Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland did it again. They are the stars delivering at this World Cup and leading the chase for the Golden Boot. As a result, France, Argentina and Norway have all qualified for the knockout stage with a game to spare.
Spare a thought for Jordan, whose hopes of progression ended on day 12, while Senegal have work to do to be one of the best third-place finishers.
But how did it all affect our team rankings?
1. France
FIFA ranking: 3
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France may have found their formula for success. Since the second half of their opening game against Senegal, Michael Olise has played in the No 10 role and he provided another two assists in the 3-0 win against Iraq, adding to his match-changing performance in that first match.
A storm stoppage in Philadelphia couldn’t take the wind out of Mbappe’s sails. He scored twice, for the second match in a row, as France booked their spot in the knockouts. A game against Norway on Friday awaits to see who tops the group.
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2. Argentina
FIFA ranking: 1
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Messi is regarded by many as the greatest player of all time, but did we see this coming? Complete domination by the 38-year-old, who has now scored all five of Argentina’s goals in their two wins and became the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer after his double against Austria.
The defence will be pleased too after consecutive clean sheets, though Cristian Romero’s substitution against Austria due to a knee injury is a concern.
It might be beneficial for some of their other forward players to pick up form as Messi can’t win the World Cup single-handedly. Or can he?
3. Germany
FIFA ranking: 10
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Germany won 7-1 against Curacao, but their 2-1 victory over the Ivory Coast was a more meaningful result, even if they left it late.
Supersub Deniz Undav’s double completed the turnaround win with a brace off the bench — the added-time victory came courtesy of a high-quality ball from Felix Nmecha and a turn-and-finish from Undav.
The win secured them progression to the knockouts at the top of Group E, the first time they have emerged from the group stage at a World Cup since they lifted the trophy in 2014. Julian Nagelsmann’s side have momentum.
4. England
FIFA ranking: 4
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If the performance against Croatia is what Thomas Tuchel’s England are going to look like, sign us up for more. The nation’s star forwards flourished in their 4-2 success as Harry Kane registered a double and Jude Bellingham put England back in front after half-time, before Marcus Rashford came off the bench to score a fourth.
It wasn’t a win against just anybody, either. Croatia are a top 15-ranked nation whose goalkeeper, Dominik Livakovic, had to bail them out on several occasions.
Questions still have to be answered defensively, but England could not have started in much more exciting fashion. We will find out more when they take on Ghana on Tuesday.
Harry Kane opened his tournament account with two goals against Croatia (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
5. Spain
FIFA ranking: 2
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Responded to the humiliation of drawing against Cape Verde in their opener by producing one of the most one-sided performances of the tournament so far in beating Saudi Arabia 4-0. They had 22 shots, produced 2.85 xG and could easily have scored a few more.
Lamine Yamal scored 10 minutes into his first World Cup start and got 45 minutes under his belt, while Mikel Oyarzabal overcame the embarrassment of not touching the ball for the first half-hour against Cape Verde by scoring twice. Job done.
Now to complete the Group H job by beating Uruguay on Friday.
6. Netherlands
FIFA ranking: 8
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The thrashing of Sweden laid down a marker for the Netherlands.
Brian Brobbey came into their starting line-up and powered through Sweden’s defence as their attack intertwined beautifully with Cody Gakpo and Crysencio Summerville also on the scoresheet.
With a final match to come against beleaguered Tunisia, they look likely to top a group that had looked tricky on paper.
Brian Brobbey scores the Netherlands’ second goal against Sweden (Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
7. Brazil
FIFA ranking: 6
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After looking pretty unconvincing in their opening match, Brazil returned to some level of form with a pretty dominant 3-0 win over Haiti.
Matheus Cunha looked a more natural fit in their fluid attack than Igor Thiago and, while there will be much tougher tests to come, a comfortable victory was exactly what Brazil needed.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side will now hope for another convincing win, against Scotland, to top Group C.
8. Morocco
FIFA ranking: 7
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Expectations are huge back home after reaching the semi-final in 2022 and (probably) winning AFCON earlier this year. Morocco look pretty good in Group C after drawing with Brazil and beating Scotland, with Ismael Saibari beautifully taking both of their goals.
They’ll probably need a big victory against Haiti to top the group, depending on how Brazil get on against Scotland, but progress to the knockout stage is all that matters.
9. United States
FIFA ranking: 17
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When people are genuinely discussing whether the U.S. can win the World Cup, you know it’s going well.
