The Latest from the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada

Belgium has defeated New Zealand 5-1 in both teams’ final match in group play, sending the Belgians through to the knockout round and eliminating the All-Whites. Belgium was paced by a pair of goals from Leandro Trossard, as well as from star Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Saelemaekers.

12:57

Alexis Saelemaekers gets in on the goal party, scoring five minutes into second-half stoppage time to give Belgium a 5-1 lead over New Zealand at BC Place.

12:48 p.m.

Elijah Just gets New Zealand on the board with a goal in the 84th minute, but Romelu Lukaku restores Belgium’s three-goal lead with a goal two minutes later.

12:46 a.m.

Kevin De Bruyne scores in the 66th minute to give Belgium a 3-0 lead over New Zealand.

12:19 a.m.

Leandro Trossard scores his second goal of the match, in the 50th minute, to give Belgium a 2-0 lead.

11:53 p.m.

Halftime in Vancouver with Belgium leading New Zealand 1-0 in the fifth and final group-stage match at BC Place. A lopsided first half ends with Belgium dominating in possession, completed passes and corners while narrowing missing a number of chances. Egypt and Iran are tied 1-1 at halftime in Seattle.

11:34 p.m.

Leandro Trossard gives Belgium a 1-0 lead over New Zealand in the 28th minute at BC Place in Vancouver.

11:18 p.m.

Ramin Rezaeian scores in the 14th minute for Iran to tie their match with Egypt at 1-all. In Vancouver, New Zealand and Belgium are scoreless 17 minutes into the match.

11:07 p.m.

Mahmoud Saber scores in the fifth minute to give Egypt an early 1-0 lead over Iran in Seattle.

10:47 p.m.

About 10 minutes to kickoff for two key Group G matches. Belgium, with two draws and two points, plays in Vancouver against New Zealand, which has a draw and a loss for one point. Egypt, with a win and a draw for four points, plays Iran in Seattle, which has two draws for two points.

10:22 p.m.

Final two matches of the night — New Zealand versus Belgium in Vancouver, Egypt versus Iran in Seattle — are about 30 minutes from kicking off.

10:19 p.m.

Spain beats Uruguay 1-0 despite being outshot 6-5 (2-1 on target).

10 p.m.

Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia play to a scoreless tie in Group H match. Cape Verde outshot their opponents 16-6, but on-target shots were 3-3.

9 p.m.

Spain leads Uruguay 1-0 at halftime, while Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia are scoreless.

8:50 p.m.

Spain, with a goal in the 42nd minute from Alex Baena, leads Uruguay late in first-half stoppage time. Cape Verde and Saudi Arabias are scoreless late in first-half stoppage time.

7:40 p.m.

Uruguay and Spain are getting ready to kick off their Group H match in Mexico, while Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia are squaring off in Houston.

5:20 p.m.

Forward Tani Oluwaseyi says Canada needs to start like it did against Qatar when they play South Africa in a round of 32 game Sunday in Los Angeles. Oluwaseyi spoke during Canada’s training in Vancouver for its first ever World Cup knockout match. Canada dominated the entire match in its 6-0 win over Qatar. But the Canadians started slow in an opening 1-1 draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina, while defensive breakdowns to start the second half led to a 2-1 defeat to Switzerland on Wednesday.

5:04 p.m.

Pape Gueye scored twice in a 12-minute span as Senegal had four goals in the second half to roll past undermanned Iraq 5-0 in Toronto. Senegal needed to outscore Iraq by at least three goals to have a chance of advancing to the knockout stage of the World Cup as a third-place team. Centre back Rebin Sulaka was sent off 13 minutes into the match to force Iraq to play with 10 men.

5:02 p.m.

France clinched top spot in Group I with a 4-1 win over Norway, getting a hat trick from Ousmane Dembélé. Désiré Doué added a stoppage-time goal as France finished the group stage unbeaten with three wins from three matches. Norway advanced as the group runner-up despite the loss and will also move on to the Round of 32.

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5:01 p.m.

Panama’s training session got a little heated today when striker Cecilio Waterman and midfielder José Luis Rodríguez had to be separated after a shove. Coach Thomas Christiansen wasn’t bothered, saying he’d like to see more of that competitive fire because it shows his players are “alive.” Panama wraps up its World Cup against England on Saturday after being eliminated from knockout-round contention.

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4:31 p.m.

Consumer Protection BC is investigating complaints that World Cup fans who bought tickets through StubHub never received them, B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma says. Sharma says the probe will determine whether any laws were broken under the province’s Ticket Sales Act, while urging affected consumers to explore their refund options. StubHub says the issues are tied to FIFA’s ticket transfer system, not the tickets themselves, and says affected customers will receive refunds or replacement tickets where needed.

