World Cup 2026
3 host countries. 48 teams. This World Cup was historic even before it began, as it's the biggest one to date.Bigger = better? A new era
The opening match couldn't have been drawn any better, as it was a parallel to 2010. Exactly 16 years to the day later Mexico and South Africa met again, with the former being co-hosts this time. There was also the same amount of goals again, just distributed differently. But the match went down in history for different reasons: For the first time, three red cards were handed out, two of those for South Africa who had to play nine against eleven at some point. The 2-0 victory of Mexico who had a perfect start was almost irrelevant.
The other match of that group wasn't less notable. The first goal had resulted from a throw-in which you don’t see often. But the joy of returnees Czechia was short-lived. South Korea turned it around and secured three points. The inconvenient kick-off times due to time difference prove to be quite a challenge as it didn't allow following majority of the matches.
Next up was another host, Canada. But they were off to a bad start when Bosnia and Herzegovina, another returnee, took the lead. They had already scored when we briefly tuned in. In the second half, which we didn't watch anymore, they equalized and the match ended in a draw.
The third host, USA, did it better. They first took the lead with an own goal, though. After a player celebrated too early and his goal was disallowed, he scored a brace. Paraguay pulled one back, but USA scored another for the final result.
The second match in the Canada-group was the first one we watched completely – and was the first disappointment already. Despite my Swiss beau not being called up, which had put a dent in my mood, I crossed my fingers for them, and they were also the clear favourite. They only managed to take the lead through a controversial penalty. They couldn't make use of their many chances though. It's a curse when I'm biased for a team and it once again prove accurate. They lost the win they thought they had assured in stoppage time through an equalizer. They might wish it had been shorter by two minutes. My sister celebrating the goal annoyed me – it could be costly! Even more annoyingly, it had been counted as an own goal after the match. And they left my beau at home for that! At least due to the draw in the other match all teams were on the same level pointswise and everything was still open. But winning had been a must in this match as Qatar had been considered the weakest opponent.
In the next match, the surprise team of the last tournament met the record champions. Morocco thought well against Brazil and so it became the third draw in just the sixth match.
Scotland had a good comeback to the World Cup, taking first place of the group with a narrow win against Haiti. But the tough matchups were still to come.
A consolation for Switzerland: They weren't the only disappointment on that day. Türkiye had imagined their comeback to go differently! They wasted even more chances than Switzerland and couldn't even convert one. Instead they had to take two goals by Australia. Prior, they had been bragging. With this, Türkiye still hadn't won a single opening match.
Newcomer Curaçao showed traces of Brazil... in the semi final 2014. The opponent both times? Germany! And the result was the same in both matches, with the difference that Curaçao didn't get eliminated immediately. They celebrated their first goal like it was a win, reminiscent of Panama in 2018. At least they were positive about it. Due to a miscommunication, we missed the first half, but I had known the result anyway. The funniest moment of the match came when a Curaçaon player shot the goal into the net and a spectator completely went nuts despite the goal not counting. I could even accept losing one of the next two matches. I just didn't want to meet France in the round of 16.
The draws continued in the next match which wasn't shown on free tv. But it had twice as many goals as the other draws. I was definitely happy that Japan equalized against the Netherlands.
Our group opponents avoided a draw at the very last minute. Sweden surprisingly heavily defeated Tunisia.
In the 13th match of the tournament we witnessed the biggest embarrassment so far. A one-sided goalfest was expected. But Spain couldn't score a single goal against debutants Cape Verde. Pride comes before the fall? Even their World Cup winning team would've scored against them and they didn't score more than two per match. While we're at it... The new number 7 is an insult against the one from said team. Cape Verde celebrated the draw like a win.
European teams didn't have a good start to the tournament, and Belgium was no exception. They prevented losing only through a forced own goal. It was the next draw with two goals, the most popular result so far.
