World Cup 2026 Round of 16: Spain Favourite Against Portugal in Dallas

The World Cup 2026 round of 16 resumes Monday with the Iberian derby between Portugal and Spain at Dallas Stadium, where the day’s bracket, schedule and Opta predictions have Spain installed as heavy favourites. Three hours later, USA meet Belgium in Seattle in a tie overshadowed by FIFA’s decision to clear Folarin Balogun after a call from US President Donald Trump.

Sunday had already reshaped the bracket. England edged Mexico 3-2 at the Azteca in a 10-man classic, and Norway knocked Brazil out 2-1 to end Neymar’s international career. The Royal Belgian Football Association, the overlooked party in Monday’s doubleheader, said it was “astonished” by FIFA’s suspension of Balogun’s automatic one-match ban and is investigating all potential options to challenge the ruling. Portugal meet Spain in Dallas at 19:00 GMT, and USA face Belgium at Seattle Stadium at 00:00 GMT going into Tuesday.

Spain Favourite as Iberian Derby Resumes in Dallas

Spain arrive unbeaten in 34 matches, one shy of equalling their longest-ever run of 35 set between February 2007 and June 2009. They have taken seven points from their opening three matches, including a 3-0 win over Austria in the round of 32, and now meet Portugal in the Iberian derby. The prize on Monday is a quarterfinal in Los Angeles on July 10 against the winner of USA-Belgium.

Opta’s supercomputer gives Spain a 49.2 percent likelihood of winning in regulation time, with Portugal at 25.6 percent and the remaining 25.2 percent on extra time or penalties across 25,000 pre-match simulations. The matchup pits 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, who has three goals in this World Cup and whose sister has said he will retire from national duty at the tournament’s end, against 18-year-old Lamine Yamal, who scored once in Spain’s group stage and was man of the match against Austria. Across five previous major tournament meetings, Portugal and Spain have each won once with three draws, including a 3-3 group-stage thriller at the 2018 World Cup where Ronaldo scored a hat-trick. Portugal took the most recent meeting on penalties in last year’s UEFA Nations League final. Yamal was direct about what is at stake before kickoff.

I want to advance through the rounds and win with Spain. We aren’t afraid of any team. We are Spain. The World Cup starts now.

Mikel Oyarzabal leads Spain’s scoring chart at this World Cup with four goals. Portugal, second in Group J after draws with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Colombia and a controversial 2-1 comeback win over Croatia in the round of 32, are chasing their first World Cup title. Spain are hunting a second, 16 years after their first in South Africa in 2010. The predicted lineups and Yamal’s quote ahead of kickoff place Bruno Fernandes and Rafael Leão behind Ronaldo, with Nico Williams ruled out for Spain through a hamstring injury and no reported issues in the Portugal camp.

The Balogun Ruling and Belgium’s Lost Day

FIFA announced on Sunday that it had suspended Folarin Balogun’s automatic one-match ban, allowing the USA striker to face Belgium on Monday despite a red card in the round-of-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. The decision came after US President Donald Trump phoned FIFA president Gianni Infantino to request a review, according to The New York Times and Reuters. The Royal Belgian Football Association said it was “astonished” by the ruling and is investigating all potential options to protect fair-play principles. Balogun, who has scored three goals in the tournament, was sent off for a foul against a Bosnia and Herzegovina defender. The suspension has shifted the on-field tie to the centre of a political controversy that few expected on the eve of kickoff.

Thank you to Fifa for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice.

Trump wrote the line on Truth Social after the announcement. FIFA said in a statement that its disciplinary committee had suspended the automatic one-match ban and that Balogun would instead serve a one-year probationary period. The ruling has shifted attention away from the on-field tie to questions over FIFA’s disciplinary process and the influence of political figures in the sport’s governance.

Belgium, the overlooked party in Monday’s doubleheader, now face a USA side whose leading scorer is available after a red card that would normally rule him out. The Americans have lost each of their last six meetings with Belgium, conceding an average of 2.5 goals per match during that run, including a 5-2 friendly defeat on US soil in March. The Opta supercomputer’s 25,000 simulations map the tie across three main outcomes, summarised above. The match kicks off at Seattle Stadium at 00:00 GMT, going into Tuesday.

FIFA previously lifted a suspension on Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of this competition after a foul in a World Cup qualifier, a precedent now being tested again. The RBFA said it would “investigate all potential options” and defend fair play at this World Cup and at future editions. The FIFA ruling that cleared Balogun to face Belgium drew criticism from Belgium’s pre-match camp, with the association’s website statement calling the intervention unprecedented.

