Day 9 produced four decisive group-stage results — knockouts confirmed, eliminations sealed — and one of the great underdog performances of the tournament.
Paraguay's Defiant Stand
In Vancouver, Paraguay and Turkey produced a match that will live long in the memory for all the wrong and right reasons. Wrong: Matias Galarza scored after just 64 seconds, the fastest goal of the 2026 World Cup, latching onto a pass from Julio Enciso and drilling a left-footed shot through the legs of Demiral and into the net. Right: Miguel Almirón was sent off in first-half stoppage time, reducing Paraguay to ten men. Turkey, with eleven players, then proceeded to dominate the match almost completely — at one point holding 79 percent of possession — and managed to have 32 shots. They did not score. Not one. Paraguay organised themselves, threw bodies in front of shots, and held on. 1-0 to ten-man Paraguay. Turkey are eliminated from the World Cup.
USA Through, Australia Out
In Dallas, the USA announced their knockout-round arrival with a composed 2-0 win over Australia. An Australian own goal opened the scoring, and a header from Alex Freeman sealed it. Australia gave a good account of themselves, but a first-half that had the US on top was too costly to recover from. With six points from two group games, the Americans are through.
Brazil in Cruise Control
Brazil made it two wins from two against a hard-working Haiti side in Miami, with Matheus Cunha the star of the show. Cunha opened the scoring with a scrappy finish, then added a second of genuine quality before Vinicius Júnior rounded things off with a clean one-on-one finish. 3-0. Brazil are purring under Carlo Ancelotti, and the early stumble against Morocco feels like a distant memory.
Morocco Strike Inside a Minute
The day began in Foxborough with Morocco and Scotland in a match that was, in theory, still open. In practice, it lasted until the first minute: Ismael Saibari received a through ball from Brahim Diaz and drove it into the roof of the net within sixty seconds of kick-off. Scotland, already needing a result to stay alive in the group, never recovered. Morocco 1-0 Scotland at the end, and Morocco are into the next round.