And it would also occur in the next match. South and Central American teams didn't do too well either as none of them had won yet. Saudi Arabia once again turned into a scare for South Americans and drew Uruguay, unlike eight years before. For the fifth time, the result was 1-1.
And the last match of the day also ended in a draw. Did no one want to win?
On the sixth day, we got another reboot of an opening match, this time 2002. France got the revenge against Senegal and was only the fourth team from Europe who won their match. I would've liked to watch it, but it wasn't shown on free tv.
I just couldn't stand seeing the MOAT (my own variation of GOAT, abbreviation for Most overrated (of) all time) anymore. He should've just retired when he said he would. He should've received a red card, but apparently there are no rules for him. It's like Algeria didn't even try and just gave up. It almost smelled like riggery.
Europe turned things around. The next two teams were unbeaten as well. Iraq meanwhile became the first Asian team to lose their match, followed by Jordan. The streak was over.
1-1 is the new 0-0
After a whole day without draws they continued the next – and it was another surprise. DR Congo drew Portugal with the most popular result of the tournament. The latter had paid tribute to a deceased teammate before the match. There was a funny moment when a spectator celebrated an apparent goal and the camera still pointed at him when he realized the goal didn't actually count. It would've been a nice one.
A draw wouldn't have surprised me in the next match. Instead, it became one of the matches with the most goals so far. It was the first time two European teams faced each other, therefore both couldn't win. England once again got revenge on Croatia for the semi final 2018.
As the only former Soviet representatives, we crossed our fingers for Uzbekistan. However, they lost their first match in the middle of the night 1-3, but at least they scored. Other countries couldn't say that about themselves. With this, the first round was over.
In the first match of round two we once again saw the most popular result. Both teams were on the verge of elimination.
Switzerland defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-1. After their disappointing start they could prove themselves. All goals were scored in the second half, precisely the last quarter. The Swiss stepped it up after usually decreasing in the second half – also thanks to the substitutions. Four points were a promising foundation. Unfortunately this match fell victim to pay tv and wasn't accessible freely.
They couldn't hold the lead for too long. Qatar fell apart against Canada and took a heavy 6-goal-defeat. It was the own goal that made the difference for Switzerland. The next match where they faced each other would decide the group winner. If Switzerland wanted to top the group, they needed to win. Even though second place would possibly result in an easier opponent so maybe it's not that bad. Qatar kept South Africa company – by receiving two red cards. For Canada it was the first win in a World Cup ever, which was overshadowed by a heavy injury.
Mexico became the first team to advance. Thanks to a rule change they couldn't be denied first place anymore. Stupid rule, it should always be goal difference first.
What I couldn't understand: Why USA was in Group D when they always played before Group C anyway? Why not Group C then? The soccer-duel was a battle of the teams who had won their first match. This time, there could only be one winner and it was the hosts, who followed Mexico to the knock outs.
It was the day of one side achieving a clean sheet. Curiosly, all goals were scored in the first half. First, Marocco got a narrow win, then Brazil took first place of the group.
Drama in Group D: After Haiti, Türkiye was the second team to be eliminated. They had been confident to go far. But a loss to Paraguay sealed their fate. Second place was decided between Australia and Paraguay. No one would've expected it.
5-1 was the result once again in a Sweden match, but not for them. The Netherlands secured the win in the European duel.
Orange jerseys also appeared in the next match. A draw was my preferred outcome. I didn't want to risk a loss just yet. The match wasn't without drama: The goal that seemingly took the lead didn't count. I had a hunch that it wouldn't stand since they didn't really celebrate. Then we were behind all of a sudden. The equalizer wasn't given either, but both decisions were conform to the rules. After the break, the Swiss tactic worked on us: Two substitutions made the difference – their numbers coincidentally read 2026 – and combined for the equalizer. I would've been happy with this result, and I thought it would stand. But then we scored the winner. I didn't know if I was happy with that. Because now I had to hope that France wouldn't win their group. Right now they were second which meant we'd avoid them. But it could still change.
