World Cup 2026: Will changes spoil the final of the group?

Using head-to-head as the first match is nothing new. UEFA supports him in all competitions.

The theory behind it is how teams differ in their inter-game scores, filtering out large score lines from other matches that can distort goal difference.

Despite accounting for half the number of competing teams, since 2016 the Euros have been used in a similar fashion to the World Cup, overtaking some of the third-placed teams.

At Euro 2016, Italy topped the group and lost to Ukraine after two games.

It happened in one group at Euro 2020, creating a dead tire between the Netherlands and North Macedonia.

Portugal and Spain topped their group while Poland were eliminated from Euro 2024.

However, more teams have been eliminated or progressed to the round of 32 in this World Cup (eight) compared to the total of three Euros (seven).

Mexico, USA, Germany and Argentina are locked in group winners.

Haiti, Turkey, Tunisia and Jordan know that they are going home on the plane.

USA vs. Turkey and Argentina vs. Jordan are dead tires, group winners, and eliminated teams.

More may follow on Tuesday. England/Ghana and Colombia are likely to take the top spot, while Croatia/Panama and Uzbekistan are likely to drop out.

Only Canada and Qatar have been eliminated from the 2022 World Cup after two rounds.

What happens if we stick our heads in the previous version of the competition and add a third stage?

France, Brazil and Portugal emerged as group winners after two matches – a total of five teams were drawn.

Why did this happen? It may indicate that there is a difference in quality that allowed some countries to coast through the World Cup.

The order of events can also be affected; If the strongest teams play the weakest first, they are more likely to collect six points.