World Cup Predictions: Portugal vs DR Congo, England vs Croatia and more | World Cup 2026 news
the The World Cup continues On Wednesday with four other teams starting their tournaments.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal will face the Democratic Republic of the Congo, while England will face Croatia in one of the most anticipated matches of the day. Ghana will meet Panama, while Uzbekistan will face World Cup newcomer Colombia late in the match.
Away from the action, Ronaldo is gunning for another World Cup record, Lionel Messi has made more history, and fans around the world are coping with some tough kick-off times.
Here’s what you should know:
What is the schedule for Wednesday?
- Portugal vs. Democratic Republic of the Congo at Houston Stadium in the United States, at 12 noon local time (17:00 GMT).
- England vs Croatia at Dallas Stadium in the United States, 3pm local time (20:00 GMT).
- Ghana vs Panama at Toronto Stadium, Canada, at 7pm local time (23:00 GMT).
- Colombia vs Uzbekistan at Mexico City Stadium in Mexico, at 8pm local time (02:00 GMT on Thursday).
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has risen from 56th to 45th in the FIFA World Rankings after securing its place in this year’s edition, but Opta’s supercomputer still favors fifth-placed Portugal to win their opening Group K match.
Based on 25,000 pre-match simulations, Portugal is out At the top in 54.6% of the scenarios, while a tie occurred in 22.3% of the cases.
The DRC had a 23.1 percent chance of winning, suggesting the Panthers are still far from hopeful. However, Sébastien Desabre’s side could not have asked for a more difficult task on their return to the World Cup.
What are your expectations for the England-Croatia match?
England and Croatia They renew a familiar rivalry in Group L, meeting for the fourth time in a major tournament this century. Croatia won its 2018 World Cup semi-final, while England won both of its matches in the European Championship.
Supercomputer Opta has England as clear favourites, with the Three Lions winning 55.9% of 10,000 simulations. Croatia won with 20.8 percent, while 23.3 percent ended in a draw.
What are your expectations for the Ghana-Pama match?
Ghana and Panama have never met before, but both teams will view this match in Group L as a prime chance to pick up points. Ghana has won two of its previous three World Cup matches against CONCACAF teams, while Panama’s only World Cup match with an African team ended in a 2-1 defeat to Tunisia in 2018.
The Opta supercomputer gives Panama the edge, with Los Canaleros winning 45.2% of 25,000 simulations. Ghana came out on top with 29.6% of simulations, while 25.2% ended in a tie.
What are your expectations for the match between Uzbekistan and Colombia?
Uzbekistan and Colombia, both in Group 10, will meet for the first time. Uzbekistan is participating in the World Cup finals for the first time, while Colombia is participating in the tournament for the seventh time. Colombia lost their first match in the 2018 World Cup but recovered to finish top of their group.
The Opta supercomputer strongly favors Colombia, with Los Cafeteros winning 62.4% of 25,000 simulations. Uzbekistan emerged victorious with 17.5 percent, while a tie occurred in 20.1 percent of the forecast.
What else constitutes a World Cup?
Here’s what’s making headlines about the tournament:
Ronaldo is looking to set a scoring record
The Portugal national team captain is expected to lead the attack against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, hoping to become the first player to score in six different editions of the World Cup finals.
Desabre, the Democratic Republic of the Congo coach, wished Ronaldo well, but joked that he hoped the star striker would not score against his team.
“We deal with each match individually, but not with expectations of winning everything,” Ronaldo told reporters in Portugal last week before the team’s departure. “It has to be step by step. A good start is the most important thing.”
Messi makes more World Cup history
The Argentine star set his record Sixth appearance in the World Cup By scoring the first World Cup hat-trick of his career during Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria on Tuesday.
By scoring three goals, Messi equaled the record held by former German striker Miroslav Klose for the most goals in a World Cup, with 16 goals.
Messi reached the milestone in his 200th international appearance, marking another significant moment in a career that is already among the most decorated in football history.
Mbappe tops the list of World Cup scorers
forward He scored two goals and became France’s all-time top scorer with 58 goals opened his World Cup campaign with a 3-1 win over Senegal.
The Real Madrid striker also raised his tally to 14 goals in the World Cup finals, tied with German Gerd Muller, and behind only Messi and Klose.
World Cup teams wary of local wildlife
Not all of the challenges players face at the World Cup are on the field. Several teams, including Germany, Switzerland and Norway, have reportedly reported encounters with venomous snakes at their training bases in the United States.
According to media reports, Germany national team captain Joshua Kimmich said that his team had spotted such an animal near their camp in North Carolina, joking that preparing for matches now includes thinking about more than just tactics and opponents.
Meanwhile, Switzerland has classified part of its training site in San Diego as a “snake zone.”
Clashes between Argentine and Algerian fans in New York
A huge brawl broke out between fans of Argentina and Algeria in New York’s Times Square on the eve of the opening match of the World Cup.
Videos circulated on social media showed punches and throwing of objects before police intervened to restore order. The accident came hours before the two teams met in the tenth group match in Kansas City.
In a special look at the tournament’s global impact, Al Jazeera’s Basil El Ghazouli discusses how the timing of the World Cup is testing fans around the world.
The World Cup is the biggest sporting event on the planet. FIFA expects about six billion people to participate in the 2026 tournament, or nearly three out of every four people on Earth. However, for many of these fans, watching the action live will require more than just finding a screen.
If you’re in the UK, almost half of the group stage matches – 35 of 72 – start between midnight and 5am (23:00-04:00 GMT). Fans in Germany, France and Spain face similarly tough schedules, with matches starting at 1am (23:00 GMT the day before), at 3am (01:00 GMT) and until 6am (04:00 GMT) local time.
The challenge is greater in the Middle East. In Qatar and Saudi Arabia, most matches take place between 10pm and 7am local time (19:00 – 04:00 GMT), while in the UAE they take place between 11pm and 8am local time. Eight Arab countries are competing in this World Cup, but some of their biggest matches will be played while most of the region is asleep. The final group stage match for Egypt begins at 6:00 AM (03:00 GMT). Jordan’s confrontation with Algeria also begins at 6 a.m. (03:00 GMT), while the Egypt and New Zealand match begins at 4 a.m. (01:00 GMT).
This time, the tournament will be held across three countries, 16 cities and four time zones in North America. With 104 matches and 13 different kick-off venues, following the World Cup is more complicated than ever for fans outside the host region.
For billions of fans, the biggest challenge for the 2026 World Cup may not be finding a way to watch. It might just be staying awake.