Ecuador disappointed me. Because of a goalless draw against the smallest participating country ever, in which their goalkeeper set a new record for most saves, we were confirmed as group winners. That was not what I had intended. I really didn't want to meet France in the round of 16. This damned bracket! That's why I rather wanted a draw! My wish had been quarterfinals.
Japan against Tunisia was historic as it was the 1000th match. For the latter, it meant elimination after another 4-goal defeat.
My wish was for either Argentina or Spain to finish second in their group so they could meet up in the round of 32. But unfortunately, it would remain nothing but a wish. I'd prefer them to eliminate each other. At least my least favourite player of Spain didn't score, that was music to my ears. What a joy when his goal was disallowed. Serves him right! And the goal of our enemy, who had caused our elimination at the Euros, was ruled as an own goal. Karma!
It was the tournament of the goalkeepers. After Cape Verde and Curaçao, the Iranian goalkeeper showed a masterclass. Iran broke the record for oldest starting eleven. They almost pulled off an upset, but the goal was ruled out – due to a curious offside. With this, it was the third goalless match. The Belgians were a disappointment. Their only goal wasn't even scored by themselves. The group remained open.
I had put all my hopes on Uruguay – but they let me down. At least, if they wanted a chance to advance to the next round, they had to put on a good performance against Spain. And the Spanish goals had all been from short range, not very impressive. In a shocking twist, Cape Verde took the lead – and an entire group of islands went ballistic! But Uruguay turned it around in less then ten minutes. That was of no use though as Cape Verde equalized. Just when Uruguay thought they scored the winner, it was disallowed. And thus, Cape Verde managed another surprise. For the 13th time, the result was a draw. Unlike Spain, Uruguay could at least score.
After Canada, Egypt got its first ever win despite an early setback. New Zealand on the other hand were beaten for the first time since 2010. Therefore, Egypt took top spot of the group for now, and they were likely to reach the knockouts with four points.
Group I settled the score. The first match was unfortunately too late in our time zone, I would've considered watching it otherwise. But it likely only would've sufficed for one half anyway, as the match had been suspended for more than two hours due to a severe thunderstorm. France scored an easy win and booked their spot in the knockouts.
Norway did the same, even though Senegal didn't want to go down without a fight. The next match would decide who won the group, while Senegal and Iraq fought for third place and a chance to advance.
Jordan got eliminated in the Arabian matchup, after Algeria improved on their last performance. They awaited a battle with Austria for second place.
We still supported Uzbekistan, though they unfortunately went up against the strongest opponent of the group. Thanks to the convenient time we could even watch most of the match, mainly the second half. After twenty minutes, Uzbekistan was already behind by two goals. A goal by Uzbekistan unfortunately didn't count due to a foul preceeding it. What a shame cause that was a banger! When we tuned in again, they had already conceded another. We could only watch in agony as Uzbekistan scored an own goal. They couldn't seem to agree who scored it for a while. It wouldn't be the last goal of the match. We had hoped for a consolation goal at least, we hadn't seen the disallowed one. My mother, probably with pink-tinted glasses, thought they played well.
England couldn't get past Ghana. Curiosly, a witch doctor had said he'd put a curse on the English players. The losers of the first matchday, Croatia and Panama, were already under pressure. Winning was the key and losing would be fatal. After an uneventful first half, Croatia got a narrow win while Panama was eliminated.
Colombia regained their lead and secured knockouts. The next match would decide who topped the group. With this, the second round was done and dusted.
I would've liked to watch the showdown in Group B, but nobody wanted to. It was close in the end, but Switzerland maintained their lead and secured first place. They had expected seven points anyway and achieved it. Canada could also celebrate, as they reached the knockouts for the first time. All hosts had made it to the next round.
With now four points, Bosnia and Herzegovina had a decent chance to advance – with a bit of help by Qatar's second own goal. Qatar still managed to score their first (and only) regular goal. After the next two matches it was already confirmed: Group B had three qualifiers.
