World Cup 2026 Power Rankings: France's fearsome forwards continue to thrive while Germany's weaknesses are exposed - but can anyone stop Argentina as knockouts draw opens up for Lionel Messi & Co.?

The feel-good story of the tournament thus far, Cape Verde arrived as presumed whipping boys in Group H, but have taken points off Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia to remarkably finish not third, but second in the standings and seal their place in the last 32. Some of the football they have produced has been thrilling, and they have captured the hearts of fans around the world.

In their final group game against the Saudis, the Blue Sharks were the better side, generating 15 shots on goal. They have thus more than earned their place in the knockout stage after some heroic performances to escape the group against all odds and logic, and their reward will be a clash with Lionel Messi's title holders Argentina on Friday.

DR Congo knew that, after their creditable draw against Portugal and narrow defeat to Colombia, a win over Uzbekistan would secure their place in the knockout rounds. However, when they found themselves 1-0 down at the break on Saturday, it seemed that the African nation's dream was about to end in heart-breaking fashion.

With their tournament hopes on the line, Yoane Wissa again stood tall, scoring twice to secure a come-from-behind, 3-1 win that sets up a last-32 meeting with England in Atlanta. DR Congo will be massive underdogs against the Three Lions, but they will believe that after frustrating Portugal, they can go toe-to-toe with another of the tournament favourites.

What on earth are we supposed to make of Sweden?! A team that qualified for the World Cup through the back door kicked off their finals campaign with an impressive 5-1 win over Tunisia, only to be beaten by the same scoreline by the Netherlands on matchday two.

Their third game didn't really give us any more clues, but coach Graham Potter will be more than satisfied with the result. The Scandinavians came from behind to hold Japan to a 1-1 draw, with Anthony Elanga's cross-cum-shot flying into the back of the net shortly after the hour mark. The point means the Swedes have progressed as one of the best third-placed teams and will face France.

Before Wednesday's 3-1 victory over Qatar, Bosnia and Herzegovina hadn't won a game inside 90 minutes since last November. However, the tiny Balkan nation that beat both Wales and Italy on penalties in the World Cup play-offs is now through to the knockout stage for the first time ever as one of the best third-placed finishers.

Obviously, they'll be up against it in the round 32, where they'll face buoyant co-hosts, the United States, but Sergej Barbarez's team are unquestionably capable of frustrating stronger sides and in 18-year-old winger Kerim Alajbegovic, they have a real wildcard, as he proved with his wonderful solo strike against Qatar.

Playing in their first World Cup since 2010, Paraguay's tournament looked like it might be over before it really began after their thumping defeat at the hands of co-hosts the United States, but they bounced back impressively to score early against Turkiye and then on hold on to their narrow advantage despite having Miguel Almiron sent off shortly before half-time in bizarre circumstances.

Second place was up for grabs in the South Americans' final group game against Australia, but a forgettable goalless draw means Paraguay were forced to settle for third and a last-32 showdown with four-time winners Germany. An injury to key centre-back Omar Alderete will be a huge concern.

South Africa looked dead and buried after matchday one. As well as being beaten 2-0 by Mexico, Hugo Broos' side also had two men sent off at the Azteca, with Yaya Sithole and Themba Zwane both shown straight red cards. However, Bafana Bafana showed remarkable fighting spirit to take a point off Czechia in their next match, thanks to an 83rd-minute penalty from Teboho Mokoena, before stunning South Korea in Monterrey with a solitary second-half strike from Thapelo Maseko.

As a result, South Africa are through to the knockout stage of a World Cup for the first time ever, and now have a real shot at reaching the last 16 as they'll face a far-from-intimidating Canada side in Los Angeles in the round of 32.

Talk about leaving it late! Anyone who expected Austria and Algeria to play out a mutually beneficial draw in the final round of Group J fixtures were sorely mistaken as the two teams instead produced the game of the tournament so far that almost ended in disaster for Ralf Rangnick's side. Austria twice took the lead in Kansas City, only to go 3-2 down in second half stoppage time, and needed a last-gasp equaliser from Sasa Kalajdzic to progress.

After that roller-coaster, a daunting meeting with Spain is now on the agenda for Rangnick and his players in the last 32, and if they don't improve defensively, then it's difficult to see them going any further this summer.

Ecuador entered this tournament as potential dark horses due to their impressively mean defence, albeit there were doubts regarding their ability to score goals after drawing five of their final six qualifiers 0-0. And so those concerns were borne out, as after a stoppage-time defeat to Ivory Coast, La Tri failed to find a way to break down Curacao.