Alright, that might be a bit much, but the Americans have made a perfect start. They’re positive, adventurous and fun to watch, what with their rotating cast of attacking talents, and didn’t even need Christian Pulisic when beating Australia 2-0, a result which backed up their stunning 4-1 victory over Paraguay.
Already through as group winners, Mauricio Pochettino can afford to rest Pulisic against Turkey on Friday as they plot a route deep into the tournament. Excitement is building.
Did we see USA’s best ever performance at a World Cup?
Phil Hay
10. Norway
FIFA ranking: 31
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The dark horses are galloping on to the knockouts and have to be taken more seriously after their 3-2 win over Senegal.
Norway ran the (stripped) African champions’ defence ragged. They had chances galore and forced mistakes from the opposition backline.
Conceding late made the victory less emphatic, but seven goals in two games speaks to their firepower. Key to that is Haaland, who is proving unstoppable after another double. They have shown defensive vulnerability, but have been able to simply outscore their opposition.
11. Mexico
FIFA ranking: 13
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Mexico became the first team through to the knockout stage, with a 1-0 victory over South Korea ensuring their progress to the last 32 and also guaranteeing top spot in Group A. That is crucial not only because they’ll play a third-placed side in the next round but it also means that tie will be in Mexico City… and their last-16 game would be too.
They weren’t exactly scintillating against South Korea — or against South Africa in their opening match — but two wins and two clean sheets represent a perfect start for the co-hosts.
12. Colombia
FIFA ranking: 14
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A team of attacking talent and willing runners aplenty. It wasn’t as convincing a victory against Uzbekistan as they might have hoped, but a win puts them top of Group K above Portugal and DR Congo.
Cucho Hernandez’s assist for their third goal exemplified their work rate as he first fell over, then clawed himself back up, before delivering a pinpoint cross to Jaminton Campaz.
13. Portugal
FIFA ranking: 5
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All of the teams considered pre-tournament favourites have come to the party in one way or another… except Portugal.
Their 1-1 draw with DR Congo wasn’t just a disappointing result, but the performance left so much to be desired. After taking an early lead, they mustered only one shot in the next hour of football and, while Cristiano Ronaldo’s anonymous 90-minute performance took the headlines (he became the oldest outfield player to start a World Cup finals match), the whole display was drab.
A big win and performance are needed against Uzbekistan on Tuesday.
Cristiano Ronaldo cut a frustrated figure against DR Congo (Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
14. Croatia
FIFA ranking: 11
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Finalists in 2018 and semi-finalists in 2022, Croatia showed moments of quality against England but ultimately had less firepower.
Captain Luka Modric, now 40, was substituted before the hour mark and has less influence on games these days. Their golden generation, who succeeded at the last two editions, have faded and new players will need to make their name against Ghana and Panama.
15. Egypt
FIFA ranking: 29
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So far, so good.
Made to sweat by New Zealand and had to come from behind, but Egypt finally won a match at the World Cup for the first time, inspired by a goal and an assist from Mohamed Salah.
You wouldn’t say they’ve offered much evidence that they can go deep in the tournament, but victory over Iran on Friday will mean they top Group G and would them with a third-placed side in the round of 32.
16. Japan
FIFA ranking: 18
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Japan are more than 99 per cent likely to progress from the group after a convincing 4-0 win over Tunisia, which included an Ayase Ueda double.
In the 1,000th World Cup match, Japan won by their largest-ever margin at a World Cup and became the first Asian team to score four goals in a game at the tournament. Tunisia are struggling, so it is probably not the time to get too carried away with the emphatic victory, but Japan have shown a clear sense of identity in their opening two matches, playing with speed and intensity and an effective press.
17. South Korea
FIFA ranking: 22
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A desperately disappointing performance and result against Mexico which leaves their knockout-stage qualification in peril going into their final match against South Africa. They barely created any chances in Guadalajara, with captain Son Heung-min given the hook after less than an hour. They clearly have the talent and should beat South Africa, but it’s time for their big players to step up now.
18. Switzerland
FIFA ranking: 19
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At 20 years and 247 days, a star was born in Johan Manzambi as Switzerland left it late with a 4-1 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina in their second match. Freiburg’s Manzambi became the youngest player to score a double as a substitute in a men’s World Cup match. Switzerland face Canada next, knowing a draw sees them through but a victory will mean they finish top of the group.