In Group C, Haiti unexpectedly took the lead against Morocco. It was, however, a goalkeeper own goal, the second one within a short period. After equalizing Haiti at least scored a goal by themselves. They didn't leave goalless. Morocco turned on the engine in the second half and scored more than one goal for the first time in this tournament.
Brazil seemed to love 3-0. For Scotland, it was bad news due to negative goal difference. It would very likely not be enough for their first ever knockouts. They got lucky a goal got disallowed due to a foul. The group had ended exactly as I expected: Same amount of points for Brazil and Morocco, with the better goal difference for the former. The possible quarterfinal matchup Morocco against France caused dread because I'd prefer to have a repeat of the semi final 2022.
In Group A, everyone could still get eliminated except Mexico who topped it. Therefore, the stakes were high. But no one wanted to score. Czechia and South Africa needed to win though if they wanted a chance. Mexico was the first to break the deadlock and were still waiting to concede. Two more followed.
South Africa unexpectedly won the South-duel against South Korea and reached the knockouts for the first time. South Korea had to wait, though they had an advance compared to Scotland.
Nothing was at risk for us in our last group stage match. Even a loss wouldn't change a thing. If Ecuador had three points instead of one, the stakes would be different. Maybe I had seen it coming when I said before the match that Ecuador needed to win if they don't want to be eliminated. Believing nothing would happen in the first minutes anyway, our mother switched channels. She assumed wrong, as we had taken the lead after just two minutes. The goal was controversial though and up for discussion. It didn't last long as Ecuador equalized six minutes later with their first goal of the tournament. In the meantime, Côte d'Ivoire took the lead against Curaçao. A draw wasn't enough for Ecuador, with two points they would surely be eliminated. And so, it happened: Ecuador took the lead. It stayed the way and the Ecuadorians couldn't believe their luck. With four points, they had surely advanced to the knockouts. Côte d'Ivoire took second place of the group. My mother was raging and had seen enough.
Tunisia crashed out with zero points, while the Netherlands topped the group. Sweden and Japan accepted a draw that would benefit them both.
Australia and Paraguay did the same. No one wanted to score a goal. The latter was therefore a potential opponent, as their advancing to the knockouts was all but confirmed. Türkiye took home a consolation win against a rotated USA team, but it was a little too late.
I would've also liked to watch France's decisive last group stage match, but once again no one wanted to watch with me. They also played for their coach who was mourning a loss and couldn't be there for his team. Norway rotated as announced – but France didn't. Maybe a disadvantage? That's a possibility as France took them down 4-1 – including a hattrick of the reigning Ballon d'Or winner. With their normal starting eleven it could've possibly been closer. It wasn't the result I hoped for, cause now they possibly awaited us in the round of 16.
Senegal took care of business against Iraq and secured their first win. They had to wait, but had the better goal difference compared to Scotland and South Korea – coincidentally all with S. Iraq stood out to me for the reason that they had the most handsome player – since my favourite Swiss was absent – who at least got some playing time. Sadly for them, they did even worse than Tunisia.
Sixteen years ago, I wouldn't have thought twice about it. But now I was against Spain. It would've been way too funny had they finished second in the group and were forced to play Argentina in the round of 32 already. But that required Uruguay to win. Alongside Spain, they were supposed to be top 2 of the group. What consoled me is that at least my least favourite Spainiard once again didn't score. He's one of the two reasons I don't want Spain to achieve anything.
The second place however was a sensation: Cape Verde became the best debutant and placed second with just three draws, making the whole nation erupt in ecstasy. Some third placed teams had more. They also had a tough draw for the next round.
Group G ended in drama. Three of the teams could still be eliminated. Iran was struck by bad luck. After conceding early and missing a penalty they equalized. Iran really wanted it. They erupted in tears as it seemed they had scored the winner – but it was short-lived as the goal was ruled out. Iran now needed luck on their side. Belgium finally met expectations and secured top spot of the group. At the same time, the wait was over for Senegal. Only a few spots remained. Iran hoped for fair play.
