There are only eight teams left in the World Cup and each is only two wins a way from a place in the final after a month of extraordinary action at sport’s biggest event.
All three co-hosts have now departed but defending champions Argentina are still going after a stunning comeback win in the last 16, while Erling Haaland has reached global superstar status by leading Norway into the quarter-finals.
Haaland will face Harry Kane’s England in Miami looking to reach a semifinal and catch Messi in the race for the golden boot. The Argentina forward, with eight goals, leads by one from Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, whose France side plays Morocco.
This is what the full quarterfinal bracket looks like.
Here we asked our writers to make their predictions, including the best games and the winners of the four ties as well as their picks of the best players of the round of 16, the stars people aren’t saying enough about and more.
This is what they said.
The most impressive team performance in the round of 16 was…
Lukas Weese: England. To go into the raucous cauldron known as the Azteca and beat Mexico with only 10 players for the last 30 minutes was remarkable.
Phil Hay: A tough call, because England and Norway were impressive but I thought Belgium reacting to the mess surrounding Folarin Balogun by taking the USMNT to the cleaners eclipsed everything else. It wasn’t a statement in terms of their chances of winning the World Cup, but it was definitely two fingers to what went on in the preceding 48 hours.
Sam Lee: I think it has to be Norway knocking out Brazil. It was final confirmation that they know what they are doing and they are far from just an ordinary, well organised outfit with Erling Haaland up front. It was a shame their high press only lasted three minutes but considering they have not been at a World Cup for 28 years they looked very comfortable playing Brazil in a knock-out round. Credit to Morocco for a very professional job on Canada, and it was good to see Belgium turn up.
Jack Pitt-Brooke: England. They played three games in one in Mexico City. They were patient and organised at the start, getting a foothold in the game. They were brutally efficient on the counter-attack. And then they defended deep with a back five, heading endless crosses away, to see out the win. It was not perfect, but they showed so many new elements to their game at the Azteca.
Carl Anka: Belgium dismantling of USMNT has cleaned up a lot of worms that were first thrown across the room by FIFA’s decision to lift Forlarin Balogun’s red card suspension. Belgium’s performance felt like karmic retribution.
Simon Hughes: Having watched Belgium struggle so desperately in their opening game, and having followed their limitations since, I did not believe they had it in them to recover as they did against Senegal in the round of 16 then overcome the various obstacles in their way against USMNT in Seattle. To utterly dismantle the host amid such unique circumstances should probably be regarded as the result of the tournament.
Lukaku and Belgium revelled in beating the U.S. (Photo: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Thom Harris: Shall I throw Morocco into the mix? Canada were admittedly poor as they ventured South, but a 3-0 win was a pretty ruthless way to dispatch one of the co-hosts. It now means that they have only lost once over 90 minutes in their last fifty games. Noussair Mazaroui was defensively solid once again, while it was great to see Azzedine Ounahi get off the mark with two expertly taken goals.
James Horncastle: Why not Belgium? Rudi Garcia’s decision to bench Romelu Lukaku, Kevin de Bruyne and Jeremy Doku was one of the guttiest of the tournament. How many people looked at the team sheet and thought: WTF? For Belgium to then execute his game plan and make the US look so ordinary in Seattle, their own backyard was mightily impressive in light of the build-up and expectation they’d go out.
Laurie Whitwell: Argentina made a play with their togetherness when on the brink of elimination against Egypt, but Norway are a proper team, working in unison and understanding their roles. Their performance — in handing Brazil their lowest possession in a World Cup match at 34 per cent — was a triumph.
Austin Green: Definitely Belgium. Overshadowed by the Folarin Balogun mess is how impressively Rudi Garcia shuffled his midfield and organized his tactics to perfectly counter how Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT wanted to play. I don’t think we will ever get a firm answer as to how much the Balogun issue affected both teams’ mentalities, but Belgium’s tactical brilliance convinced me it would not have ultimately changed the final outcome.
Haaland helped demolish Brazil (Photo: Al Bello/Getty Images)
Greg O’Keeffe: England had to dig deep at the Azteca, then dig some more to find the well of resilience they used to pull off one of their most memorable results. Given all the set-backs which beset them, to silence that iconic stadium and make it into the next round was an achievement which narrowly outshone Norway’s slick progress.
Felipe Cardenas: From a pure heart and conviction perspective, it was England. But Belgium’s sharpness and tactical dominance over the U.S. was so good. It was as complete a performance that I have seen at this World Cup.