19. Canada
FIFA ranking: 30
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An extraordinary result against Qatar in their second group game, dishing out a 6-0 walloping to break their World Cup duck (they had never won a game at the tournament before) in some style. Almost everything went right for Canada in Vancouver as they showcased the aggressive attacking game Jesse Marsch wants, with Jonathan David netting a hat-trick as they humbled Qatar. Ismael Kone’s injury was the exception and is a blow, but Canada have arrived at the World Cup.
A draw against Switzerland in their final match will take the co-hosts through to the knockout stage.
20. Belgium
FIFA ranking: 9
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That FIFA ranking might need updating to a more realistic number.
Belgium’s stats in their second match against Iran (23 shots, 1.82 xG, 70 per cent possession) tell you they dominated the game and should have won, but stats also tell you that Kevin De Bruyne is one of the Premier League’s best ever players and Romelu Lukaku is the Belgian national team’s record goalscorer, and right now those things don’t mean too much.
Belgium look like half a team. They have failed to beat Egypt and Iran, and even if they now beat New Zealand on Friday, how far can they realistically go in this tournament? They need Jeremy Doku back and firing, that’s for sure.
21. Ivory Coast
FIFA ranking: 33
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The Ivory Coast have shown an ability to compete with anyone and led Germany for more than half an hour.
Their wingers, Yan Diomande and Amad, have proven a handful for defences, but they were unable to hold onto what would have been a statement victory. Still, they have a 95 per cent chance of progressing to the World Cup knockout stage for the first time, according to The Athletic’s forecast model.
22. Uruguay
FIFA ranking: 16
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Oh dear. Two matches, 44 shots, 3.88 xG, three goals… but only two points. And now they need a result against Spain to go through. Not what Marcelo Bielsa envisaged when plotting Uruguay’s progress from Group H.
We weren’t quite sure what to expect from Uruguay pre-tournament; they had finished level on points with Brazil and Colombia in qualification and clearly have a high-quality midfield, but their form coming into the finals was dreadful.
They’ve carried that into the World Cup, and the fragile, porous two-man wall that allowed Cape Verde’s free kick to sneak in sums up Uruguay so far.
23. Ghana
FIFA ranking: 73
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Twenty-year-old Caleb Yirenkyi turned a disappointing performance into a crucial win with one kick of the ball in stoppage time against Panama.
Ghana’s quality in their opener is unlikely to have made England or Croatia nervous, but that victory puts them in a strong position for progression and should be a springboard for their tournament.
24. Algeria
FIFA ranking: 28
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Alergia showed they are a threat from set pieces, scoring both goals from corners in a turnaround win against Jordan. This could help them hurt superior opposition from limited chances. From open play, Riyad Mahrez came back into the starting line-up and was a creative spark.
Their game against Austria on Sunday will now determine who goes through in second, but three points puts them in with a chance of a third-place progression. They have a minus-two goal difference, though, so they have work to do.
25. Sweden
FIFA ranking: 38
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After a 5-1 victory against Tunisia, Sweden were on the other side of a 5-1 scoreline after being soundly beaten by the Netherlands.
This shows where the team are at: capable of tearing apart inferior opposition with Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak, but a level behind the top international teams and vulnerable defensively.
26. Senegal
FIFA ranking: 15
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No points on the board after two games. Senegal had a positive start to the tournament, with a good first-half showing against France, but since then, they’ve conceded six goals.
The silver lining is Ismaila Sarr’s double against Norway and Ibrahim Mbaye’s goal against France, showing they are capable of breaching top teams.
But against Norway, they made defensive errors and could have conceded more. Edouard Mendy produced top saves, but came off injured after an hour.
Now a win against Iraq is needed on Friday, and a comprehensive one to have a competitive goal difference to sneak through as one of the eight best third-placed teams. With a real risk of being knocked out, they take a large drop in the rankings.
27. Australia
FIFA ranking: 27
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Hopes were high for Australia after their 2-0 win over Turkey in their opening game, but they struggled to keep up with the USMNT, particularly in the first half.
Head coach Tony Popovic made the slightly odd decision to leave out both goalscorers from the Turkey game, Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe, from his starting line-up. Without Irankunda’s electric pace on the counter-attack, they looked decidedly less threatening.
They play Paraguay for second place in their final group game.
28. Austria
FIFA ranking: 25
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Ralph Rangnick tinkered with the starting line-up against Argentina, bringing Tottenham’s Kevin Danso into the back line and PSV’s Paul Wanner into midfield.
The problem is that this team, despite having quality, doesn’t have prolific forwards or a formidable defence (conceding to Jordan). It is unclear where their real strength to hurt better teams lies.