Everything was still possible in Group L as well. Only Panama's elimination was already confirmed. From that confederation, only the automatically qualified hosts advanced. As the only team they went home goalless. England topped the group, while Croatia passed Ghana. All of them made it to the knockouts though. For the first time ever, the 200-goal-mark was broken. Historical!
I only wished Uzbekistan one thing in the next match: That they'd score a goal and not concede to many. A win wouldn't be enough anyway. And my wish was granted. Tragically, they had scored first and were in the lead throughout the entire first half, but after the break everything fell apart. The third of four debutants was eliminated in group stage. Portugal accepted second place with a goalless draw, ruining hopes of a quarterfinal matchup with Argentina. Or was it intentional? Colombia had almost won if not for their goal being offside by the thinnest of margins. After DR Congo's win, Iran's fate was now hanging by a thread.
Algeria and Austria had history – one that went down as the Disgrace of Gijon. Would we get a repeat? When Austria scored, Iran let out a huge sigh of relief. It looked like the teams really didn't want to settle for a draw. But it didn't last long as Algeria equalized just seventeen minutes later. The next Austrian lead only lasted five minutes. For thirty minutes, nothing happened and Iran were running out of time. Out of nowhere, Algeria took the lead. Did they just save Iran? Stoppage time was already over, but the referee didn't end the match. Algeria could've been the saviour... had he just blown the whistle in time. Cause then Iran was shellshocked: Austria equalized in the dying seconds. Both teams had made the knockouts – at Iran's expense. What a heartbreak! They must have felt so devastated! They surely had hopes after Algeria's third goal. The World Cup was a nightmare for Asian teams, as seven out of nine were eliminated.
It's the opposite for Africa: 90% of teams qualified, only Tunisia went home early. They had a bad start to to tournament though – including South Africa, who like Canada played their first ever knockout match. The first half was nothing but sliding on the pitch. No goal was scored – until relief came in stoppage time: The hosts remained in the tournament. I was happy for the goalscorer.
An unbalanced branch?
The second round of 32 match could be considered a battle of heavyweights. The distribution was really unfortunate (while Argentina's pathway was nothing but a farce. Pathetic!) It was Japan who took the lead, but Brazil equalized in the second half. For the first time in the tournament, someone else had scored for them. In stoppage time, shortly before the match could go to extra time, Brazil scored the winning goal. They have never finished outside the top 16, while Asia is almost entirely eliminated.
Next up was a repeat of our first KO-match from 2002. For a long time, we just couldn't find the net – until Paraguay scored. Less than ten minutes into the beginning of the second half, we managed to equalize. Unlike in the first two matches, the winning goal didn't come in stoppage time, so it went to extra time. We seemingly scored a winning goal, but it was disallowed after review. A mistake? A penalty shootout had to decide. I'd prefer them if I'm neutral towards both teams. My sister had faith in us, after all we had never lost one in World Cups. But the first player, who is usually a confident penalty taker, missed. Not a good start. There was hope when a Paraguayan missed as well. After five penalties each, it was 3-3. The pressure was rising. But the player who had almost scored our winner missed horribly. The Paraguayan scored and so it was sealed. Did they want to avoid a possible clash with France? Was the goal wrongly disallowed? After Euro 2024, we were possibly robbed again.
Neither of Morocco or the Netherlands should be eliminated this early. The first half remained goalless. The first goal scorer had just gone through a tragic loss, so the goal was emotional for him. Morocco was on the verge of elimination, but stoppage time had barely begun when they equalized. Extra time didn't result in a winner so a penalty shootout had to decide once again. The Dutch penalties were shot miserably, but Morocco missed some too. However, they had good memories from penalty shootouts, had they eliminated Spain in the previous World Cup. And this time it was the Netherlands, who still didn't lose a match in regular time since 2014.
