2022 FIFA World Cup knockout stage
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The knockout stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup was the second and final stage of the competition, following the group stage. Played from 3 to 18 December, the knockout stage ended with the final, held at Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar.[1] The top two teams from each group advanced to the knockout stage to compete in a single-elimination tournament. There were 16 matches in the knockout stage, including a third place play-off played between the two losing teams of the semi-finals.[2]
Format[edit]
The knockout stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup was contested between 16 teams that qualified from the group stage. Matches in the knockout stage were played to a finish. If the score of a match was level at the end of 90 minutes of playing time, extra time was played. If, after two periods of 15 minutes, the scores were still tied, the match was decided by a penalty shoot-out.[2] All times listed are local in Arabia Standard Time (UTC+3).[1]
Qualified teams[edit]
The top two placed teams from each of the eight groups qualified for the knockout stage.[2]
| Group | Winners | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|
| A |  Netherlands |  Senegal |
| B |  England |  United States |
| C |  Argentina |  Poland |
| D |  France |  Australia |
| E |  Japan |  Spain |
| F |  Morocco |  Croatia |
| G |  Brazil |  Switzerland |
| H |  Portugal |  South Korea |
Bracket[edit]
The tournament bracket is shown below, with bold denoting the winners of each match.[3]
| Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||
| 3 December – Al Rayyan (KIS) | ||||||||||||||
| Netherlands | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 9 December – Lusail | ||||||||||||||
| United States | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Netherlands | 2 (3) | |||||||||||||
| 3 December – Al Rayyan (ABAS) | ||||||||||||||
| Argentina (p) | 2 (4) | |||||||||||||
| Argentina | 2 | |||||||||||||
| 13 December – Lusail | ||||||||||||||
| Australia | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Argentina | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 5 December – Al Wakrah | ||||||||||||||
| Croatia | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Japan | 1 (1) | |||||||||||||
| 9 December – Al Rayyan (ECS) | ||||||||||||||
| Croatia (p) | 1 (3) | |||||||||||||
| Croatia (p) | 1 (4) | |||||||||||||
| 5 December – Doha (S974) | ||||||||||||||
| Brazil | 1 (2) | |||||||||||||
| Brazil | 4 | |||||||||||||
| 18 December – Lusail | ||||||||||||||
| South Korea | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Argentina (p) | 3 (4) | |||||||||||||
| 4 December – Al Khor | ||||||||||||||
| France | 3 (2) | |||||||||||||
| England | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 10 December – Al Khor | ||||||||||||||
| Senegal | 0 | |||||||||||||
| England | 1 | |||||||||||||
| 4 December – Doha (ATS) | ||||||||||||||
| France | 2 | |||||||||||||
| France | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 14 December – Al Khor | ||||||||||||||
| Poland | 1 | |||||||||||||
| France | 2 | |||||||||||||
| 6 December – Al Rayyan (ECS) | ||||||||||||||
| Morocco | 0 | Third place play-off | ||||||||||||
| Morocco (p) | 0 (3) | |||||||||||||
| 10 December – Doha (ATS) | 17 December – Al Rayyan (KIS) | |||||||||||||
| Spain | 0 (0) | |||||||||||||
| Morocco | 1 | Croatia | 2 | |||||||||||
| 6 December – Lusail | ||||||||||||||
| Portugal | 0 | Morocco | 1 | |||||||||||
| Portugal | 6 | |||||||||||||
| Switzerland | 1 | |||||||||||||
Round of 16[edit]
Netherlands vs United States[edit]
The teams had previously met five times, with the Netherlands winning the first four encounters. They most recently met in a June 2015 friendly, with the United States winning 4–3.[4]