Stu James: I’m torn between Belgium, England and Norway, which is a measure of my indecisiveness but also the fact that you can make a strong case for each. Belgium, thriving on the injustice of the Folarin Balogun farce, didn’t just beat the USMNT; they hammered them. For England to win in the Azteca, especially after playing with 10 men for so long, was hugely impressive too. But I’m going to say Norway. Yes, it’s not the Brazil of old but it is still Brazil. There was a moment near the end when Norway were 2-0 up and playing keep-ball. Remarkable.
Laura Williamson: England. It was surreal getting up in the middle of the night to watch it live but my goodness it was worth it.
The most impressive individual performance was…
Weese: Erling Haaland. His ability to appear invisible, only to then unleash an impeccable header and powerful boot is astonishing.
Hay: Jude Bellingham, for England in Mexico. Erling Haaland came very close with his brace against Brazil but Bellingham’s goals and graft under insane pressure in the Azteca was the international performance of his life to date.
Pitt-Brooke: I think it has to be Haaland. He has been one of the stories of the World Cup. Seeing him so emotionally invested in this team and in this tournament has been thrilling, and a reminder of how powerful international football is. Those two goals against Brazil were remarkable goals, two of his very best, and there is no reason why he cannot do the same to England on Saturday.
Lee: It’s my job to watch Erling Haaland at Manchester City but as he celebrated his second goal against Brazil I found myself thinking, “I didn’t realise he was this good”. I’ve seen him play for City at least 150 times in the flesh, I know he doesn’t touch the ball much, I know why he doesn’t touch the ball much, I’ve seen him have off days and I know when he’s at it. I’ve seen him be made a captain by Pep Guardiola, I’ve seen him shoulder the burden for City’s goal scoring. In some ways I’ve seen him grow up, and yet maybe I didn’t realise that he has this capacity to be the main guy to such a massive extent.
Hughes: That’s easy. Haaland. He is ridiculous. I think Norway can win the World Cup because of him.
Anka: Morgan Rogers is a good, borderline, great player who had an excellent 2025-26 season for Aston Villa. There’s a reasonable argument to be made that his positional discipline from the 10 position better protects an England team that has an uneven front press. But when you watch Jude Bellingham score twice at the Azteca, and make a last gasp intervention on a possible Mexico goal in the first half…. Bellingham has a feel for the big moments in a way that is very rare to come across in an England shirt. I hope the country now understands how good he is, and how much he should be cherished.
Bellingham playing brilliantly at the Azteca (Photo: Charlotte Wilson/Getty Images)
Harris: Bellingham for me too. It’s exhausting just watching him, so to combine that relentless off-ball running and defensive commitment with two enormous goals is pretty heroic stuff. We are lucky to have him.
Horncastle: Charles de Ketelaere hasn’t got a mention. This is a disgrace. He was involved in three of Belgium’s four goals. Who pressed Matt Freese into his mistake? It was CDK. The Atalanta forward matches elegance with size. His versatility means he is often very difficult to pick up. He takes defenders places they don’t want to be. This was a complete performance.
Whitwell: Jude Bellingham. For timing his run and diving perfectly to head his opener, showing real desire to score his second, then saving a certain goal at the other end and covering all the ground at the Azteca.
Green: Jordan Pickford. There were lots of heroes for England in Estadio Azteca, but that entire match changes if not for Pickford’s two heroic saves in the first half. And his positioning was just about perfect when England sat back and absorbed Mexico’s pressure to close the match out.
O’Keeffe: It has to be Haaland doesn’t it? He almost made scoring that brace against Brazil look effortless. His timing and positioning seems better than ever. You get the feeling that he hasn’t even peaked in this tournament yet.
Cardenas: Hey Jude. What a player. The Mexican fans at the Estadio Azteca should’ve given Bellingham a standing ovation. He was that good.
De Ketelaere challenges Freese (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)
James: Apologies to the outstanding Jude Bellingham – and maybe Lionel Messi too, actually, because in that last 25 minutes against Egypt he took it up on himself to drag Argentina back into a game that looked beyond them – but Erling Haaland gets my vote on this one. A brilliant header to give Norway the lead – his movement before is exceptional: from 0-60 in the blink of any eye to get across Gabriel – and then the crucial second goal that kills the game. A superstar.