Had we finished second in the group, we would've played Norway. But would that have been better? Côte d'Ivoire had to say goodbye to the tournament. They were refused a penalty, a possibly debatable decision. Extra time was not needed to decide the winner, the goal was scored a few minutes before.
Group F had it the hardest. Japan and Netherlands had already fallen and only Sweden remained. They got a tough task in France though. The French who had their coach back indeed dominated. Group F was entirely eliminated – and ours might follow.
Last men standing Ecuador were up against Mexico in a latinamerican duel. But the start got delayed due to a thunderstorm. Mexico still hadn't conceded a goal – and it would remain like this. They repeated their result from the opening match, even down to the same goalscorers. Ecuador left the tournament with a red card. Group E was the next group with no teams left.
England had an early scare that they couldn't respond for quite some time. But thanks to a double lucky punch that took them to the round of 16 they managed to turn it around within minutes.
Belgium seemingly wanted to replicate their round of 16-thriller from 2018. It went almost identical, only that the opponent was Senegal and not Japan. They were behind by two goals, and so far, no team had managed to overcome a two goal lead. But Belgium already did it once. Within minutes, shortly before extra time, they equalized – even including a header goal, just like back then. It was truly a repeat. But the winner wasn't scored in stoppage time this time. Extra time had to decide. Before a penalty shootout could decide, Belgium were awarded a penalty, completing the remake. It was the latest winning goal of all time. There had been eleven minutes of stoppage time in the end.
Bosnia were the last play off-team remaining. But they were up against the hosts who wanted to follow Canada and Mexico to the round of 16. And they managed just that. But the match played out quite weirdly: first, a goal didn't count, then they scored and then a red card – all with the same player. Despite being down one man, they doubled their lead and booked their spot in the next round.
Neither of Croatia or Portugal should be eliminated this early. For the latter, the match was an emotional affair, as it was the death anniversary of their teammate – at least in our timezone. They wanted to win it for him. It was Croatia who first took the lead, though. The equalizer was ruled out, but came a few minutes later through a penalty. After this, another goal was disallowed, this time for Croatia. A whopping stoppage time of ten minutes was given. After four minutes, Portugal scored and lead for the first time. Stoppage time was already over when Croatia scored the equalizer. Or did they? Cause Croatia were unlucky that another goal wasn't given. It's rare to have three goals being disallowed in one match. The Croats were in shock! They had prepared for extra time – even though stoppage time had been as long as one half – only to be disappointed. Apparently my mother had seen the final minutes and thought Croatia had been treated unfairly.
Switzerland was the last German-speaking representative. Could they do it better than Germany and Austria and save our honor? The matchup against Algeria was special as it was against their former coach. Only one of the Swiss coaches could be the winner though. Strangely, they had an eight day break since their last match, so they were well rested. After ten minutes, they already took the lead, and they later doubled it. Somehow they have a thing for scoring right at the beginning of the second half. The Swiss advanced to the second knockout-match – further than their neighbours. It was their first win in a knockout match in 88 years.
Australia against Egypt is one of those matchups where I wouldn't care about a penalty shootout. The latter took the lead, until they were unlucky: The player that had already caused an own goal against Belgium hit his own net again. Without it, extra time wouldn't be needed. Even the goalscorer of the first goal was identical to the match against Belgium. As if I summoned it, a penalty shootout had to break the tie. For it, a goalkeeper was swapped like the Netherlands once did. But there, the Australians lost it. With this, the Asian confederation was entirely eliminated.
Cape Verde almost pulled off the upset against Argentina in a David vs. Goliath-battle, but then it was an own goal that brought the decision. Good to know that Argentina can concede goals. Maybe it won't be an easy run, after all.
Colombia needed just a 1:0-win. A disallowed goal didn't really matter anymore. It was only their second-ever win in a knockout match.
