This Sunday’s World Cup schedule change marks the official transition from the group stage to the high-stakes knockout phase.
The 2026 World Cup has treated fans to four games a day across Mexico, the United States, and Canada for the last two weeks.
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For UK-based viewers, the fixtures have demanded a shift in sleep schedules, with games typically kicking off at 6pm, 9pm, 1am, and 3am.
However, focus is now turning to the opening fixture of the Round of 32, which takes place on Sunday, June 28.
The group stages officially wrap up on Day 17 of the World Cup, late on Saturday night (3am Sunday for UK fans) with the final Group J matches.
Co-hosts Canada will then face South Africa in the first match of the knockout phase.
The game will kick-off at 8pm UK time at SoFi Stadium in California.
There will no further games on Day 18 of the tournament with the next knockout game being held at NRG Stadium in Houston at 6pm UK time on Monday.
A relentless schedule of two to three matches a day will continue there after as the competition accelerates towards the final.
South Africa have reached the knockout phase for the first time in their history, after a rollercoaster journey throughout the group stage.
An opening game against Mexico saw a 2-0 defeat and featured two red cards for midfielders Themba Zwane and Sphephelo Sithole.
However, they claimed a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic and upset South Korea in a decisive clash with a 1-0 victory.
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Jesse Marsch’s side had a much simpler route, claiming four points in their first two fixtures, including a 6-0 domination over Qatar which featured a hat-trick from Juventus star Jonathan David.
Why the schedule has changed?
Due to FIFA expanding the competition to a 48-team format, the World Cup is introducing a round of 32 for the first time.
In previous editions, the top two teams progressed from eight groups into the round of 16.
Due to the tournament being longer, teams are following a strict window of recovery.
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Canada vs South Africa: What’s been said?
Due to Canada’s defeat to Switzerland, it means they missed out on their chance to play this historic knockout fixture in front of a home crowd.
Ahead of the game, Marsch said: “Look, it’s been awesome, and that’s the disappointment, is we just want to continue the energy that’s taken place here in Canada.
“I’ve been through these World Cups, and I’ve been through different big moments in my career, and I know that when you get one big win, like building on that is so important.
“I’m disappointed that we weren’t able to get a win or a draw to keep us here. I’m so thankful for the energy in the country, and certainly in the stadium here.
“But we’re going to go to LA, we’re going to go where it’s probably going to be an away crowd, and it’ll be a little bit tougher, but we still want to electrify our country and play really well down there, and go after it.
“Still, we’re exactly where we want to be. We finished second in the group, we’re in the knockout phase, and now let’s go for it.”