After Algeria’s win over Jordan, a meeting with them on Sunday will determine who progresses in second place in the group.
29. Scotland
FIFA ranking: 41
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Scotland fans have all turned into mathematicians and data analysts as they attempt to work out how many goals they can afford to lose to Brazil by and still qualify as one of the best eight third-placed teams.
After unconvincingly beating Haiti 1-0, Scotland battled valiantly in the second half against Morocco in losing by the same score, offering evidence they can trouble the five-time world champions in their final Group C match. Any kind of positive result on Wednesday and they’ll book a place in the World Cup knockout stages for the first time.
30. Iran
FIFA ranking: 20
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On the face of it, they achieved a great result against Belgium, against whom they created some excellent chances and had an intuitive free-kick goal narrowly ruled out for offside. But Iran are still waiting for their first win of the tournament and their hopes of progressing to the knockout stages against all odds are on a knife-edge.
Drawing with New Zealand in their opening game may prove costly — as may not taking advantage of Belgium going down to 10 men — but Iran will hope Egypt may take their foot off the gas in their final Group G game on Friday.
31. Ecuador
FIFA ranking: 24
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Having come into the tournament on the back of a 19-match, two-year unbeaten streak, Ecuador have been seriously disappointing so far, losing to Ivory Coast and now drawing with Curacao.
They have failed to score from a collective 4.08 xG at the tournament, making it as much about their poor finishing as hard luck. Enner Valencia, now 36, is not proving as prolific as he was in the Qatar 2022 group stages, when he scored three goals.
The Curacao result puts their progression in jeopardy, with a final group game against Germany to come on Thursday. They will hope Nagelsmann rotates his team having already secured progression.
Enner Valencia has endured a difficult World Cup to date (Juan Mabromata/AFP via Getty Images)
32. Paraguay
FIFA ranking: 40
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Their 1-0 win over Turkey was much more like it from a side who were talked up ahead of the tournament for their solidity in defence and talent in attack.
Paraguay came flying out of the blocks, scoring after just two minutes with an excellent long-distance strike from Matias Galarza. And even after forward Miguel Almiron became the first player ever to be sent off for covering their mouth while speaking to an opponent, Paraguay stood firm while they faced a barrage of attacks from Turkey, who could not break down a defence that looked so fragile against the USMNT.
They will be without the suspended Almiron for their clash against Australia, a significant blow as they aim to finish in second place.
33. Cape Verde
FIFA ranking: 67
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One of the stories of this World Cup. Unbeaten in two matches, claiming that shock draw against Spain in their opener and then backing it up with another famous result, drawing 2-2 with Uruguay, via a 40-yard free kick (the less said about the Uruguay wall, the better) and then a moment of ingenuity from substitute Helio Varela.
That’s two former world champions Cape Verde have held off, so how about their chances against Saudi Arabia next? Victory in that match would make Cape Verde the most unlikely knockout-stage team in the history of this tournament. Even a draw might do. Incredible.
34. Saudi Arabia
FIFA ranking: 60
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After their spirited draw with Uruguay, Saudi Arabia were brought back down to earth with a 4-0 humbling by Spain. To be honest, it could have been much worse than four, given the Spaniards’ total and complete dominance.
However, if you’d offered the Saudis the chance to beat Cape Verde and finish on four points in at least third position in Group H, they’d have undoubtedly taken it. That is now their task.
35. New Zealand
FIFA ranking: 85
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Just like in their previous World Cup appearance in 2010, they’ve been stubborn and hard to beat. They drew all three matches 16 years ago, but succumbed to their first defeat at the tournament since their debut (and only other) in 1982 when losing 3-1 to Mohamed Salah’s Egypt, despite taking a first-half lead through Finn Surman.
New Zealand still have the opportunity to create history — beat a flagging Belgium team on Saturday to almost certainly reach the knockout stages for the first time.
36. Panama
FIFA ranking: 34
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Panama lost in the most gut-wrenching way against Ghana with one of the last kicks of the game after a performance which deserved a point.
Still, the overall quality of the match was not great and, although Panama had the larger share of possession, none of their chances was clear-cut with a collective xG of 0.73.
37. Czech Republic
FIFA ranking: 43
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Looked to be in control against South Africa, having scored the fastest goal of the World Cup so far, with Michal Sadilek netting after five minutes and seven seconds, but failed to subdue their opponents, who deservedly equalised seven minutes from full-time. A 1-1 draw did neither team any good and the Czech Republic must now beat co-hosts Mexico on home soil to reach the knockout stages. A tall order.
