Argentina Edge Egypt in a 7-Goal Slugfest, Switzerland Wait 72 Years — R16 Closes, QF Bracket Complete

World Cup 2026 results · 7 July 2026 · 2 R16 ties · Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta + BC Place Vancouver · Argentina through · Switzerland through on penalties · QF bracket complete

The 2026 World Cup round of 16 closed on Tuesday 7 July with two ties that delivered the tournament’s most dramatic 24 hours of knockout football. Argentina beat Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta, with a stoppage-time winner sealing a tight tie in regulation. Switzerland beat Colombia 4-3 on penalties after a 0-0 draw that went through extra time in Vancouver, with Gregor Kobel saving Cucho Hernández’s kick in the shootout. Both ties settled the bottom half of the QF bracket: Argentina now meet Switzerland in QF4 on Saturday at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City (9:00 PM ET, TSN 1/3/4/5 + CTV/Crave). The top half had already been decided on Monday: France 1-0 Paraguay in Philadelphia, Norway 2-1 Brazil in Miami (Haaland brace), Spain 1-0 Portugal in Dallas (Iberian derby), and Belgium 4-1 USA in Seattle. The eight quarter-finalists — France, Morocco, Spain, Belgium, Norway, England, Argentina, Switzerland — are set. The first QF kicks off on Thursday at Gillette Stadium. The Golden Boot leader is Messi, sole on 8 after his 7 July goal.

An editorial wide shot of two football knockout matches rendered side by side: on the left a stoppage-time goal celebration in an open-air stadium, on the right a goalkeeper saving a penalty under lights, a split-scene composition
The round of 16 closes — Argentina’s stoppage-time winner at the Mercedes-Benz and Kobel’s penalty save at BC Place, in the same 24 hours. The QF bracket is now complete.
Argentina 3-2 Egypt (stoppage-time winner). Switzerland 0-0 Colombia, 4-3 pens (Kobel save). QF4 = Argentina vs Switzerland, Sat 11 Jul, Arrowhead Stadium, 9:00 PM ET. Messi GB leader on 8 goals.

The two ties — final scores, key moments

M95 — Argentina 3-2 Egypt · Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta

A five-goal thriller decided in stoppage time. Argentina went in front early through a Messi penalty; Egypt, in their first-ever World Cup round of 16, came back in the second half to level the score. The match looked destined for extra time until a stoppage-time Argentina winner sealed the tie. The Argentina bench erupted; the Egypt side slumped. Egypt’s first-ever men’s R16 ends on the wrong side of a late goal — and the federation’s post-match complaint over the refereeing (see the dedicated story below) framed the story just as much as the scoreline did.

M96 — Switzerland 0-0 Colombia (aet, Switzerland win 4-3 pens) · BC Place, Vancouver

A goalless 120 minutes in front of a packed Vancouver crowd. Neither side could break the deadlock, and the tie went to a shootout. Gregor Kobel — the tournament’s most active goalkeeper, on 16 saves — was the decisive figure: his save from Cucho Hernández settled a 4-3 shootout in Switzerland’s favour. The Swiss bench spilled onto the pitch; the Colombian side, in their third consecutive round-of-16 exit, sat on the centre circle.

Sources: FIFA, ESPN, Al Jazeera, NPR, Yahoo Sports, FOX, CBS Sports, Squawka.

What changed in the market

The 7 July results triggered the largest outright-board movement since the round of 16 began. Argentina, in the bottom half of the draw, firmed from 5.40 to 4.90 after the stoppage-time winner; Switzerland, now in the same half, drifted from 76.0 to 34.0 as the market priced their 72-year wait ending. The Golden Boot board flipped to Messi as favourite at 2.20 (from 2.65 before the Egypt game), with Mbappé 2.40 and Haaland 8.50. Argentina’s surge from 5.40 to 4.90 in 90 minutes is the sharpest single-day outright move of the tournament so far.

Market Selection Before R16 (6 Jul) After 7 Jul Direction
Outright Argentina 5.40 4.90 Sharpened
Outright Switzerland 76.0 34.0 Sharpened
Outright Egypt 251.0 off board Eliminated
Outright Colombia 26.0 off board Eliminated
Golden Boot Messi 2.65 (joint) 2.20 (sole favourite) Sharpened
Golden Boot Mbappé 2.00 2.40 Slightly drifted
Golden Boot Haaland 8.00 8.50 Slightly drifted

Source: FanDuel via FOX Sports / CBS Sports, 8 July 2026 11:29 ET. Prices vary between bookmakers — verify the live line at your Canadian-licensed sportsbook before staking.

The QF bracket is set

With all eight ties played, the quarter-final pairings are confirmed:

QF Match Date / kickoff (ET) Venue City
QF1 France vs Morocco Thu 9 Jul · 4:00 PM Gillette Stadium Foxborough MA
QF2 Spain vs Belgium Fri 10 Jul · 3:00 PM SoFi Stadium Inglewood CA
QF3 Norway vs England Sat 11 Jul · 5:00 PM Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens FL
QF4 Argentina vs Switzerland Sat 11 Jul · 9:00 PM Arrowhead Stadium Kansas City MO

The semi-final feed: QF1 winner vs QF2 winner (Tue 14 Jul, AT&T Stadium, Dallas); QF3 winner vs QF4 winner (Wed 15 Jul, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta). The Final is on Sunday 19 July at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford NJ.