How England Dug In at the Azteca

Ten-man England weathered a Mexico storm at the Azteca Stadium to reach the World Cup quarterfinals for the third straight time, beating the cohosts 3-2 on Sunday thanks to a Jude Bellingham double and a Harry Kane penalty. The match was delayed an hour by a thunderstorm before kickoff, and England adjusted to an altitude of 7,300 feet (2,240 metres) without ever fully settling, conceding territory for long stretches in the second half. Mexico had not lost a World Cup match at the Azteca in 40 years, having gone unbeaten in 10 World Cup matches at the venue including three at this tournament. A crowd of 80,824 watched from a stadium that opened in 1966.

Bellingham headed England in front in the 36th minute from Bukayo Saka’s cross and scored again two minutes later from Kane’s pull-back. Kane added a sixth goal of the tournament from the penalty spot after Mexico goalkeeper Raúl Rangel brought down Anthony Gordon, and then conceded a penalty at the other end for a foul on Brian Gutiérrez, becoming the first player since at least 1966 to score and concede a penalty in the same World Cup match. Raúl Jiménez converted for Mexico to set up a frantic finish, but Jordan Pickford and England’s defenders held firm through 11 minutes of stoppage time.

“It was a crazy game,” Kane said. “We had to fight. We had to find something. I can’t really talk. Yeah, the occasion, the team, everything against us. We found a way.” Bellingham called it the best night of his England career. Midfielder Jordan Henderson was taken to hospital with a wrist injury after tumbling over an advertising board during the post-match celebrations. England face Norway on Saturday in Miami Gardens, Florida, for a place in the semifinals.

Haaland Calls It Norway’s Greatest Night

Erling Haaland struck twice in the second half at the Meadowlands to send Norway past Brazil 2-1 and into the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time, ending Neymar’s international career in the process. The 25-year-old opened the scoring with a powerful header after beating Gabriel Magalhães and added a second with a low finish past Alisson Becker to put Norway 2-0 up. Bruno Guimarães missed a first-half penalty for Brazil that was saved, leaving the Seleção chasing the game from the break. Following the final whistle, Haaland led Norway’s now-famous Viking Row celebration that has gone viral throughout the tournament. Tens of thousands took to the streets of Oslo in the early hours to celebrate, with an impromptu gathering at the royal palace greeted by Crown Prince Haakon wearing a Norway scarf.

Neymar pulled one back deep in stoppage time from the spot, but it proved only a consolation as Norway held on. “I tried,” Neymar said. “It started here, at MetLife Stadium, and I finished here. It is now over.” Solbakken and Haaland’s reaction to the Brazil upset rounded off the night, with Norway coach Ståle Solbakken calling it “the greatest night in Norwegian football history” and Haaland adding: “All of Norway has to enjoy themselves. It’s one of the sickest days ever in Norwegian history.” The result ended Brazil’s campaign under Carlo Ancelotti and left Neymar as Brazil’s all-time leading men’s scorer with 80 goals in 129 international appearances since his debut on August 10, 2010, denying the Seleção a record sixth World Cup title.

Tuesday’s Slate and the Quarterfinal Bracket

Two more round-of-16 ties complete the opening knockout slate on Tuesday, while the Royal Belgian Football Association has said it will continue investigating options over the Balogun ruling after Monday’s match. Argentina face Egypt at Atlanta Stadium at 16:00 GMT, and Switzerland meet Colombia at BC Place in Vancouver at 20:00 GMT.

• Morocco vs France
• Norway vs England (Saturday, Miami Gardens, Florida)
• Winner of Portugal-Spain vs Winner of USA-Belgium (July 10, Los Angeles)
• Winner of Argentina-Egypt vs Winner of Switzerland-Colombia

Norway’s 2-1 victory over Brazil on Sunday locked in a quarterfinal against England on Saturday in Miami Gardens, Florida. The winner of Monday’s Portugal-Spain tie will face the winner of USA-Belgium in Los Angeles on July 10. Two further ties, Argentina-Egypt and Switzerland-Colombia, will be added after Tuesday’s results. Morocco-France is the only quarterfinal set outside Sunday’s matches.

The knockout stage runs through July 19, with the final set for MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The round of 16’s opening 36 hours have delivered two upsets, a politically charged red-card reversal, and a Brazilian legend’s farewell, all before kickoff in Dallas. Two more heavyweights, Argentina and Switzerland, will close out the opening knockout slate on Tuesday.