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4:04 p.m.

France forward Ousmane Dembélé scored a first-half hat trick, including one off a feed from Kylian Mbappé, to give his team a 3-1 lead over Norway in Foxborough, Mass.

3:56 p.m.

At Toronto Stadium, Habib Diarra scored in the fourth minute as Senegal held a 1-0 lead over Iraq at halftime in their crucial Group I match. Rebin Sulaka was issued a red card nine minutes after the goal to force Iraq to play the rest of the match with 10 players. Nine minutes of stoppage time were added to the half.

3:34 p.m.

Fans at Toronto Stadium groaned when the France-Norway score flashed on the in-venue screens, showing France had taken a 3-1 lead. The winner of France-Norway will top Group I, while Iraq and Senegal entered their match without a point. Senegal was a French colony for more than 300 years before gaining independence in 1960.

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3:15 p.m.

Centre back Rebin Sulaka was sent off 13 minutes into Iraq’s match against Senegal after an illegal challenge just outside the box. Already trailing 1-0, Iraq will play the rest of the match down a man.

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3 p.m.

Norway and France are playing at Boston Stadium in a battle of the top two teams in Group I. Star striker Erling Haaland is among 10 regular starters absent from Norway’s starting lineup. He is tied with Brazil’s Vinicius Junior and France’s Kylian Mbappé for the second-most goals in the tournament at four. Both teams have already qualified for the knockout stage with two wins, but France has the better goal differential.

3 p.m.

Play is underway at Toronto Stadium between Iraq and Senegal in a win-or-go-home match. Both teams are without a point so far in Group I play and need to win by a sizable score to secure one of the best third-place spots to advance to the World Cup’s knockout stage. Senegal needs to win by at least three goals to be in a position to move on and Iraq needs six. Iraq started the first half with the ball.

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1:08 p.m.

Canada has guaranteed itself $11 million in FIFA World Cup prize money heading into Sunday’s Round of 32 match against South Africa in Los Angeles. A victory would send Canada to a Round of 16 match in Houston against the winner of Monday’s Netherlands-Morocco game and increase its performance payout to $15 million. A quarterfinal appearance is worth $19 million, with $27 million for fourth place, $29 million for third, $33 million for the runner-up and $50 million for the champion. Canada, which failed to get out of its group in 2022, collected $9 million in prize money in Qatar. FIFA also paid each of the 48 participating teams $2.5 million in preparation funding.

12:30 p.m.

Iran and Egypt are playing tonight in Seattle despite both countries objecting to the city’s World Cup “Pride Match” branding and asking FIFA to cancel related celebrations. Rainbow flags will still be permitted inside the stadium under FIFA policy, while both teams have said their focus is on the match. Both teams enter the night still alive in Group G, making the game meaningful on the field as well as off it.

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12:24 p.m.

Toronto wraps up its FIFA World Cup group-stage schedule today as Senegal faces Iraq, with both teams needing a win to keep their knockout-round hopes alive. City officials say the tournament has showcased Toronto’s diversity and hospitality, while police report few major security issues despite large crowds. Local businesses, including the iconic Cafe Diplomatico, say World Cup crowds have provided a welcome boost and expect interest to grow as the tournament reaches the knockout stage.

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9:30 a.m.

Canada trains in Vancouver today for the final time on Canadian soil before departing for Los Angeles. The Canadians will face South Africa on Sunday in the first World Cup knockout match in the history of the men’s program. Head coach Jesse Marsch is expected to meet with reporters following today’s session. Captain Alphonso Davies continues to work toward a return after missing the group stage with a hamstring injury. The team will not return to Canada this tournament, with a potential Round of 16 match set for Houston against the winner of Monday’s Netherlands-Morocco game.

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9:30 a.m.

The final World Cup group-stage games in Canada are on tap today, with Toronto hosting Senegal against Iraq, 3 p.m., and Vancouver welcoming New Zealand and Belgium, 11 p.m., before the tournament shifts exclusively to the knockout stage. The day’s marquee matchup sees Erling Haaland and Norway take on Kylian Mbappé and France, at 3 p.m., in Foxborough, Mass., while Spain faces Uruguay, at 8 p.m., with first place in Group H on the line. Belgium meets New Zealand, 11 p.m., in a likely must-win game for both teams, while Egypt and Iran square off in Seattle in the other late game with top spot in Group G at stake.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2026.

The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

The Latest from the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada

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