Top half (QF1 + QF2)
France (2.80), Spain (4.70), Morocco (28.0), Belgium (31.0). The market has France and Spain as the two semi-finalists in roughly 70% of the simulations; Morocco and Belgium are the long shots.
Bottom half (QF3 + QF4)
England (5.60), Argentina (4.90), Norway (15.0), Switzerland (34.0). Argentina and England are the semi-finalists in roughly 55% of the simulations; Norway and Switzerland are the long shots.
Golden Boot board
Messi 8 (2.20) · Mbappé 7 (2.40) · Haaland 7 (8.50) · Kane 6 (10.0). All four are still in the tournament; the maximum three remaining matches gives each a path to the top of the leaderboard.
Canadian broadcast — full QF slate
All four quarter-finals are on TSN 1/3/4/5 + CTV/Crave (English) and RDS (French). TSN’s lead team for the QFs: James Duthie (host), Luke Wileman (play-by-play), Steven Caldwell (analyst). TSN Direct and Crave handle streaming.
The Egyptian complaint
The Egyptian FA filed a formal complaint to FIFA after the 3-2 loss to Argentina, alleging “serious refereeing mistakes” by referee François Letexier: a VAR-disallowed goal, two un-reviewed penalty claims including a Salah incident in the box, and inconsistent carding. Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said “Argentina’s victory is entirely undeserved,” and accused FIFA of protecting its “interests.” The complaint was filed within the 24-hour post-match window. FIFA has not yet responded publicly. (Sky Sports, Sports Illustrated, 8 July 2026.) The refereeing crew for QF1 (France vs Morocco) is Argentine — a separate appointment that has drawn online backlash in its own right. (Full coverage of the complaint, with the verbatim quotes from Hossam Hassan and the Egyptian FA statement, is in the dedicated story world-cup-egypt-fifa-complaint-letexier.)
The Swiss 72-year subplot
Switzerland have not been in a World Cup quarter-final since 1954. The 4-3 penalty win over Colombia ended a 72-year wait, and made Murat Yakin’s side the first Swiss team to win two consecutive World Cup knockout matches. Kobel’s save from Cucho Hernández was the 16th of his tournament — the most of any goalkeeper in the field, and the decisive moment of the shootout. The Argentine QF4 opposition is the toughest possible draw, but the Swiss shape has been the surprise of the tournament and three conceded in six is the second-best defensive record among the QFs (after Spain).
The Canadian read
  • Both Canada-based QF picks (Argentina and Switzerland through) land. The QF4 outcome gives Canadian bettors a 9:00 PM ET Saturday match with full broadcast coverage; both sides are the bookmakers’ expected qualifiers.
  • The Golden Boot race is now Messi-driven. With 8 goals, Messi is the sole leader and the favourite at 2.20. The 2.40 on Mbappé is generous given the gap; the 8.50 on Haaland reflects the top-half / bottom-half split. A Canada-friendly outright play: Argentina to lift the trophy at 4.90, with Messi to win the Golden Boot at 2.20, in a 2-leg small-stake combo.
  • The Egyptian complaint is a storyline for the QF window. FIFA’s response will shape the refereeing narrative for the rest of the tournament; the appointment of an Argentine crew for QF1 (France vs Morocco) has already drawn backlash.
  • Switzerland 1954 is a 72-year story. The Swiss subplot is the rare feel-good line in a QF window that also features the Messi Golden Boot, the Haaland chase, and the Spain defensive run.
::: warning-callout Bracket reminder: these outright prices assume the listed sides win their R16 tie. A price like Switzerland 34.0 goes off the board entirely if Switzerland lose the QF4 to Argentina on Saturday. Confirm the specific market and settlement rules at your Canadian-licensed sportsbook.

FAQ

::: faq

What happened on 7 July at the World Cup?

Argentina beat Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta with a stoppage-time winner in regulation, and Switzerland beat Colombia 4-3 on penalties after a 0-0 draw that went through extra time in Vancouver (Kobel saved Cucho Hernández’s kick). Both ties closed the round of 16 and set the QF4 pair (Argentina vs Switzerland).

When is the Argentina vs Switzerland quarter-final?

Saturday 11 July 2026 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City MO. Kickoff is 9:00 PM ET (8:00 PM CT). The broadcast in Canada is TSN 1/3/4/5 + CTV/Crave (English) and RDS (French).

Who leads the Golden Boot race after the round of 16?

Lionel Messi leads on 8 goals in 5 matches (FanDuel via FOX/CBS, 8 July). Kylian Mbappé is second on 7 (2.40), Erling Haaland third on 7 (8.50), Harry Kane fourth on 6 (10.0). The assist/minutes tiebreaker applies if the leaderboard ends level.

What is the Egyptian FA’s complaint?

The Egyptian FA filed a formal complaint to FIFA alleging "serious refereeing mistakes" by referee François Letexier in the 3-2 loss to Argentina: a VAR-disallowed goal, two un-reviewed penalty claims, and inconsistent carding. FIFA has not yet responded publicly.

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