However, quite remarkably, Ecuador belatedly turned it on to snatch a monumental victory in their final Group E game against European giants Germany to move onto four points - enough to secure a place in the last 32. Flamengo's Gonzalo Plata was the hero, netting the unlikely winner with 13 minutes to play to set up a clash with co-hosts Mexico.

Carlos Queiroz only took over as Ghana manager in April, but the former Portugal and Iran boss has worked wonders with the Black Stars as they backed up their last-gasp win over Panama with a more than creditable 0-0 draw with England that secured a place in the knockouts with a game to spare.

Defeat to Croatia in their final group match meant Ghana did eventually finish third in Group L, and they will be at their resolute best if they are to get past Colombiaon Friday.

Australia have once again made the knockouts despite their disappointing display in losing to the United States on matchday two. The Socceroos barely laid a glove on the co-hosts as they came back down to earth following their shock win over Turkiye.

A draw against Paraguay in heir final Group D game was always likely to be enough for qualification for both sides, with second place up for grabs. The goalless stalemate in San Francisco means it is the Aussies who should have the more straightforward pathway, which begins with Egypt in the last 32.

Algeria have shown excellent resolve to bounce back from being Lionel Messi's play-thing during the opening round of games, as they subsequently came from behind to beat Jordan before playing out a thrilling 3-3 draw with Austria to round out the group stages.

Riyad Mahrez thought he had won the game in Kansas City for the Desert Foxes when he put them ahead in the third minute of second-half stoppage time, but in the end, Vladimir Petkovic's team might be glad of being pegged back by Sasa Kalajdzic's last-gasp equaliser; rather than playing Spain in the last 32, as they would have done had they won on Saturday, Algeria will instead face Switzerland, with Colombia or Ghana to potentially follow in the round of 16.

First, the bad news: Canada won't play another 2026 World Cup game on home soil after losing 2-1 to Switzerland in Vancouver. The Canucks only needed a draw to finish first in Group B, but they left it far too late to have a real go at a solid but unspectacular Swiss side.

Here's the good news, though. Although Canada must now travel to the U.S. for the round of 32, their opponents in Los Angeles will be South Africa, the surprise runners-up in Group A, and a team that Jesse Marsch's men should be confident of defeating - especially if Alphonso Davies is finally fit to feature at the finals.

Egypt have waited a long time for their first-ever World Cup win, so the joy that greeted their victory over New Zealand in Vancouver was understandable. Unsurprisingly, Mohamed Salah was at the heart of it, with the nation's footballing icon both scoring and assisting during his side's second-half comeback.

The Pharoahs' subsequent draw with Iran was a reality check, but they have still qualified in second place from Group G and reached the knockout stage of the tournament for the first time ever, where they will fancy their chances in a last-32 clash with Australia.

Senegal knew they had been handed a tough draw when they were placed in Group I alongside France and Norway, and so it proved for Pape Thiaw's side after back-to-back defeats in New Jersey. On both occasions, the Lions of Teranga squandered opportunities to change the course of the matches, but in the end were put to the sword by Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, respectively.

Thankfully, then, Senegal got exactly the kind of big win they needed against Iraq in their final group game to give themselves the best possible chance of qualifying. Aided by a 13th-minute red card for Iraq, the African powerhouse boosted their goal difference with a 5-0 rout, which proved enough to set up a meeting with Belgium in the next round.

Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku admitted back in November that Belgium "weren't good enough in a large number of matches" in qualifying, so their patchy performances at the World Cup so far have hardly been surprising. The Red Devils were dreadful in the first half against Egypt before battling back to earn a draw, and they weren't much better during their goalless stalemate with Iran.

Rudi Garcia's side finally seemed to click into gear in the must-win match against New Zealand, albeit the All Whites were the lowest-ranked team at the tournament. A 5-1 triumph actually meant Belgium topped Group G on goal difference ahead of Egypt, and Garcia will have been very happy to see Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne and Leandro Trossard on the scoresheet as he prepares his side to take on Senegal.

After an opening-round loss to England, Croatia bounced back with an unconvincing win over Panama before producing their best performance of the tournament to date to secure victory over Ghana and progression to the knockouts as Group L runners-up.

Zlatko Dalic's side will still have to improve considerably if they are to reach at least the semi-finals for the third successive World Cup, with Portugal a daunting last-32 opponent on Thursday.

