained composed and managed to get on the end of a cross late into the first half stoppage time, where he snagged a header to drive his personal goal tally to four in the tournament so far, matching club teammate Kylian Mbappe and superstar Manchester City forward Erling Haaland, and only trailing Messi by one goal in the golden boot race.
The second half was a continuation of Brazil’s dominance as they kept pushing high into Scotland’s defensive third and constantly trying to breakthrough searching for more goals to stay atop of Group C on goal difference.
Their efforts did not take long to materialise, as Manchester United Matheus Cunha found the back of the net on the one hour mark, who was fed an easy ball to tap in inside the box after a brilliant effort by Brusno Guimarães.
Fan favourite Neymar Junior also made his World Cup debut in 2026, after earlier doubts the Brazilian superstar would not participate following a string of bad performances and injury-laden years saw him not make the initial World Cup squad list.
Neymar checked in during the 76th minute against Scotland on Wednesday, with the team leading 3-0 and well on its way to clinching a spot in the knockout stage that starts next week.
His appearance wasn’t a surprise: Brazil said earlier this week that he would be available, clearing the way for the forward to make his debut after missing the first two matches because of a right calf injury.
It was however his first appearance for his national side since 2023.
“I’m very happy to be wearing the national team jersey again after three years,” he told Brazilian media, following an emotional embrace with his family before he left the field. “I feel fine physically. Obviously, it was tough being sidelined for all those days.”
He did not start, and it seemed like that was the plan Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti had all along when he raised the possibility earlier this week that Neymar could play as a substitute.
“A very important moment for all of us,” Vinícius Júnior, who scored two goals for Brazil, said in Portuguese.
“Our idol is back, a guy who always fought hard and did everything to be here, returning after a spell out with injury. I hope he can keep evolving and keep improving, helping us throughout the competition. That’s what matters most.”
South Africa v South Korea
South Africa advanced to the knockout phase of the World Cup for the first time with a 1-0 victory over South Korea on Thursday morning, in the first fixture of Group A, who were the last to play in the Wednesday-Thursday matchups.
Thapelo Maseko scored in the 63rd minute off a precise cross from Tshepang Moremi and South Africa finished in second place in Group A behind Mexico, which won all three of its group-stage games.
South Africa will take on Canada, the second-place finisher in Group B, in a knockout game Sunday at Inglewood, California.
Maseko had five total shots in the match and leads South Africa with eight shots in the tournament.
When Maseko was asked what he would tell his younger self about his accomplishment, the Mamelodi Sundowns forward said: “The one thing I would say is ‘keep dreaming.’”
South Korea however will now wait until the group stages are complete to see if their three point group campaign was enough to secure them a spot as one of the top eight third place finishers.
Mexico v Czechia
Mateo Chávez and Julián Quiñones scored in a six-minute span early in the second half, and Mexico beat the Czech Republic 3-0 on Wednesday to complete wins in all three of its World Cup group-stage matches for the first time.
The 22-year-old Chávez, in his first World Cup, opened the scoring in the 55th minute and Quiñones scored his second goal of the tournament in the 61st. Alvaro Fidalgo added a goal in stoppage time.
“It was something very beautiful, and I’ll take it with me to the grave,” Chávez said of his goal. “I imagined it many times; I dreamed of this.”
Mexico’s previous best group-stage performance was two wins and one draw, done in 1986 and 2002 and both featuring Javier Aguirre, the first as a midfielder and the second as El Tri’s coach. Aguirre is back as coach this year, his third stint leading the national team.
After topping Group A, Mexico will play again at Estadio Azteca on Tuesday in a round-of-32 match against an opponent to be determined.
“Now comes the knockout stage; statistics and data don’t matter. We’re achieving things, but what lies ahead is what counts,” said Mexico’s coach Javier Aguirre. “Neither the players nor I dwell on what we’ve just done; we’re thinking about what’s next.”
Mexico is undefeated at nine World Cup matches at the massive stadium, which was packed with 80,824 fans on Wednesday.
El Tri has only two losses at Azteca, most recently in World Cup qualifying against Honduras on 6 September, 2013.
