The group stage of the 2026 World Cup is nearing its end. Saturday brings the final matches of group play with Groups J, K and L finishing and completing the knockout stage bracket.
England is still trying to win its group while Colombia and Portugal face off with first place in Group K on the line. Plus, Argentina is back in action, but with nothing to play for.
Here’s a look at what is at stake for each of the 12 teams playing on Saturday. If you’re placing bets or in a pick ’em pool, this is your guide on how the teams are likely to play given the scenarios they face. Advancement percentages are from The Athletic’s World Cup predictor.
Group L
Panama-England
Standings: England (4 points, 1st), Panama (0 points, 4th)
Time: 5 p.m. ET
TV: Fox (English), Telemundo (Spanish)
Venue: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
England scenarios: Could win group with a win or draw, has already advanced
Panama scenarios: Has already been eliminated
England didn’t do much of anything in a 0-0 draw with Ghana last time out, but that can be forgiven and forgotten if the Three Lions take care of business against Panama and win the group.
Panama has nothing to play for other than pride, but Haiti and Turkey showed that pride alone can be enough to deliver a good performance. Los Canaleros have lost all five World Cup games in the team’s history, just like Haiti before its match with Morocco. Haiti led twice in an entertaining 4-2 loss.
England is the biggest favorite of the day, and that makes sense, but don’t expect Panama to just lie down. A result against England would be one of the best achievements in the national team’s history.
Croatia-Ghana
Standings: Ghana (4 points, 2nd), Croatia (3 points, 3rd)
Time: 5 p.m. ET
TV: FS1 (English), Universo (Spanish)
Venue: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
Ghana scenarios: Could win group with a better result than England, has already advanced
Croatia scenarios: Advances with a win or draw, unlikely to advance with a loss (26%)
Like Australia-Paraguay on Thursday (a dull 0-0 draw), this game could be lifeless if both teams are happy with a draw. The difference is that Ghana, unlike Paraguay and Australia, enters its final group match with four points already, has already clinched a spot in the next round and therefore has less to lose. The Black Stars could still win the group.
Second place seems to be only a small difference from third place. While a third-place finisher will take on a group winner, the Group L runner-up takes on whichever team finishes second in Group K between Colombia and Portugal. Facing one of those teams hardly feels like a reward.
Croatia is favored, but Ghana could play similarly to how it did against England to come out of that with a 0-0 draw.
Group K
Colombia-Portugal
Standings: Colombia (6 points, 1st), Portugal (4 points, 2nd)
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: Fox (English), Telemundo (Spanish)
Venue: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Fla.
Colombia scenarios: Wins group with a win or draw, has already advanced
Portugal scenarios: Wins group with a win, has already advanced
There are three hosts at this tournament, but some countries have traveled so well that it feels like there are more. Argentina games have been like watching a Beatles concert, where Lionel Messi is all four members of the band at the same time. Ecuador had a huge crowd against Germany. Colombia has played both of its matches in front of seas of yellow in Mexico. Now, Los Cafeteros get to play just outside Miami, a city that is home to a significant Colombian population.
This Colombia home game of sorts is not a do-or-die for either team, but Portugal must win to win the group. The Portuguese are favored to do so.
DR Congo-Uzbekistan
Standings: DR Congo (1 point, 3rd), Uzbekistan (0 points, 4th)
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: FS1 (English), Universo (Spanish)
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
DR Congo scenarios: Advances with a win, eliminated with a draw or loss
Uzbekistan scenarios: Unlikely to advance even with a win (1%), eliminated with a draw or loss
DR Congo enters this match as the favorite and would advance with a win, which would be one of the better stories of the tournament.
The Leopards’ surprise draw against Portugal in the opening match showed the quality this team has. They outshot their heavily-favored European foes. However, Colombia racked up 20 shots in a 1-0 victory to put DR Congo in this must-win situation.
Uzbekistan has given up eight goals in two matches, but DR Congo is not as fearsome a team as Portugal or Colombia. Thanks to a minus-7 goal differential, the Asian debutantes will have to seriously run up the score to rise the rankings of third-place group finishers and could even be eliminated before kickoff.
Group J
Jordan-Argentina
Standings: Argentina (6 points, 1st), Jordan (0 points, 4th)
Time: 10 p.m. ET
TV: Fox (English), Telemundo (Spanish)
Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Argentina scenarios: Has already clinched the group
Jordan scenarios: Has already been eliminated
Just like the United States-Turkey game on Thursday, this game doesn’t change anything for either team. The United States rotated most of its lineup and wasn’t the only team to do so for the final group match. Argentina has the option to do the same.
With 39-year-old Messi leading the Golden Boot race, manager Lionel Scaloni could be tempted to play his star striker, but he has already said he will not start. Even with the chance that this could be an Argentina B-team, La Albiceleste are still huge favorites to win.
Algeria-Austria
Standings: Austria (3 points, 2nd), Algeria (3 points, 3rd)
Time: 10 p.m. ET
TV: FS1 (English), Universo (Spanish)
Venue: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
Austria scenarios: Advances with a win or draw, could advance with a loss (38%)
Algeria scenarios: Advances with a win or draw, extremely unlikely to advance with a loss (1%)
It’s time for a history lesson. In 1982, West Germany and Austria played in the last match of Group 2. With West Germany leading 1-0 through an early goal, neither team did much of anything for most of the second half. That 1-0 win meant both teams advanced ahead of Algeria on goal differential. One of the nicknames for that game is the “Disgrace of Gijón,” named for the city in Spain in which it was played.
That match was a large reason why group play has finished with simultaneous kickoffs in every World Cup since.
Fast forward to 2026, where Austria, one of the beneficiaries, and Algeria, the victims from 1982, are playing one another in a similar situation.
Group J is the last of the 12 groups to conclude, which means these teams will have the benefit of knowing exactly what they need to advance. It just so happens that they both advance with a draw.
Will history repeat itself with Algeria this time being on the better end, or will these teams play this to win? A draw is priced at +115. The only time a draw is priced that short is a circumstance like this.
Best bets
Dan Santaromita: Algeria-Austria draw, +120 (FanDuel)
Just like Paraguay-Australia was a boring draw that got both teams through, I am going with the same idea here. This match is in the last group to kick off, which means these teams will know exactly what they need to advance, and for both, that’s a draw. The odds of a draw have been plummeting as the standings for third-place teams have become clearer.
Mike Hume: Algeria-Austria draw, +120 (FanDuel)
Co-sign with Dan about the likely Algeria-Austria draw. Given the scenarios for advancing, the real question is whether either side will actually kick the ball or just leave it in the center of the pitch for 90 minutes.
Vik Chokshi: DR Congo moneyline and England -1.5 parlay, +165 (DraftKings)
England needs this one to win the group, so I see them trying to make a statement after a disappointing Game 2 draw against Ghana. I can see the Three Lions winning this one in the 2-0, 3-1 range.
Uzbekistan’s defense is a leaky faucet, as they have already conceded 8 goals so far in this tournament, 3 to Colombia and 5 to Portugal. With DR Congo looking to lock up advancement, look for them to come out aggressively in this match. They should be able to score a few in this one against this weak defense.
Picks records
| Units | Record | |
|---|---|---|
| Dan | 3.23 | 9-6 |
| Mike | 2.22 | 6-9 |
| Vik | -1.44 | 9-9 |
| Dean | -3.64 | 3-7 |
