Where All Three World Cup Hosts Stand After the Round of 32

The Round of 32 is underway, and all the 2026 World Cup hosts have already advanced.

Mexico, Canada, and the US all survived their first-round opponents, setting up more challenging matchups for the Round of 16. Some surprising upsets have shaken up the field, suddenly giving hope that one of the trio could end up stunning the world by winning it all.

Below, we’ll dive into where each host currently stands, helping clarify which has the best odds of winning its first World Cup title this summer.

Defense Leads Canada Past RSA

Canada was the first World Cup host to play its knockout match, defeating the Republic of South Africa 1-0. While they lost the possession battle, the team’s impressive defensive play made up for it. South Africa managed only one shot on goal despite controlling the ball for 58% of the match.

Canada finally sealed the win with a goal in the 92nd minute, officially ending fears of an early exit.

While it was an amazing victory for the team, they now face a far more daunting test against Morocco in the Round of 16. They enter as a significant underdog, and for good reason. Morocco’s path here has been far more impressive, drawing with Brazil to open group play and defeating the Netherlands in the Round of 32. 

Canada and Morocco will square off on July 4 at 1:00 EDT.

Mexico Eyes England

Don’t look now, but Mexico is playing like a true contender over its first four matches. It won all three of its group games, which included wins over RSA, South Korea, and Czechia. While some wondered if El Tri’s success was the result of subpar competition, those doubts were silenced in the Round of 32

Mexico earned an impressive 2-0 victory over Ecuador, securing its place in the knockout stage after a 2-1 win over Germany. El Tri scored a pair of goals in the first half, showing they were in full control from the opening whistle. 

Now, the World Cup host will take on an England squad that’s ranked fourth in FIFA’s World Rankings. While Mexico enters as a slight underdog, playing in front of a rowdy Azteca crowd is making them a popular upset pick.

Mexico and England will kick off their match on July 5 at 8 PM EDT.

USMNT Continues to Dazzle

The US Men’s National Team silenced its doubters by dominating Paraguay and Australia in its first two group matches, locking up its advancement and leading it to rest several stars in its loss to Türkiye. 

While some worried this might lead to the same kind of rust other group winners showed in the Round of 32, the USMNT quickly silenced those concerns. They went up 1-0 against Bosnia & Herzegovina just before the half, but lost top goalscorer Folarin Balogun to a misapplied red card in the 64th minute. Fortunately, the team stood strong, adding another goal to win 2-0 despite playing for around 40 minutes with only ten men.

While Balogun will be forced to miss the team’s Round of 16 match against Belgium, that hasn’t stopped them from being the only host to be favored to advance. Their European opponent has been struggling and needed a miraculous comeback to avoid a stunning upset at the hands of Senegal.

The US and Belgium will meet on July 6 at 8 PM EDT.