Early on in the contest, Christian Pulisic was sent through on goal for the United States but saw his shot saved by the outstretched leg of goalkeeper Andries Noppert. The Netherlands then went in front in the 10th minute, when Memphis Depay received a ball from the right from Denzel Dumfries and finished into the left corner of the net after a sequence of passes.[5] In added time in the first half, Daley Blind made it 2–0 for the Dutch with another low finish, receiving the ball on the right from Dumfries for his second assist of the game. In the 76th minute, the United States pulled a goal back when Haji Wright finished with a deflection from Christian Pulisic's looped cross at the far post. Dumfries sealed the win with a third goal for the Netherlands five minutes later, adding to his two assists with a side-footed finish at the far post from Blind's cross.[6]
| Netherlands | 3–1 | United States |
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| Report |
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          Netherlands |      United States |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Argentina vs Australia[edit]
The teams had previously met seven times, with Argentina winning five, drawing one, and losing one of these encounters. The sides notably met in the 1994 FIFA World Cup inter-confederation play-off, which Argentina won 2–1 on aggregate. They also faced off in Argentina's 4–2 win at the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup. Their most recent meeting was in a September 2007 friendly, with Argentina winning 1–0.[8]
On his 1,000th career appearance, Lionel Messi scored his 789th career goal and first in a World Cup knockout stage, giving Argentina the lead in the 35th minute with a low left-footed finish into the left corner. Julián Álvarez made it 2–0 in the 57th minute when he pounced on an error by Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan to finish low to the net past the stranded goalkeeper.[9] Australia pulled a goal back in the 77th minute when Craig Goodwin's strike took a huge deflection off Enzo Fernández and ended up in the right corner of the net.[10] Australia had chances to level the match, first when Aziz Behich dribbled past four players before his shot was blocked by Lisandro Martínez, then in added time when Garang Kuol had a shot saved at close range by Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez. Argentina also spurned several opportunities to add to their advantage, with substitute Lautaro Martínez guilty of squandering multiple chances.[11]
     Argentina |     Australia |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
France vs Poland[edit]
The teams had met sixteen times prior to this match, with France winning eight and Poland winning three of these encounters, along with five draws. Poland's three victories included the 1982 World Cup third-place play-off, which they won 3–2. The sides most recently met in a friendly in June 2011, won by France 1–0.[13]
After Olivier Giroud missed a chance for France in front of goal off a cross from Ousmane Dembélé, Poland nearly opened the scoring later in the first half when Piotr Zieliński saw two close-range shots blocked in quick succession. In the 44th minute, Giroud received a pass from Kylian Mbappé before firing low to the right corner of the net to put France into the lead, in the process also breaking the all-time French scoring record with his 52nd goal for the nation. Mbappé made it 2–0 in the 74th minute, when he received the ball on the left just inside the penalty area before firing powerfully into the top left corner of the net. Mbappé got his second of the game in the first minute of added time with a right-footed curling finish past goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny. In the final minute of the match, Robert Lewandowski pulled a goal back for Poland to make it 3–1 with a penalty low to the left corner, awarded after a handball by Dayot Upamecano; goalkeeper Hugo Lloris saved Lewandowski's initial attempt, but it was retaken after Lloris was deemed to have left his goal line too early.[14]
| France | 3–1 | Poland |
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| Report |
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    France |     Poland |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
England vs Senegal[edit]
This was the first ever meeting between the sides.[16] It was also the first time England faced an African opposition in the World Cup knockout stage since a 1990 quarter-final win over Cameroon.