Morocco had already played Canada in the group stage of the previous World Cup. But back then, less had been at stake. The Canadians had learned from it as they held off Morocco for a while. They also had to take the injury of one of their key players. In the second half, they managed to secure victory.
After a water fight against Iraq, France was now threatened by heat. It became a fight in the truest sense of the word. Paraguay should in theory deal better with it, but they were busy fouling their opponents and lucky to somehow not get any cards at all. It was just a matter of time until one of the fouls resulted in a penalty. That would prove enough, and the first quarter final was already a tough one. It would be a good final in my opinion.
Norway was the only country that never lost against Brazil. And in the round of 16, this theory would be put to the test again. They had a furios beginning, but it was offside. Then Brazil missed a penalty. For eighty minutes, the Norwegian goalkeeper kept them in the game. Then they broke the deadlock, and doubled it ten minutes later. Another penalty for Brazil came too late, and with this, Norway stayed unbeaten against them. Brazil's curse against European nations continued. The missed penalty would haunt them for a while.
Mexico had the home advantage, and hadn't conceded a goal yet. Both teams didn't waste any time. After the first goal, they conceded another one in just around hundred seconds. It has to be one of the fastest braces ever! Mexico pulled one back. Both teams got a penalty each, which they could convert. Despite being a man down, England secured the win and made the quarterfinal. Their 1986 trauma was defeated. Mexico once again couldn't get past the last 16-hurdle and was in tears.
My motto: I don't care who wins – as long as Spain and Argentina lose
Everyone wanted the battle of the two biggest superstars. Instead, they got the Iberian derby. For the first time, I switched sides. I at least hoped that Spain would finally concede. The goals against Saudi Arabia were too easy, the goal against Uruguay just luck and Austria had forgotten how to defend. Portugal should be a capable enough opponent. Maybe they could take an example from Cape Verde. But unfortunately, my wish didn't come to pass. I had enough of this... To make matters worse, their quarterfinal opponent was way too easy. Neither of USA or Belgium would defeat them. And instead we lost one of France or Morocco in the next match. I'd rather have them in separate quarterfinals. It just wasn't fair!
Due to the controversy, my sister would surprisingly watch USA against Belgium – if kickoff wasn't late at night. The whole world was probably rooting for Belgium. Fueled by anger, they showed their best performance of the tournament. USA had done more damage than good and with this, the last host was eliminated.
I was sick and tired of the favoritism for Argentina. How much do they want to gift them? As if the easy bracket wasn't enough already! It had all started hopeful. My sister informed me that Egypt was leading. I couldn't contain a laugh. When we tuned in for a few minutes, they seemingly doubled their lead. I could hardly believe it. Did we witness a miracle? But you should never celebrate too early. The goal didn't count – a controversial decision. Thirty minutes remained, and I didn't think much would happen. Egypt could indeed double their lead. I forgot that different rules applied for Argentina though. Not only did they equalize, they scored the winner – that shouldn't have counted. It's simply ridiculous!
For the last match, I was in a dilemma. I'd be happy for Switzerland making the quarterfinal, but I concluded Colombia had better chances against Argentina. Once again my wish wouldn't come to pass. Both teams came into it unbeaten. After ninety goalless minutes, extra time was needed – and when they didn't bring a result, a penalty shootout. And that one had the better end for the Swiss. I didn't know how to feel about that. Had my favourite Swiss been there, I probably would've been more enthusiastic. They had no chance to do anything against Argentina though.
Red against red, devils against furies in the next quarterfinal. When I joined my sister and father towards the end of the first half, both teams had scored. Spain had finally conceded a goal. Thanks, Belgium! An unintentionally funny moment was when two Spanish players' heads collided. That looked hilarious! Drama unfolded when the Belgian goalkeeper was subbed off. In a potential penalty shootout that could become problematic. But that wouldn't be needed. Once again Spain had only scored by pure luck. Their first goal had been similarly lucky. I hadn't wanted France against Spain, so this result made me very unhappy.