FIFA World Cup 2026: Biggest takeaways from the round of 16

The last-16 phase is now behind us, with plenty of key talking points as the tournament enters the quarterfinals.Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the FIFA-world-cup-2026" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="1548" data-entity-type="event">FIFA World Cup 2026 round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt at Atlanta Stadium on July 7, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia, US [Elsa/Getty Images via AFP]Published On 8 Jul 2026European teams swept through the World Cup round of 16, leaving Argentina and Morocco as the only non-UEFA countries standing.Morocco did not need Ismael Saibari against Canada, but the Atlas Lions will miss him if they hope to match their 2022 achievement of reaching the semifinal.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4France vs Morocco: Key talking points ahead of FIFA World Cup quarterfinallist 2 of 4Egypt fans react to emotional World Cup exit after unforgettable campaignlist 3 of 4The Iranian Striker: The journey of Mehdi Taremi | Al Jazeera Originalslist 4 of 4Who’s in, who’s out: Which teams made the FIFA World Cup quarterfinalsend of listEgypt, Africa’s other round of 16 representative, had Argentina on the ropes but fell victim to some questionable calls and non-calls. Hossam Hassan accused officials of favouring Argentina, and he was not the first to do so.The USA and President Donald Trump took their case to FIFA and got a Folarin Balogun red card overturned. But they found there is such a thing as sporting justice in the form of a 4-1 loss to Belgium.Lionel Messi kept Argentinian and South American hopes alive, but five-time champion Brazil unsuccessfully adopted Italian-style catenaccio; Colombia failed to find the target (one goal in its last three matches); and Paraguay stuck to its pesky identity, but couldn’t shake up France.The only UEFA team to go out in the round was Portugal, falling to Spain 1-0 in Cristiano Ronaldo’s final World Cup appearance.Kylian Mbappe of France celebrates his team’s 1-0 victory against Paraguay at Philadelphia Stadium on July 4, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US [Buda Mendes/Getty Images via AFP]The Golden Boot race is onMessi had a penalty kick saved by Mostafa Shobeir, but fired in an 83rd-minute equaliser off a rebound for goal No 8 of this World Cup – and record 21st of his career.Kylian Mbappe upped his totals to seven for the tournament and 19 of his career with a 70th-minute penalty kick against Paraguay.Erling Haaland finished two Andreas Schjelderup assists to tie Mbappe with seven goals.Harry Kane’s penalty kick against Mexico gave him six goals.United States fans gather before the Belgium last-16 match with a Folarin Balogun banner in Seattle [Kevin Ng/Imagn Images via Reuters]Sporting karma is gonna get youPoetic justice? Or was it simply Belgian superiority position-by-position?The USA’s 4-1 elimination by Belgium in Seattle ended a hopeful run that attracted record television audiences, but ended with the team’s limitations being exposed.The Red Devils broke the press with Thibaut Courtois’s long balls, broke down the wings via Dodi Lukebakio and Leandro Trossard, found Charles De Ketelaere with crosses and capitalised on defensive carelessness.The USA was impressive going all out against Paraguay in its opener and defeated a European opponent (Bosnia and Herzegovina) for the first time since 2002, but struggled to change gears against Turkiye and the Belgians.As for that red card decision, it only served to motivate the Red Devils, and for Romelo Lukaku to show off a Trump-inspired dance step.Morocco’s midfielder #08 Azzedine Ounahi celebrates scoring his team’s second goal with teammate forward #10 Brahim Diaz during the 2026 World Cup round of 16 football match between Canada and Morocco, at the Houston Stadium in Houston on July 4, 2026 [AFP]Welcome to the neighbourhoodLike the US, Canada is high-press first, ask questions later – no surprise, as its coach is former USA national team midfielder Jesse Marsch.Morocco absorbed everything the Maple Leafs could throw at it, then found openings in the second half of a 3-0 victory.The Canadians and their southern neighbours need to implement an alternative to all-out, all-the-time pressing.Hard-charging and double-teaming tactics don’t always work, especially against superior opposition.The Atlas Lions showed they do not have to be at their best to win, and Soufiane Rahimi’s emergence gives them an alternative to Saibari up front.England’s Harry Kane celebrates after the match as England qualify for the round of 16 [Paul Childs/Reuters]England raised its game at the height of Mexico CityMexico hoped to deflate the Three Lions with thin air and high-decibel home-field support, along with a quick passing game.Instead, El Tri found it couldn’t keep pace, as defenders lagged a step behind Jude Bellingham (two goals in a two-minute span) and Anthony Gordon, who sprinted ahead to earn a penalty kick for Kane to convert in a 3-1 win.Egypt’s Mostafa Shobeir saves a penalty missed by Argentina’s Lionel Messi [Omar Aziz/Reuters]Messi might be the GOAT, but he’s not infallibleArgentina is vulnerable. A 3-2 victory over Egypt, a second successive close call against African opposition, revealed Albiceleste’s defensive weaknesses and, possibly, overdependence on Messi.Along the way, though, Argentina also demonstrated resourcefulness against both Egypt and Cape Verde.Messi had a penalty kick saved, but eventually came through against the Pharoahs. You’d think Messi would be near-perfect on penalties, but this was listed as his 34th all-time penalty miss.In the World Cup, this was his second miss of the tournament – he’s four for eight lifetime.Messi is still Argentina’s most valuable player, but holding midfielder Leandro Paredes has emerged as a key to the 4-1-3-2 alignment.Yet, if Haissem Hassan hadn’t been injured, Egypt might have held on. Hassan is a dribbler extraordinaire, and his smooth assist on a Mostafa Ziko goal included a highlight show of nutmegs, rabonas and stepovers.France’s Ousmane Dembele clashes with Paraguay players after Andres Cubas fouls Kylian Mbappe [Jeenah Moon/Reuters]Check your World Cup historyFrance – and, by extension, the game of football – might have been submarined by Paraguay’s ultra-defensive tactics. But it was not the first time.On the way to winning the 1998 World Cup, France had difficulty with La Albirroja, Les Bleus getting through the round of 16 on a 114th-minute Laurent Blanc goal in Lens.This Paraguayan squad took aggressiveness to extremes – but it should be noted many South American matches go much further into what has been described as “dark arts”.The higher the stakes, the greater the rivalry, the wilder it can get. This became a test of France’s composure and confidence, and also its wing play.Eventually, Desire Doue broke past several Guaranie opponents to earn a penalty kick, though it took a VAR review to detect Diego Gomez’s foul in the 1-0 win.Brazil’s forward #19 Endrick reacts to a missed chance during the 2026 World Cup round of 16 football match between Brazil and Norway at the New York/New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford on July 5, 2026 [AFP]Welcome to the clubLong gone were four-time champions Italy (failed to qualify) and Germany (round of 32). Joining them was five-time champion Brazil, which has never defeated Norway (0W-3L-2D).The Selecao had chances in a 2-1 loss to the Norwegians: Bruno Guimaraes’ penalty kick miss and Endrick’s misfire on a breakaway. Neymar did convert a penalty 10 minutes into stoppage time, with what might have been his last World Cup touch, his ninth goal in four tournaments.Spain’s Lamine Yamal arrives at the stadium before the match [Issei Kato/Reuters]Spain on the defensiveThose predicting Spain would be suspect at the back might have to reevaluate, after La Roja recorded shutout No 5 with a 1-0 victory over Portugal. Mikel Oyarzabal (four goals) has been on target, but Lamine Yamal (one goal) not so much.