After a tight opening period where Senegal's Boulaye Dia saw his strike saved by goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, England went in front in the 38th minute, when Jordan Henderson scored low into the net from twelve yards off of a pass from Jude Bellingham on the left. In added time in the first half, reigning World Cup Golden Boot winner Harry Kane made it 2–0 with his first goal of the tournament, firing into the net from the right after a pass from Phil Foden. In the 57th minute, Foden crossed from the left for Bukayo Saka to make it 3–0 with a clipped left-footed finish over Senegal goalkeeper Édouard Mendy.[17]
     England |     Senegal |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Japan vs Croatia[edit]
The teams had previously met three times, with a draw and a win for each side. Two of these encounters were in World Cup group stages: Croatia won 1–0 in 1998, and the teams drew 0–0 in 2006. The latter draw was the most recent encounter between the two.[19]
In the 43rd minute, Daizen Maeda scored the opener for Japan with a low finish in the penalty area, after the ball was knocked back to him from the left. Ten minutes into the second half, Ivan Perišić equalised when he headed powerfully to the right corner of the net after a cross from Dejan Lovren on the right. The match saw no further goals scored either in the ninety minutes or during extra time and thus went to a penalty shoot-out. Japan missed three of their four penalties, with all three saved by goalkeeper Dominik Livaković. After Marko Livaja's effort struck the post, Mario Pašalić scored the winning spot kick with a low shot to the left, as Croatia won the shoot-out 3–1.[20] Livaković became the third goalkeeper to make three saves in a World Cup shoot-out, after Ricardo for Portugal in 2006 and his fellow countryman Danijel Subašić in 2018.[21]
     Japan |     Croatia |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Brazil vs South Korea[edit]
The teams had previously met seven times, with Brazil winning six and South Korea winning one of these encounters. The most recent meeting was in June 2022, a 5–1 friendly win for Brazil.[23]
Vinícius Júnior opened the scoring for Brazil in the 7th minute, when he converted a side-footed shot to the right of the net past three Korean defenders on the line. Brazil were awarded a penalty six minutes later when Richarlison was fouled just inside the penalty area, which the returning Neymar scored with a low shot to the right corner of the goalkeeper, who didn't move. Richarlison made it 3–0 in the 29th minute when he controlled the ball with his head before receiving the ball back from Thiago Silva and passing into the left corner of the net. Lucas Paquetá got Brazil's fourth goal before half-time in the 36th minute, volleying low into the left corner of the net with his right foot after a cross from Vinícius Júnior on the left. In the second half, South Korea pulled a goal back when Paik Seung-ho finished into the right of the net from thirty yards out. With ten minutes left and leading by three goals, Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson was substituted for third-choice keeper Weverton, making Brazil the first team to ever use 26 different players play time in one World Cup.[24][25]
The match was the last held at the Stadium 974 before its demolition.[26]
| Brazil | 4–1 | South Korea |
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| Report |
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     Brazil |     South Korea |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Morocco vs Spain[edit]
The teams had met in three previous international matches, with two wins for Spain and one draw. Spain won both legs of the 1962 World Cup inter-continental play-off, while the sides' most recent meeting was a 2–2 draw in the 2018 World Cup group stage.[28]
After a goalless 120 minutes that were dominated in possession by Spain but saw few chances created, the match went to a penalty shoot-out. Spain failed to convert any of their three attempts, with goalkeeper Yassine Bounou saving two of them from Sergio Busquets and Carlos Soler, and Pablo Sarabia hitting the post, whilst Morocco scored three out of four, including the winning penalty from Achraf Hakimi via a panenka kick in the middle of the goal, seeing Morocco progress to the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in history.[29]
Morocco also became the first Arab country to reach the quarter-finals, and just the fourth African nation – after Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010 – to qualify for the last eight.[30] Additionally, Morocco manager Walid Regragui became the first African and first Arab head coach to progress this far at a World Cup.[31][32] Spain became just the second team to fail to convert a single attempt in a World Cup penalty shoot-out, after Switzerland lost to Ukraine in 2006 by exactly the same scoreline at the very same phase.
     Morocco |      Spain |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Portugal vs Switzerland[edit]
The teams had met 25 times, with nine wins for Portugal, eleven wins for Switzerland, and five draws. The sides faced off in several editions of World Cup qualification, including 1938, 1970, 1990, 1994, and 2018. Their most recent meeting was in June 2022, with Switzerland winning 1–0 in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League A.[34]
Captain Cristiano Ronaldo was left out of the starting line-up for Portugal – a first in major tournaments since their UEFA Euro 2008 group stage defeat, also against Switzerland – with Gonçalo Ramos named instead to make his first start.[35]
After Portugal took a 2–0 first-half lead via goals from Ramos and Pepe, Ramos would score a further two efforts – either side of goals by Raphaël Guerreiro (assisted by Ramos) and Swiss defender Manuel Akanji – in the second half to become the first hat-trick scorer of the 2022 World Cup, the first player to score a hat-trick on their debut World Cup start since Miroslav Klose in 2002, and the youngest World Cup hat-trick scorer since Flórián Albert in 1962. A late long-range strike from substitute Rafael Leão concluded a 6–1 Portuguese victory as they reached the quarter-finals for the first time since 2006.