38. Bosnia and Herzegovina
FIFA ranking: 64
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It’s win-or-bust for Bosnia and Herzegovina after their late collapse against Switzerland. They face Qatar in Seattle on Wednesday, with the winner almost guaranteed to progress on four points.
39. Qatar
FIFA ranking: 56
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Their match against Canada could not have gone any worse. Six goals conceded, two players sent off… and yet, their task for their final group game against Bosnia and Herzegovina is very clear; win, and they’ll almost certainly be through to the knockout stage on four points, despite their lowly position in these rankings.
40. DR Congo
FIFA ranking: 46
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DR Congo’s recognisable names, the likes of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Axel Tuanzebe, Chancel Mbemba and Yoane Wissa, all produced good performances as they claimed a fantastic draw against Portugal.
They could not get near Portugal’s midfield at times, but it hardly mattered because they were defensively sound, and Wissa, despite only scoring once in the league for Newcastle United this season, took his chance well.
It’s Colombia next up.
41. Curacao
FIFA ranking: 82
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Step aside, Vozinha. Eloy Room was the latest goalkeeper to put on a show-stopping performance for a debuting nation, earning them a point.
The 37-year-old made history for Curacao with his 15 saves against Ecuador, and means they still have a chance of progression if they beat Ivory Coast.
The outstanding Eloy Room (Charlotte Wilson/Getty Images)
42. Uzbekistan
FIFA ranking: 50
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Uzbekistan put on a performance their nation can be proud of on World Cup debut and were unlucky to lose 3-1 against Colombia.
Abbosbek Fayzullaev scored the country’s first World Cup goal, and Bekhruz Karimov could have wrapped up the goal of the tournament with a thunderous strike that hit the crossbar.
43. South Africa
FIFA ranking: 61
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An improved performance against the Czech Republic and a spirited comeback to claim a late draw, but they seriously needed to win that one. South Africa will now need to upset the odds and beat South Korea to reach the knockout stage.
44. Iraq
FIFA ranking: 57
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Iraq haven’t got near their opponents, who in fairness have boasted two of the best forwards in the world in Haaland and Mbappe. Their captain, Aymen Hussein, who scored against Norway, had to be replaced with an injury after 26 minutes in their loss to France, which didn’t help matters.
Beat Senegal comprehensively, and they could still progress. But the chances of that seem slim.
45. Jordan
FIFA ranking: 63
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Jordan have bowed out at their debut tournament after losses to Austria and Algeria. They scored in both games, but didn’t do enough to stifle their opponents, something we have seen from other debut nations, mainly from standout goalkeeping performances.
46. Haiti
FIFA ranking: 83
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They became the first side to be eliminated from the World Cup with a 3-0 defeat by Brazil, but Haiti have left a positive impression on the tournament and deserve not to be our lowest-ranked team.
Placed in one of the toughest groups at the tournament, the Caribbean nation, who cannot even play on home soil due to political unrest on the island, fought valiantly against Scotland, and should perhaps consider themselves unlucky to walk away from that game empty-handed. Fighting for their lives in the second game against Brazil would and should always be a bridge too far for a team who had not qualified for the World Cup since 1974, but after conceding three in the first half, they “drew” the second half 0-0. They go into the last group match against Morocco dreaming of earning their first point at the finals.
47. Turkey
FIFA ranking: 23
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Note to self: do not ever, ever, trust Turkey. Even with two of the most talented players the nation has ever produced, Kenan Yildiz and Arda Guler, in attack, do not ever trust Turkey. Even with an experienced defence, including Brighton and Hove Albion’s player of the season, Ferdi Kadioglu, do not trust Turkey. Even if you think Hakan Calhanoglu is a fantastic player, with a wicked shot and a passing range to die for. DO. NOT. TRUST. TURKEY.
Somehow, having been drawn in possibly the “easiest” group, Turkey, who were many people’s pre-tournament ‘dark horses’, are out after just two games. Sixty-two shots without scoring a single goal across the two games, a pathetic effort, really. Perhaps they were just very unlucky, but if they can’t score against a Paraguay side who played half the game with 10 men, they don’t deserve any luck.
48. Tunisia
FIFA ranking: 45
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Tunisia’s elimination topped off a miserable World Cup group stage. After a 5-1 loss to Sweden, they sacked Sabri Lamouchi, but his replacement, Herve Renard, could not prevent them from a 4-0 trouncing at the hands of Japan.
On a minus-eight goal difference after two games, no team has a worse losing margin.