The 2026 World Cup group stage reaches its dramatic conclusion Saturday as six nations discover their fates in Groups J, K and L. Lionel Messi and the defending champion Argentina face Jordan in Dallas. Messi sits atop the tournament’s scoring chart at five goals. England takes on Panama in New York/New Jersey while Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal heads to Miami to meet a Colombia side that has been one of the tournament’s most impressive teams. All six matches are simulcast in pairs within each group, and every game airs on FOX or FS1 and streams live on FOX One.
England will be looking to officially punch its ticket to the knockout stage when it faces Panama on Saturday at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford in Group L. Entering with four points from its first two games, the Three Lions can win the group with a victory here, combined with Ghana failing to defeat Croatia. If Ghana also wins, the group will be decided by goal differential (England is currently at +2 while Ghana is at +1).
For Panama, Thomas Christiansens side have already been eliminated from the knockout stage and will exit the tournament after this game. Panama has played very hard in its first two games, starting with a 1-0 loss to Ghana where it conceded a very late goal. In its second game against Croatia, Panama was surprisingly on the front foot for long stretches but were undone by an Ante Budimir goal in the 54th minute.
Automatic qualification to the round of 32 is on the line when Croatia takes on Ghana at Philadelphia Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The winner of this game will be guaranteed of at least second place, while Ghana will finish second in the event of a draw.
Ghana arrives at this game on the heels of a hard-fought 0-0 draw with England on Tuesday. The Black Stars frustrated the Three Lions over the full 90 minutes with a compact defense and a dangerous counterattack that prevented England from sending more players into the attack.
In one of the most anticipated group stage finales, Portugal and Colombia clash on Saturday night at Miami Stadium in a game that will decide Group K. Colombia has already qualified for the round of 32 but can win the group with just a draw. Portugal, meanwhile, is essentially through to the knockout stages given its strong goal differential following the 5-0 win over Uzbekistan. But a point mathematically clinches a knockout appearance while a win gives Roberto Martinezs team the group title.
Both DR Congo and Uzbekistan will be looking for their first ever World Cup victories when the two teams meet at Atlanta Stadium on Saturday. Neither team is mathematically eliminated from qualifying for the round of 32, and the only path forward for both is to win this game and possibly get help.
DR Congo has the best chance. Sitting at one point from its draw with Portugal and a -1-goal differential, DR Congo would move to four points with a win. The chances of finishing second are very slim, as the Leopards would also need Portugal to lose in a way that negates its six-goal advantage in the goal differential tiebreak. DR Congo still likely controls its own fate. A win would bring it to four points, which is likely enough to finish as one of the eight best third-place teams.
Lionel Messi celebrated his 39th birthday on Wednesday while playing some of the best soccer of his career. If anyone was hoping that this World Cup would be where the Argentine legend finally shows signs of slowing down, they are surely extremely disappointing.
Argentina has six points from its first two games and is o