Williamson: I found myself thinking nights like Sunday at the Azteca were made for Jude Bellingham, so it has to be him. I love it when players force a game through their talent (I’m with you on Messi in that respect, Stu) but also by their sheer strength of mind and determination to change the narrative. That’s what Bellingham did against Mexico.
The best player no one is really talking about
Weese: The goalscorers capture the headlines but to me, the goalkeeper to watch for the remainder of the tournament is Orjan Nyland. He flew under the radar entering the knockout stage and delivered one of the best goalkeeping performances of this tournament against Brazil in the round of 16. He made his national team debut in 2013 and 13 years later, at 35, is one of the reasons Norway is on the precipice of the semi-final.
Hay: Anthony Gordon, which is to say that more should be made of his impact for England so far. It’s not that he isn’t being spoken about at all — clearly he is — but Thomas Tuchel has pinned his colours to Gordon in a big way, and he’s delivering.
Anka: Seb Stafford-Bloor isn’t in this round table, but if he was, he might tell you that 2025-26 has been Dayot Upamecano’s best ever season. The French centre-back previously had form for unfortunate blunders in high profile matches but looks to have cut that out of his game. He looks calm on the ball without being complacent and excellent when duelling for it. A good Upamecano game sees him go about his duties with minimal fuss.
Pitt-Brooke: Not many people would argue that Jordan Pickford is the best goalkeeper in the world. But is he one of the best tournament keepers in the world? International competition seems to bring the best out of him and he was brilliant in the Azteca, not just making saves but punching and kicking perfectly and wasting time at the end. This is his third World Cup as England No 1
Laporte and Spain have not conceded a goal at this World Cup (Photo: Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Lee: He went off the radar after leaving City for Saudi Arabia in 2023 and even now he is back with Athletic, but Aymeric Laporte has been a very calm presence at the back for Spain, and of course they have broken the World Cup record for not conceding a goal, which currently stands at 609 minutes and stretches back to Qatar. Laporte is only 31 and still looks strong and commanding, which is quite useful next to the 19-year-old Pau Cubarsi.
Hughes: Sander Berge. He never seems to give the ball away and he always seems to be in the right position. I can’t figure out why one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs haven’t moved for him.
Harris: A 31-year-old winger, looking likely to seal a move to the Turkish Super Lig, Leandro Trossard is not the most fashionable name on this list. But he has looked Belgium’s brightest attacking spark, having created more chances than any other player at the tournament so far.
Horncastle: Ferran Torres. I don’t know what he’s done to his hair, but candidate for most handsome player in the tournament.
Whitwell: Can I say Haissem Hassan? The 24-year-old won’t get spoken about because Egypt are now out but his two assists against Argentina were sublime skill. Ok, only one counted, but his control of the ball at speed, beating several players in the process, was a joy to watch.
Puerta has proven himself an elite player (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)
O’Keeffe: Torbjorn Heggem has been very consistent for Norway at the back. He had a decent season with Bologna in Serie A, and has quietly gone about helping his country become one of the surprise packages so far.
Green: It will get lost in Egypt’s horrific collapse, but their goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir was excellent all tournament and did all he could to keep the Pharaohs in that match for the first 78 minutes.
Cardenas: Gustavo Puerta. He has broken into the Colombian starting XI over Richard Rios and proven that he can play at the most elite international level. He added the pause that Colombia needed in possession and is skilled in reading the game and accelerating when needed.
James: I really like Norway’s Patrick Berg, who plays his club football for Bodo/Glimt. After a few cameos at this World Cup, Berg came into the starting lineup against Ivory Coast in the last-32 and has been excellent (he set up the winner for Haaland in that game). An intelligent footballer, he complements Sander Berge and Martin Odegaard so well in the Norway midfield.
Williamson: It’s not a very original answer but… anyone from Argentina who isn’t called Lionel Messi, perhaps? I realise his performance in the last 25 minutes against Egypt means we were all talking about Messi yet again but Lautaro Martinez coming off the bench to provide the cross for the winner, and then winding down the clock with tricks on the sideline was quite something.
The quarter-final I’m most looking forward to is…
Weese: Norway against England is tantalizing for sure but for the sake of being different I’ll go France and Morocco. As someone who adores the movie Casablanca, this is the matchup that should have broadcasters creating puns based on the film’s famous quotes. “Here’s looking at you, Kylian!” “We’ll always have the World Cup!”
Hay: By an absolute mile: Norway versus England.
Lee: Norway against England.
