The World Cup schedule has tightened around the knockout cutoff, with the top two in each group and the eight best third-placed teams moving into the last 32. Five teams are already through as third-placed sides, while South Korea must wait on three points to learn whether they advance.
Mexico are through as group winners with a perfect record, and they will face a third-placed team from Group C, Group E, Group F, Group H or Group I at Estadio Azteca. South Africa finished second on four points and will meet Canada at Los Angeles Stadium on Sunday 28 June at noon local time, 8pm BST.
Third-place ranking rules
Third-placed teams are sorted by points, goal difference, goals scored, fair-play status and Fifa ranking. The source says four points will now be enough to qualify, which is the line several teams are trying to reach as the group stage nears its end.
That leaves a split picture. Sweden, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ecuador, Paraguay and Senegal are through to the last 32 as third-placed teams, while Uruguay are out because they cannot finish among the top-eight third-place teams. South Korea sit in the middle of that divide: third with three points, but not yet safe.
Knockout fixtures in place
Several knockout ties are already set. Switzerland, group winners, will face a third-placed team from Groups E, F, G, I or J in Vancouver on Thursday 2 July at 4am BST Friday 3 July. Bosnia and Herzegovina will play USA in San Francisco at 6pm local time on Wednesday 1 July, 1am BST Thursday 2 July.
Brazil have also won their group and meet Japan in Houston on Monday 29 June at noon local time, 6pm BST. Morocco face the Netherlands in Monterrey at 7pm local time on Monday 29 June, 2am BST Tuesday 30 July, while Australia meet Egypt in Dallas at 1pm local time, 9pm BST on Friday 3 July, 4am AEST on Saturday 4 July.
Paraguay and Germany
Paraguay are through as one of the top-eight third-placed teams and will meet Germany in Boston on Monday 29 June at 4.30pm local time, 9.30pm BST. That is the practical edge of this stage now: a team can still reach the last 32 without winning its group, but the margin is already narrow enough that one more result can decide who keeps moving and who stops here.
World Cup Schedule outlook also runs through the group winners who have already locked in their route, and World Cup Schedule notes around Ghana show how tight the remaining third-place race has become.