The result equalled Switzerland's 5–0 defeat to West Germany in 1966 as their biggest ever World Cup loss. In getting Portugal's second goal, Pepe became the oldest player to ever score in the World Cup knockout stage,[36] and the second-oldest to have scored at any stage of the World Cup, behind only Roger Milla, who scored the consolation goal in Cameroon's thumping by the opposite scoreline in the 1994 group stage against Russia.[37]
| Portugal | 6–1 | Switzerland |
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     Portugal |      Switzerland |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Quarter-finals[edit]
Croatia vs Brazil[edit]
The teams had met on four previous occasions, with three wins for Brazil and one draw. Two of these encounters took place in the World Cup group stage, with Brazil winning both matches: 1–0 in 2006 and 3–1 in 2014 (Brazil was hosting the World Cup at the time, with the victory being the opening match of that tournament).[39]
Brazil created the majority of the game's chances, forcing Croatian keeper Dominik Livaković into eleven saves, the most in a single match at the tournament. Early in the second half, a handball in the Croatian penalty area by Croatian defender Josip Juranović was dismissed by the referee after being deemed accidental. Following a scoreless ninety minutes, Neymar finally claimed the opener just before half-time of extra time with his 77th international goal, bringing him level with Péle as the nation's all-time top scorer; after receiving the ball back from Lucas Paquetá, Neymar rounded Livaković and shot high into the net from the right side of the penalty area. A defensive lapse then cost Brazil their lead, as Bruno Petković equalised for Croatia three minutes from the end; after picking out Mislav Oršić's cross on the left flank, he fired a shot into the corner of the net that took a deflection off the leg of Brazilian defender Marquinhos. This would be Croatia's only shot on target of the game. In the subsequent penalty shoot-out, Croatia scored all four of their attempts, while Brazil's first kicker Rodrygo had his shot saved by Livaković diving to his left, before Marquinhos hit his penalty low against the left post to confirm Brazil's elimination.[40]
Croatia qualified for their second successive World Cup semi-finals and their third ever, while Brazil exited the tournament at the hands of a European team for the fifth consecutive edition; their 2002 World Cup final triumph against Germany remained their last knockout stage win against European opposition. In the same period, Brazil was eliminated at the quarter-final stage in all four World Cup tournaments they played away from home, excluding a fourth-place finish at the 2014 tournament which they hosted.
Croatia |  Brazil |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Netherlands vs Argentina[edit]
This was the tenth meeting between the teams, continuing a historic rivalry among the two nations. The Netherlands had won four of the previous nine encounters, Argentina had won one, and the remaining four matches were draws. The sides had faced off five previous times in World Cup matches; a 4–0 win for the Dutch in the second group stage in 1974 was replied to with a 3–1 Argentine victory in the 1978 final. The Netherlands then won 2–1 in the 1998 quarter-finals, prior to goalless draws in the 2006 group stage and the 2014 semi-finals, with the Argentines winning the latter tie 4–2 on penalties.[42]
Nahuel Molina opened the score for Argentina after 35 minutes, when he received a through ball in traffic from Lionel Messi and flicked it low past advancing goalkeeper Andries Noppert. In the 73rd minute, after Marcos Acuña had been fouled in the penalty area by Denzel Dumfries, Messi scored the resulting penalty to the right of the net to double Argentina's advantage. After being subbed on by the Netherlands in the 78th minute, Wout Weghorst pulled a goal back just five minutes later, converting a downward header via a cross on the right from Steven Berghuis.[43] He then scored an equaliser in the eleventh minute of added time, when a late Dutch free kick on the edge of Argentina's penalty area was played by Teun Koopmeiners directly to Weghorst as he stood in a decoy wall, sending the match to extra time. Argentina controlled the majority of the thirty-minute period, which saw Enzo Fernández strike the post in its dying moments, but the sides could ultimately not be separated and thus entered a penalty shoot-out, just as they had in 2014.[44]
In the shoot-out, Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez saved both of the Netherlands' first two attempts from Virgil van Dijk and Berghuis, as Argentina scored twice to earn a 2–0 advantage. After Fernández missed the chance to send his side through with their fourth penalty, Lautaro Martínez scored Argentina's subsequent spot kick to end the shoot-out 4–3 in their favour and progress to the semi-finals.