Hughes: France versus Morocco, a replay of the 2022 semi-final. Colonial history teaches you this is not just a sporting rivalry.
Anka: I find England games a nerve-shredding watch, rather than something to be enjoyed now, so let’s say France versus Morocco. The AFCON champions (you may place an asterisk here) defend brilliantly as a collective, and they have strength at full-back that has the potential to pin back France’s wingers. I’m looking forward to this one because I want to see if any team can dent the French/create a blueprint for their future defeat.
Harris: It would have been Colombia vs Argentina, a re-run of the 2024 Copa America final, but Switzerland’s penalty-shootout win means that it wasn’t to be. I’ll go France-Morocco, simply because of some of the technical ability from floaty No 10s — Michael Olise and Azzedine Ounahi in particular — on show
Horncastle: France vs Morocco. I don’t think France have faced a team this silky in midfield.
Mbappe and France beat Morocco on the way to the 2022 final (Photo: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Whitwell: England v Norway, mainly because I’ll be watching it at Diecast in Manchester, a 2,500-capacity venue. All about the crowd experience.
Green: I kept trying to find a way around repeating my colleagues, but come on, it has to be Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard’s Norway vs England.
O’Keeffe: Norway versus England has plenty of scope to be great. Mostly I want to see whether the English familiarity with Haaland has any bearing on how impactful he’s going to be.
Pitt-Brooke: Spain v Belgium. I still feel like Spain have crept slightly under the radar so far. Are they actually good? Is Lamine Yamal at his best? Are they at the same level as the other favourites? This game should help to tell us.
Can Kane’s England get past Norway? (Photo: CARL DE SOUZA / AFP via Getty Images)
James: Norway versus England. A fascinating tie that it would easy to bill as Haaland against England – but that would be a disserve to an excellent Norway team. That said, Erling will take some stopping.
Williamson: Take your pick! But in the spirit of a World Cup last eight in the United States, I’ll rank them: 1. France-Morocco. 2. England-Norway. 3. Spain-Belgium 4. Argentina-Switzerland
The winners of the four games will be…
Weese: France, Spain, England and Argentina.
Hay: France, Spain, England and Argentina
Lee: Morocco, Spain, England and Argentina.
Pitt-Brooke: France, Spain, England, Argentina
Hughes: France, Spain, England and Argentina
Anka: France, Belgium, Norway, Argentina.
Harris: France, Spain, England and Argentina
Horncastle: France, Spain, Norway and Argentina
Whitwell: France, Spain, England, and Argentina
Green: France, Spain, England, Argentina
O’Keeffe: France, Spain, England and Argentina.
Cardenas: France, Belgium, England, Argentina
James: France, Spain, England and Argentina
Williamson: France, Spain, England and Argentina
The moment that made me smile most so far is…
Weese: Harry Kane’s post-match interview on the world feed with no voice. Regardless of what happens to England at this tournament, that was one of the iconic moments of this World Cup.
Hay: Haaland’s second goal. That casual, lazy swing of the left boot, simply because he was on the edge of the box, nothing else was doing and he might as well have a go. What a machine.
Pitt-Brooke: Can I have two? The first is when Dan Burn, on as a substitute in the Azteca, did a diving header clearance with such power that it went past the half-way line. The second is from added time of the same game, when Burn put his head in the way of a Raul Jimenez overhead kick and, for the second time in 15 minutes, it sailed up to the other end of the pitch.
Burn heads clear (Photo: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)
Lee: It was a wry smile and it was provoked by the whole Trump/Infantino/Balogun situation. Absolutely shameless.
Anka: Javier Aguirre calling for Anthony Gordon, only to shout “F*** you!” at the England man and then putting on a cartoon smile. Mexico’s head coach is one of football’s charmers. Someone who reminds you of the Sacchi quote on how football is “the most important of the least important things in life“.
Harris: Lionel Scaloni reacting to Enzo Fernandez’s dramatic late winner. Hands over his mouth, his eyes wide in disbelief. He’s managed Argentina for almost eight years, won a World Cup and two Copa America titles, yet was still left dumbfounded at what his players had just managed to pull off.
Hughes: I actually feel incredibly sad about what happened to the USMNT because their fate against Belgium made me smile. I certainly wouldn’t have reacted that way last week.
