With the World Cup whittling down from 48 teams to 32 teams after an exciting group stage slate, the first two knockout round matches in Arlington are set.
On Tuesday, June 30, Ivory Coast will take on Norway with kickoff set at 12 p.m. in Arlington. On Friday, July 3, Australia will take on Egypt with kickoff set at 1 p.m. in Arlington.
Ivory Coast arrives after a successful group stage slate that saw “The Elephants” secure wins over Ecuador and Curaçao along with securing an upset draw against world power Germany. The squad is led by 19-year-old rising star Yan Diomande of Red Bull Leipzig. While he is still searching for his first World Cup goal, he did record an assist in a 2-0 win over Curaçao on June 25.
Norway makes its way to Arlington after finishing second in arguably the toughest group in the tournament. Despite a 4-1 loss to France in a match where Norway rested most of its stars, wins over defending African champions Senegal (3-2) and Iraq (4-1) secured a second-place finish in Group I. The squad is led by one of the best strikers in the world, 6-foot-4 Erling Haaland of Manchester City. In just two matches in the tournament, Haaland has scored four goals.
Australia is in the knockout round for the second consecutive World Cup and just the third time in the history of the “Socceroos”. Despite a 2-0 loss to the United States on June 19, Australia was able to secure the second-place spot in Group D after a 2-0 win over Türkiye and a 0-0 draw against Paraguay.
Egypt barely escaped the group stage after a controversial disallowed goal in its final match against Iran paved the way for a 1-1 draw on Friday night and a spot into the Round of 32. The result followed a 1-1 draw to Belgium and a 3-1 win over New Zealand earlier in the tournament. The squad is led by veteran 34-year-old Mohamed Salah who has scored one goal and assisted on two more scores for “The Pharaohs”.
What countries could come to Arlington later in the tournament?
After the Round of 32, only two matches remain at AT&T Stadium in the 2026 World Cup: one in the Round of 16 and one semifinal.
In the Round of 16, the winners of Spain vs. Austria and Portugal vs. Croatia will head to Arlington for a pivotal European showdown. If the favorites move on, Spain and Portugal would provide one of the more entertaining clashes in the entire tournament. However, Croatia and Austria serve as worthy opening round tests before that matchup can become reality.
The possible teams in the semifinal include Germany, Paraguay, France, Sweden, South Africa, Canada, Netherlands, Morocco, Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Austria, United States, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium and Senegal.
This story was originally published June 27, 2026 at 11:40 AM.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Nick Harris is the Dallas Cowboys beat reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has experience working on the beat for DallasCowboys.com and previous work experience at Yahoo Sports/Rivals and 247Sports.