Daniel Austin
BBC Sport

Let us dream...

Sunday, 19 July - 20:00 BST

All 16 teams in the other half of the draw are potential World Cup final opponents for England.

The strongest sides who England could not possibly face before the final include 2018 winners and 2022 runners-up France, 2014 champions Germany and 2010 victors Spain.

France and Germany will face each other at the last-16 stage if both win their opening knockout fixtures, while the Netherlands face a difficult last-32 tie against Morocco.

Either of those two sides could face France or Germany in the last eight, with the winners then most likely to face Spain in the semi-finals.

Spain will face Portugal in the last 16 if both win their first knockout ties - Spain face Austria, while Portugal will play Croatia.

Also in the opposite half of the draw are Paraguay, Sweden, South Africa, Canada, USA, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Belgium and Senegal.

The final will be held in New Jersey in front of 82,500 fans.

Not to mention Mexico have looked impressive so far and won all of their group games.

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport

What if they reach the semi-finals?

Wednesday, 15 July - 20:00 BST

We're getting a fair bit ahead now, but if England were to make it this far, they could face the defending champions.

Perhaps the favourites to reach this stage would be Argentina, who won all three of their group stage games as the talismanic Lionel Messi continued delivering on all the biggest stage of allin the month he turned 39, scoring five goals.

Their first knockout round tie is against surprise package Cape Verde, before a last-16 match against whoever wins between Australia and Egypt.

Also in this section of the draw are Colombia, who would face Argentina in the quarter-final if both nations win their first two knockout fixtures. They topped their group, ahead of Portugal, having won two of their three matches.

Other perhaps less likely potential opponents in the final four include Switzerland, Algeria and Ghana, who are all in the same side of the draw as England.

Reaching the semi-final would mean a return for England to Atlanta, where they will also play their last-32 match.

Image source, Getty Images

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport

Potential quarter-final opponents

Saturday, 11 July - 22:00 BST

Now, this is where things being to look more difficult.

Five-time winners Brazil are in England's section of the draw and are potential quarter-final opponents, but Carlo Ancelotti's men would first have to overcome Japan in the last 32.

Vinicius Jr. and co topped Group C - knocking out Scotland in the process - but were unconvincing on the one occasion they were truly tested, drawing 1-1 with Morocco in their opening fixture.

Japan, meanwhile, looked strong technically and tactically as they finished second behind the Netherlands in Group F, and have not lost in any of their past 16 matches, beating England 1-0 in a friendly at Wembley in March.

The two other possible quarter-final opponents for England are Ivory Coast and Norway, who will face each other in the last 32.

Ivory Coast have impressive attackers including RB Leipzig's teenage superstar Yan Diomande, Inter's Ange-Yoan Bonny and Manchester United winger Amad Diallo. They finished second behind Germany in the group stage.

And Norway, who finished second behind France in Group I, have impressed in their first World Cup appearance since 1998.

With Manchester City's Erling Haaland up front, they would pose a significant threat.

If England reach this stage, they will be playing in Miami.

Image source, Getty Images

If England get past DR Congo, Mexico in Mexico City could be a test with that altitude playing a factor too.

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport

Who could they meet in the last 16?

Monday, 6 July - 01:00 BST

If England progress to the second knockout round, they could face co-hosts Mexico, one of only three teams to win all three of their group-stage fixtures.

They have been helped by playing all three of their matches on home soil, and the early knockout rounds will be the same - both their last-32 tie with Ecuador and the potential last-16 game against England will take place in Mexico City's 87,500-capacity Estadio Azteca.

Mexico are ranked ninth in the world and have not lost a competitive fixture since a 2-0 defeat by Honduras in the first leg of the Concacaf Nations League quarter-final in November 2024 - a run of 12 matches unbeaten.

Ecuador, meanwhile, finished third in Group E after securing a dramatic 2-1 win over Germany in the final round of matches.

They haven't conceded more than one goal in any match in over two years, a run stretching 26 games.

The Azteca sits more than 7,000 feet above sea level, with that kind of altitude potentially causing shortness of breath, increased heart rate, and fatigue for players who are not used to it.