Whitwell: Yassine Bounou scrambling the minds of the Netherlands’ penalty takers in Morocco’s shootout. For Justin Kulivert’s, Bounou fell over in stages while diving the wrong way, but the Dutch forward hit the post anyway. Bounou sprinted to his left as Quinten Timber approached the ball, but he hooked it so far the other direction it went wide. For the final punchline, Bounou shuffled right, stood upright, and palmed away Crysencio Summerville’s effort. It was the most unorthodox save and triggered a proper chuckle.
Green: Do heartbroken, bittersweet smiles count? The way Folarin Balogun has personally handled a situation he should have never been in, including approaching Rudi Garcia after the game and drawing praise from the Belgium coach.
Balogun is consoled by Garcia in a touching moment (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)
O’Keeffe: Haaland almost whipping off his shirt to celebrate one of his goal against Brazil, but remembering halfway through that he’d get booked so awkwardly stopping. The little finger wag to himself was comic.
Cardenas: I really enjoyed watching videos of England fans celebrating their win over Mexico alongside the home fans in Mexico City. That is what a World Cup should look like.
James: A few to choose from here. Haaland’s low-key reaction to his second goal against Brazil made me smile. And, much like Carl, I enjoyed that clip of the Mexico coach Javier Aguirre shouting “Gordon, F*** you!” before laughing; Gordon’s reaction was great too. But Harry Kane’s post-match interview takes it. A fitting end to a crazy game.
Williamson: Harry Kane’s post-match interview. Just joyful. And it ticked us past the point which usually comes around this stage of the tournament: when my friends who aren’t interested in football become really invested in England.
And are we still backing France to win it all?
Weese: Yes. They were my pre-tournament pick and I’m not deviating away from that. Anything can happen in football but an opponent is going to have to play a match for the ages to beat Les Bleus.
Hay: Hmm. Yes, but as I said in the round of 16 round table, if Spain can nibble at Kounde down France’s right, get Rodri to do a job on Olise and hog the ball to stop France playing so freely, they could do it. It’s between those two, I feel.
Lee: You may have noticed that I’ve put Morocco to go through above. I do not fully believe that but I do believe there is a world where they win on penalties. They would need to frustrate France like Paraguay did, which I believe they could do on their best day, and they have a good record at penalties. Gun to my head, I think France win the World Cup, but for some strange reason I think Morocco have a better chance of beating them than Spain or even Argentina.
Pitt-Brooke: Their hardest game will be Spain in the Dallas semi. I think that one is almost impossible to call, and I do worry about the French midfield and whether they will be able to win the ball back quickly enough. We haven’t seen France against a truly tactically sophisticated opposition. The winner of that game will win the whole thing.
Hughes: I am edging closer to Spain because of how well they have done defensively. To reach the quarter finals without conceding a goal is incredible. I’d back them to keep another clean sheet against Belgium.
Yamal overcame Ronaldo, can his Spain side deny France? (Photo: RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP via Getty Images)
Anka: Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams’ lack of match fitness has left Spain looking a little bland when going forward. Argentina play narrow to get the best out of Messi, but might leave them shorthanded against Barcola, Dembele and others. England’s centre-backs have been so unconvincing, I predict a Haaland upset.
It’d take something remarkable to stop the French. I don’t think it will happen, but I want to see teams try!
Harris: I think Spain are their biggest threat, but the fact that France have got their tricky low-block games out of the way is only going to give Mbappe, Olise and Dembele more space to work with. Obviously Morocco, then potentially Spain will cause them problems, but you just can’t write off Mbappe even if he is seeing less of the ball.
Whitwell: Yes, they just seem to have the answers whatever the question. In the most creative way too. Spain will be a challenge, especially with their defensive record, but I’d back the French to have enough.
Green: I waffled between Spain and France before the tournament, I’ve waffled during the group stage, and I’m still waffling. I’ll take the cowardly route and say whoever wins that semifinal wins the whole thing.
O’Keeffe: We haven’t really seen anything to disabuse us of this. Yes. Spain may yet go up a gear but you get the feeling France could too. And Kylian Mbappe’s classy retort to that vile Paraguayan politician will make it all the sweeter when he’s on top of the world in New Jersey.
Cardenas: Until they show some clear weakness, France remain the heavy favorites to win this tournament.
James: Yes. I was at the Spain-Portugal game on Monday in Dallas, when both teams lacked a cutting edge, and I couldn’t help but think about France and how their attacking options are on another level. They also showed against Paraguay that they can handle a scrap.
Williamson: Yes, but I thought Morocco would do something at this tournament and I haven’t seen anything to change my mind! That one will be a cracker.