Ivory Coast couldn't have been left with more contrasting emotions at the end of their first two World Cup games. The Elephants scored a massive 90th-minute winner in their tournament-opener against Ecuador, but were left heartbroken after Deniz Undav's injury-time strike for Germany in Houston.

Still, they always knew they would be well-placed to get the points they required to qualify in their third game against minnows Curacao, and got the job done courtesy of a well-taken brace from former Arsenal flop Nicolas Pepe. That secured them second place, and they will face Norway in the first knockout round.

Despite injuries to a couple of key players, Japan were much-fancied pre-tournament, and they showed why as they twice battled back to earn a point against the Netherlands before wiping the floor with Tunisia on matchday two to all-but confirm their place in the last 32.

However, the Blue Samurai passed up the opportunity to challenge the Dutch for top spot as they were held by Sweden in their final Group F clash, which means a last-32 showdown with Brazil now beckons on Monday. They will believe they can cause an upset.

After an embarrassing opening-round draw with Qatar in which Switzerland were punished for their profligacy, the goals finally started to flow for Murat Yakin's men in the closing stages of their 4-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on matchday two thanks to substitutes Johan Manzambi and Ruben Vargas.

Unsurprisingly, both men were promoted to the starting line-up for Wednesday's showdown with Canada, and both were on target again as the Swiss defeated the co-hosts to secure top spot in Group B and, thus, set up a meeting with Algeria in Vancouver that they really should win.

Norway were always likely to go as far as Erling Haaland could carry them at this tournament, and if their opening two games were anything to go by, then that could be pretty deep into the knockouts. Haaland scored four times in his first two tournament matches, backing up his brace against Iraq with another double against Senegal to secure progression from Group I.

However, coach Stale Solbakken's decision to rotate heavily in their final group game against France, despite top spot being on the line, did not pay dividends, as Les Bleus ran riot with Haaland and Martin Odegaard among those left on the bench. Consequently, they will face Ivory Coast in the last 32.

Colombia's pre-tournament objective was clear: win their opening two games to ensure that qualification was already in the bag before they faced the favourites to win Group K, Portugal. Nestor Lorenzo's men realised that goal by beating both Uzbekistan and DR Congo, and though they were unfortunate not to make it three victories from three against the Seleccao, their 0-0 draw did at least secure first place in the group.

That also means Colombia face a more straightforward draw in the knockouts, with Ghana their last-32 opponents before a potential meeting with Switzerland or Algeria in the round of 16. As such, Los Cafeteros should now be targeting the quarter-finals as a minimum requirement.

Mexico's tournament really couldn't be going any better. After securing top spot in Group A by winning their first two games, against South Africa and South Korea, coach Javier Aguirre was able to rotate his team for El Tri's final fixture, against Czechia.

Despite the changes, Mexico still managed to maintain their 100 percent record - and keep a third consecutive clean sheet - on another rousing night at the Azteca, which saw Mateo Chavez score his first international goal, teenager Gilberto Mora impress in midfield and veteran goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa make a historic appearance at a sixth World Cup finals.

Bottom line: Mexico have built up some serious momentum as we enter the knockout stage and have a real shot at reaching the quarter-finals, given they'll also play their last-16 game at the Azteca should they defeat Ecuador in the round of 32.

It was some start for the United States. The co-hosts probably couldn't have asked for a better outcome from their opening game as they swatted Paraguay aside in Los Angeles, and they followed that up with a dominant, if slightly less emphatic, victory over Australia in Seattle that won them Group D with a match to spare.

However, lofty expectations have been tempered somewhat after Mauricio Pochettino's rotated side suffered a late defeat to already-eliminated Turkiye in Los Angeles on Thursday in their dead-rubber third group clash, raising concerns over the depth of the USMNT squad. They will, though, face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last 32, where they'll be favourites to progress.

As midfielder Bilal El Khannouss admitted, Morocco very nearly paid the price for a lack of "humility" in their 4-2 win over Haiti on Wednesday. The Atlas Lions fell behind twice in the first half of a game that they were expected to win easily and, thus, give themselves a chance of pipping Brazil to top spot in Group C on goal difference. In the end, though, Morocco were just relieved to have got out of Atlanta with a win.

Finishing second means the history-making semi-finalists from four years ago must now face XXX in the round of 32, and that's going to be a tough hurdle to clear. However, Morocco's performance in their 1-1 draw with Brazil on matchday one suggests that the bigger the game, the better they play, and with Achraf Hakimi and Ismael Saibari both in fine form, the north Africans will be looking forward to the game in Monterrey.

