The round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup continues this Friday, July 3, with three matches that define new qualifiers for the round of 16. The highlight of the day will be the clash between Argentina and Cape Verde, a duel that pits the current world champion against the great revelation of the tournament.
The match takes place at 4:00 p.m. Guatemala time at the Miami Stadium (Hard Rock Stadium), where Lionel Messi seeks to extend his extraordinary scoring record against an opponent that has surprised the world. The Argentine captain shares with Kylian Mbappé the leading scorer in the World Cup with six goals and, in addition, he became the top scorer in the history of the World Cup, with 19 goals.
On the other side is a team that has broken all predictions. Cape Verde, in its first World Cup participation, advanced to the direct elimination phase after tying with Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, becoming the smallest country to reach this stage of the tournament. Much of the credit goes to their goalkeeper, Vozinhawhose performances during the group stage placed him among the figures of the championship and made him a viral phenomenon.
Miami also offers a favorable environment for the Albiceleste. Thousands of Argentine fans residing in South Florida accompany Lionel Scaloni’s team, while Messi returns to play practically at home, since the Hard Rock Stadium is located a few kilometers from the stadium where he plays his matches with Inter Miami.
The day begins at 12.00 hours with the duel between Australia and Egypt at Dallas Stadium. The winner of that match faces the winner of Argentina and Cape Verde in the round of 16.
Closing is at 7:30 p.m. at Kansas City Stadium, where Colombia seeks to impose its favoritism against Ghana in another of the most attractive intersections of the day. The team that advances has as its next rival Switzerland, which sealed its qualification after beating Algeria 2-0.
With three tickets to the round of 16 at stake, Friday’s matchday promises to combine favorites, revelation teams and the possibility of new surprises in a 2026 World Cup that already left unexpected eliminations in the round of 32.