There were a number of contested incidents between the sides both during and after the match that garnered much discussion. Players clashed on multiple occasions across the contest, during both regulation and the subsequent shoot-out.[45][46] Messi was also involved in confrontations with Dutch manager Louis van Gaal and an unwanted encounter with Weghorst during his post-match interview.[47]
In total, the match saw a total of eighteen yellow cards brandished, breaking the World Cup record of sixteen that was set in another Dutch knockout defeat, their infamous round of 16 game against Portugal in 2006 (in addition to the seventeen yellow cards shown in the player lineups below, Walter Samuel of Argentina's coaching staff was shown a yellow card in the 31st minute).[48] Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz received criticism for his failure to control the match, with many fans and media outlets considering his yellow cards to be too lenient for some instances that could have seen players sent off, while other incidents were ignored altogether.[49] The amount of yellows issued by Mateu Lahoz was also criticised.[50]
Because of these events, the match has been referred to as the Battle of Lusail, in reference to the aforementioned 2006 contest between Portugal and the Netherlands that had been dubbed "The Battle of Nuremberg".[51][48]
The match was also marred by the controversial death of American sportswriter Grant Wahl after he collapsed near the end of the match while watching in the press box.[52][53]
Netherlands |   Argentina |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Morocco vs Portugal[edit]
The teams had met twice before, both during the World Cup group stage, with both sides winning one match: Morocco won 3–1 in 1986, while Portugal prevailed 1–0 in 2018.[55]
In the first half, Youssef En-Nesyri would put Morocco in front after 42 minutes when he jumped highest from a Yahia Attiyat Allah cross to head past advancing goalkeeper Diogo Costa and into the empty net, followed by Bruno Fernandes' attempted equaliser just before half-time striking the bar from long range. Portugal subbed on Cristiano Ronaldo in the second half, which saw him equal the record of 196 international caps set by Bader Al-Mutawa.[56][57] Despite late Portuguese chances from João Félix, Ronaldo and Pepe, and the dismissal of Moroccan defender Walid Cheddira following two yellow cards in quick succession, Morocco would hold on to win 1–0.
With their victory, Morocco became both the first African and first Arab country to reach the World Cup semi-finals, as well as the second Muslim-majority country after Turkey in 2002 to qualify for the last four. This was also the first time a nation not located in Europe and South America reached this stage since South Korea did so, also in 2002.[58]
Morocco |      Portugal |
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| Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
England vs France[edit]
The teams had previously met 31 times, with 17 wins for England, nine wins for France and five draws. Two of these meetings took place during the World Cup, with England winning on both occasions: they defeated France 2–0 in the 1966 group stage and 3–1 in the 1982 first group stage. The sides most recently met in a friendly in June 2017, with France winning 3–2.[60]
Aurélien Tchouaméni opened the scoring for France in the 17th minute, with a shot from outside the penalty area to the left corner which beat England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford diving down to his right. Several pundits questioned the goal because England's Bukayo Saka had been brought to the ground, allowing France to win possession, in the build-up to the opener. Some claimed it was a clear foul, while others, including British journalists, thought the contact was not clear enough for the VAR to overturn the on-pitch decision.[61][62][63] Early in the second half, England were awarded a penalty after Tchouaméni fouled Saka inside the area. Harry Kane scored from the spot against his club teammate Hugo Lloris, shooting to the left, which put Kane level with Wayne Rooney as England's all-time top scorer at 53 goals. Just moments after seeing his volley saved by Pickford, Olivier Giroud, who himself entered the match as France's all-time top scorer, also scored his 53rd international goal twelve minutes from time, with a header to the left of the net after a cross from Antoine Griezmann. In the 84th minute, the VAR awarded England a second penalty after English substitute Mason Mount was seen being pushed over in the area by Théo Hernandez. Kane again took the spot kick but this time shot over the bar, as France held on to win 2–1 and progress to the last four, while England were eliminated in the World Cup quarter-finals for a record seventh time.[64]
France became the first reigning world champions to reach the World Cup semi-finals since Brazil in 1998, whom France would beat in that year's final.[65] France's passage to the semi-finals along with Croatia's, the side they defeated in the 2018 final, marked the first time that both teams from a World Cup final reached the last four of the subsequent tournament since Argentina and West Germany in 1990.[66]
| England | 1–2 | France |
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| Report |
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