The World Cup Round of 16 was already sorted, and the writers singled out Mexico vs England, Spain vs Portugal and Brazil vs Norway as the ties worth circling first. With all three co-hosts still alive, the bracket carried more than one route to a quarter-finals place.
Spain, Portugal and the Ronaldo thread
Stuart James called Spain against Portugal the tie with “the makings of an absolute classic,” and Oliver Kay went straight to “Portugal vs Spain.” Kay also described it as “Possibly not as thrilling, but high-quality.” That split mattered because the bracket offered more than one elite matchup, but not every writer ranked the same game at the top.
Lukas Weese chose Portugal vs. Spain as well, with “Cristiano Ronaldo in his last World Cup, continuing the pursuit of the elusive trophy” and “Lamine Yamal trying to win his first World Cup” giving the meeting extra edge. Those are the kinds of details that turn a heavyweight Round of 16 tie into a defining stage for both teams.
Mexico and England at Azteca
Mexico vs England drew the widest support. Laura Williamson picked “Mexico vs England… whenever the kick-off time is!”, while Tim Spiers wrote, “For the occasion, drama and tension, it’s Mexico vs. England.” Dermot Corrigan went even further: “There is something uniquely exciting about Mexico against England at the Azteca, it feels like a game which is going to be remembered for decades to come.”
Nick Miller added one more reason the game stood out, saying “The home advantages afforded to Mexico at the very least level out the disparity in ability between the two sets of players, and the Azteca has sounded feral so far.” Mexico’s home setting at the Azteca is why several writers pushed this tie above the rest, even with Spain and Portugal in the same round.
U.S., Belgium and the bracket
The Round of 16 also kept the U.S. against Belgium and Canada against Morocco in play, with all three co-hosts still present. Tim Spiers called U.S. vs. Belgium “The most entertaining match could actually be the U.S. against Belgium, two evenly-matched teams who score plenty (19 in eight matches combined so far).” Carl Anka took a longer view, saying victory “on home soil, over a top 10-ranked European side” would be the kind of legacy result the U.S. needs in “the next five to ten years.”
Phil Hay chose Brazil versus Norway, writing “Brazil versus Norway, because Brazil look beatable in patches and the world’s favourite Viking is loving the World Cup.” The bracket had already produced a sharp divide in opinion: some writers led with the classic feel of Spain vs Portugal, but several still rated Mexico vs England as the most compelling tie, which left the next question hanging over the round — which of these picks would survive long enough to reach the quarter-finals?