The Netherlands have belatedly arrived at the World Cup. After producing a patchy performance in their 2-2 draw with Japan that led to Ronald Koeman being criticised for his perceived negativity, the Dutch cut lose against Sweden in Houston winning 5-1. 

The coach's decision to bring Brian Brobbey into his starting line-up paid off spectacularly, and he made it three goals in two games when he found the net against Tunisia. However, the format means they will face Group C runners-up Morocco in the first knockout round in what will be a stern test.

Portugal arrived as many people's tips to go all the way in North America, but they have looked far from being one of the favourites so far after failing to win two of their three group games. The Seleccao's draw with DR Congo in their opening game was particularly damaging as they missed out on top spot in the group, while questions remain regarding Cristiano Ronaldo's capabilities at the age of 41 despite his double against Uzbekistan.

Roberto Martinez's side now face a daunting draw for the knockouts with wins over Croatia and likely Spain required just to make it to the quarter-finals.

After a 7-1 rout of Curacao that didn't really tell us much about Germany's true strength, Julian Nagelsmann's men were given a serious test of their World Cup credentials by a Yann Diomande-inspired Ivory Coast. They passed it, but only just - coming from behind as super-sub Deniz Undav rescued them with an injury-time winner to complete his brace.

However, Nagelsmann's side haven't looked convincing defensively and their chickens came home to roost in their final group game, as Die Mannschaft suffered a concerning defeat to Ecuador courtesy of a Manuel Neuer error late on, albeit Group E was already won. Paraguay now await them in the last 32, with France a daunting potential opponent in the last 16.

Due to the underwhelming nature of Brazil's opening-round draw with Morocco, the jury is still out on Carlo Ancelotti's side. However, the Selecao are unquestionably starting to build up a momentum, after back-to-back 3-0 wins over Haiti and Scotland.

Granted, the standard of the opposition was poor, but there were plenty of positives for Ancelotti to take out of both games. For starters, Vinicius Jr can't stop scoring, Matheus Cunha is looking like the potential answer to Brazil's problem position up front, while the fit-again Neymar made an encouraging cameo against the Scots.

XXX could make for tricky opposition in the round of 32, but after all of the doom and gloom surrounding Brazil at the start of the tournament, things are now looking up for the five-time champions.

England's performance in victory over Croatia feels a long time ago, as it has been followed by two underwhelming displays against Ghana and Panama. The Three Lions were able to win the latter on Saturday to secure top spot in Group L, but they were indebted to Jude Bellingham and need others to step up around the Real Madrid midfielder if they are to go deep into this tournament.

Thomas Tuchel's side will be confident of getting past DR Congo in the last 32, but things are likely to get tougher from there, especially if they are to face Mexico at their fortress, Estadio Azteca, in the last 16.

After the disappointment, bordering on embarrassment of Spain's 0-0 draw with Cape Verde to open La Roja's tournament, they looked much more like themselves in dismantling Saudi Arabia as Lamine Yamal returned to the line up following his injury and got himself on the scoresheet.

While they won a fiery contest with Uruguay in their final group game to top the standings, they weren't wholly convincing once again, mustering just one shot on target - but Fernando Muslera's horrible error in goal allowed Alex Baena's strike to bobble into the back of the net. Next up for Luis de la Fuente's side is Austria on Thursday.

France came into the tournament with the most fearsome attack in the world, and it has lived up to the billing thus far. Both Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele are well in the Golden Boot race with four goals apiece while Michael Olise has proven to be the same creative force that he was throughout the past season for Bayern Munich.

No one will want to play Didier Deschamps' side, then, and you would expect them to make light work of Sweden in the last 32. Les Bleus might have hoped for a kinder bracket thereafter, with Germany a potential round-of-16 opponent, but they will not be scared of anyone after going perfect through the groups.

Everything has gone Argentina's way thus far, from Lionel Messi looking in ridiculous form to the draw opening right up for them to ease their way into the latter stages. As such, the defending champions have ended the group stages as the team to beat.

Messi took his goal tally for the tournament to six with his sublime free-kick against Jordan, and he should have plenty of opportunities to add to his tally against Cape Verde in the last 32, and potentially against Australia or Egypt in the round of 16. They are set to avoid all the big guns in the quarter-finals should they get there, too, with Colombia or Switzerland their likeliest opponents.