On matchday 14 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, you could probably guess the winners just by looking at the names on the teamsheet. This is the one matchday that seemed to follow the script, offering up few surprises for the neutral fan. Well, one surprise at least.
Still, it was a day full of action and goals! How could it not be? That’s what the World Cup is about! It’s just that, at this stage of the tournament, most teams have gotten over their early jitters and adjusted to the level of the competition.
Not so many shock results as matchday five, for example.
Here’s how it all went down.
Switzerland weather an assault from resurgent Canada
This was supposed to be the heavyweight clash of the matchday. Well, everything is relative. Switzerland started strong, managing a few chances early and dominating possession. Despite this, Canada managed to fight back. Playing direct football, the Jesse Marsch’s team made forays into the box, though shooting was an issue. None of the shots taken by the Canadian forwards could trouble Gregor Kobel in goal.
The second half started less than ideally for the hosts. Rubén Vargas made it 1-0 off a great cutback by Johan Manzambi. It got worse ten minutes later, when Breel Embolo laid the ball off for Johan Manzambi to fire past the keeper. 2-0 to the Swiss.
Jesse Marsch made his subs, and bringing on Promise David after the hydration break turned out to be the masterstroke. The striker made it 2-1 with his first touch after coming on, setting up for a tense final minutes. The Canadians had the backing of the home crowd in BC Place, channeling it to pressure the Swiss goal for prolonged periods, a huge turnaround from earlier in the half.
In the end, it came too late, as the Swiss managed to see out their win. The game saw them finish top of the group and confirmed for the knockout stages. Canada proceed in 2nd place.
Bosnia and Herzegovina do the job vs Qatar
One-sided. That’s really all you can say about this one. At least at first. Qatar were on the back foot from minute one and it seemed like they would never get off it. Kerim Alajbegović broke the dam shortly after the hydration break, and Edin Džeko soon made it 2-0 thanks to a nasty deflection that was deservedly ruled an own goal.
Then something surprising happened. B&H backed off which allowed Qatar to send the ball skidding across the box. Edmilson Jr. managed to hit it cleanly, squaring it inside for Hassan Al-Haydos to make it 2-1. It didn’t stop there. Two minutes into added time, Qatar even hit the post! A huge turnaround that saw the first half end 2-1.
The second half was a lot more even than the first, with both teams trading barbs at either end. Unfortunately, Bosnia were a little too much for the Qataris, making it 3-1 around the 80th minute. This was enough to clinch the result, securing 3rd place for B&H and a possible berth to the knockouts.
Final group standings: (1) Switzerland (2) Canada (3) Bosnia and Herzegovina (4) Qatar
Morocco come from behind to topple Haiti
This game shouldn’t have been half as close as it was. Proceedings started auspiciously for Haiti, with Lenny Joseph scoring a wonderful backheel to make it 1-0 just ten minutes in. Morocco looked shell shocked.
Then the inevitable happened. Incoming Bayern Munich signing Ismael Saibari made a slaloming run on the left hand side, crossing it into the box for Achraf Hakimi to head into the net. Messy way to get an equalizer but Morocco were fine with taking it.
Somehow Haiti then went down the other end and scored a screamer courtesy of Wilson Isidor in the 43rd minute. This second lead didn’t last long. Shortly afterward, Ismael Saibari made it 2-2 thanks to a wonderful run and cutback by Hakimi. 2-2 at halftime.
The second half started with intense Moroccan pressure. However, Haiti managed to make it to the hydration break without conceding a third. Then Morocco subbed in Soufiane Rahimi, who scored from a corner in the 78th minute. Rahimi was again involved in the fourth goal, just barely keeping to ball in for Gessime Yassine to tap it in.
In the end, it turned out to be a routine scoreline for Morocco, but far from a routine win. Haiti gave them a fright.
Brazil wobble but end up comfortable winners against Scotland
A gift. That is the only way to describe Brazil’s opener vs Scotland. Defender Scott McKenna got caught out in possession, allowing Rayan to dispossess him and pass to Vinícius Júnior who tapped it in easily. It could haven worse later in the half, when VAR saved Jack Hendry some blushes when he was dispossessed near his box.
Otherwise it was a rather even game in the first half, with the Scots often having the momentum on their side. Then, just before halftime, sloppy defending at the back allowed Vinícius Júnior to double Brazil’s lead. Looking at how the first 45 went, it was a much tougher game for the South American side than the scoreline suggests. Scotland had their chances, they just couldn’t make it happen.
Scotland kept the momentum in the second half. Of course it wasn’t enough, and Brazil yet again scored with Matheus Cunha making it 3-0 right on hour mark. That was the final goal of the game, sealing top spot in the group for Brazil and relegating Scotland to a precarious position in 3rd place.
Final group standings: (1) Brazil (2) Morocco (3) Scotland (4) Haiti
South Africa shock South Korea and head into the knockouts
The first half was uneventful. Aside from a moment where South Africa forced a double save from Korean keeper Kim Seung-gyu, there was not much to talk about.
The second half brought the fireworks. South Africa seemed invigorated by the break, and stunned the Asian side at the 63rd minute courtesy of a strike by Thapelo Maseko. South Korea seemed rattled by the setback, and were unable to mount a proper response. They will be disappointed by how they conducted the game, the loss ending up critical as it saw South Africa leapfrog them into 2nd place.
Of all the games on the night, this was the only upset.
Mexico make short work of Czechia
One of the more promising games of the night, this game saw the hosts Mexico pitted against a relatively good team in Czechia. However the Mexicans decided to rotate their squad with a view to the knockouts. This lead to a rather dour first half, lacking goals, where both teams exchanged momentum though the hosts had the better of it.
Then, ten minutes into the second half, the Mexicans found the breakthrough, courtesy of a run by left-back Mateo Chávez. This goal put the Czechs far behind, perhaps too far to catch up. The nail met the coffin minutes later, when a slapstick sequence of proceedings allowed Julián Quiñones to make it 2-0. A third by Álvaro Fidalgo in the dying moments of added time secured all three points for the Mexicans, and condemned Czechia to a last place finish in their group.
Final group standings: (1) Mexico (2) South Africa (3) South Korea (4) Czechia
The scales (mostly) balance themselves out
Eventually, we all knew this was going to happen. The bigger, better teams would figure things out, and the underdogs would get sidelined. South Africa went against the grain, beating South Korea to qualify 2nd, but they were the exception. Teams like Scotland, Haiti, and Czechia did their best. They gave it everything they had.
At this level, that just isn’t good enough.
In the end, the games largely ended as everyone expected. With the first groups now concluded, there are no surprise names headed for the knockouts, just the favorites and the usual suspects. The group stage of this new expanded format World Cup was meant to showcase the smaller nations, and it did that. To a point. Now the culling has started, and the underdog stories are sputtering to a halt.
This only proves one thing. The World Cup is entering a new phase.
