LOS ANGELES, June 19 (Xinhua) -- The group stage of the FIFA World Cup 2026 has entered the second round, and the knockout round bracket is beginning to take shape. Following are the FIFA rules of advancing from the 12 four-side groups:
1. The top two of each group and the eight best third-place teams advance.
2. If two or more teams in the same group are equal on points, the tiebreakers will be the concerned teams' head-to-head results in the sequence of points, goal difference and goals scored.
3. If still equal, the teams concerned are ranked according to the sequence of superior goal difference in all group matches and the greatest number of goals scored in all group matches.
4. If still equal, the teams concerned are ranked by the highest team conduct score (players and team officials) relating to the number of yellow and red cards obtained.
5. If still equal, the teams concerned are ranked according to the latest published edition of the FIFA Men's World Ranking.
6. The eight best third-place teams are decided according to the sequence of points, goal difference, goals scored, team conduct score in all their group matches, and their latest FIFA rankings. ■
