World Cup quarter-finals set stage for heavyweight knockout clashes

France, Spain, England and Argentina headline a World Cup quarter-final field that also includes Morocco, Belgium, Norway and Switzerland, with all four matches set in the United States from Thursday, July 9, through Saturday, July 11.

A tournament built for strain

This is the first men’s World Cup to feature 48 teams and 104 matches, staged across Canada, Mexico and the United States as a 23rd edition that adds an extra knockout round before the field reaches the final stretch. The expanded format gives more nations a chance to survive into June and July, but it also means the teams left now have already navigated a longer road to get to the quarter-finals.

The knockout rounds have already been volatile. Germany fell on penalties to Paraguay, Morocco beat Canada 3-0, Spain beat Austria 3-0, England edged Congo DR 2-1 after extra time, Argentina beat Egypt 3-2 after penalties, and Switzerland eliminated Colombia 4-3 in a shootout after a scoreless draw.

The quarter-final slate

The schedule is tight, with one match on Thursday, one on Friday and a Saturday double-header, all on U.S. soil. The venue map has shifted entirely into the American host cities for the last eight, with the semifinals following in Dallas and Atlanta, and the final waiting at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on July 19.

• Thursday, July 9: France vs Morocco, 1:00 PM at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. ESPN lists tickets as low as $1,049.

• Friday, July 10: Spain vs Belgium, 12:00 PM at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. ESPN lists tickets as low as $1,275.

• Saturday, July 11: Norway vs England, 2:00 PM at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. ESPN lists tickets as low as $1,823.

• Saturday, July 11: Argentina vs Switzerland, 6:00 PM at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. ESPN lists tickets as low as $1,579.

The winners will move straight into the semifinals on July 14 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and July 15 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The tournament then continues with the third-place match in Miami Gardens on July 18 and the final the next day in New Jersey.

The storylines that define the round

The clearest revenge angle belongs to France and Morocco. Morocco enter the match seeking to avenge their 2022 semifinal loss to France as the Atlas Lions push for a second straight run to the World Cup’s last four.

The headline striker duel sits in Miami, where England meet Norway. Harry Kane and Erling Haaland are the obvious focal points of that tie, and the matchup lands after England’s 3-2 win over Mexico and Norway’s 2-1 upset of Brazil.

What this last eight says about the World Cup

Six European sides are still alive, while Morocco keeps Africa in the frame and Argentina keeps South America in the title picture.