Image source, Getty Images

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport

Last 32 - DR Congo

The Leopards are ranked 46th in the world, conceded only three goals in those three group-stage fixtures, and boast significant Premier League experience in Newcastle forward Yoane Wissa, West Ham defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Burnley centre-back Axel Tuanzebe and Sunderland left-back Arthur Masuaku.

They became the first team from Sub-Saharan Africa to qualify for the World Cup in 1974, under their former name Zaire, and in their second finals appearance, are now competing in the knockout stages for the first time.

They were knocked out of the Africa Cup of Nations by Algeria in the last 16 in January.

Image source, Getty Images

You know what, BBC Sport's Daniel Austin has taken a proper look at England's possible route to the final.

Over to you Daniel...

Two can play at that game David:

• If England had finished second it would have been Portugal, then possibly Spain, USA, then France in the semi-finals?
• Finish third and it would have been Colombia, then maybe Switzerland, before Argentina then Brazil in the last four?

This is assuming other matches went to Fifa world rankings. We will look at this more in a bit, but I'd say all possible routes to the final look tough.

That's how the last 32 has shaped up.

Time for every nation involved to start dreaming.

If you want to plot your route to the final, here is how the whole knockout draw pans out...

BBC and ITV will broadcast eight last 32 games each.

As mentioned, England's tie against DR Congo is being shown live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

We will also show Germany v Paraguay and Ivory Coast v Norway, among other eye-catching fixtures, with Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal facing Croatia live on the BBC as well.

You can follow all of the last-32 fixtures on BBC Radio 5 Live and on BBC Sport.

A bit of key news for Joe:

England's first knockout match of the 2026 World Cup will be shown live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, with all 16 games in the first knockout round covered across BBC Sport.

Thomas Tuchel's side face DR Congo in Atlanta, with kick-off slated for 17:00 BST on Wednesday 1 July.

All of the last-32 ties will be split equally across BBC and ITV, with the full schedule now being locked in.

Image source, Getty Images

Great question, Joe!

England's last-32 fixture takes place at 17:00 BST on Wednesday, so you should get away with a half day if you want a bit of build-up in the afternoon before that one!

Beyond that, here are the potential kick-off times for England, should they progress to the World Cup final:

• Last 16 - 01:00 BST, Monday 6 July.
• Quarter-final - 22:00 BST, Saturday 11 July
• Semi-final - 20:00 BST, Wednesday 15 July
• Final - 20:00 BST, Sunday 19 July

Right, where to next? Well, it feels like time to look forward.

So many England fans have been getting in touch with their thoughts and feelings about the draw.

Let's have a closer look at that now...

We have also been talking England this morning, obviously, after they made it through to the last 32 as Group L winners.

There were some cautionary notes about issues with the defence and lack of defensive cover at full-back after Jarell Quansah added to Thomas Tuchel's injury concerns.

But we have also been focusing on the very significant positives:

• Bellingham makes the difference
• Kane breaks record with Panama goal
• 'A solid performance against a tricky side' - Kane
• Rashford stakes his claim?
• 'I want to make actions that will hurt the opposition' - Rashford
• 'We are at the World Cup. We won the group. I know our expectations. I know our dream' - Tuchel
• Best of your reaction to England win

Scotland

Croatia's win over Ghana in Group L confirmed Scotland's elimination from the World Cup.

Here's what we have covered on Scotland and Clarke's exit this morning:

• Clarke resigns after World Cup exit - how things unfolded for Scotland
• 'We must not lose sight of the undeniable progress' - Scottish FA chief executive
• How did we get here - one month after Clarke signed new deal?
• Questions and not many answers - analysis
• Best of your reaction to Scotland exit & Clarke resignation

Croatia's win against Ghana means they finished runners-up in Group L, with England top of the pile.

Ghana were already through before that final group-stage match on Saturday, but have progressed as a third-placed side.

The outcome of all that?

England will play DR Congo, Croatia will face Portugal, and Ghana will take on Colombia in the last 32.

Image source, Getty Images

Argentina have won three from three to begin their World Cup defence, while Algeria and Austria have both progressed to the knockout stages as well.

In the last 32, Argentina have set up a clash with Cape Verde, Algeria face Switzerland and Austria will play Spain.

Image source, Getty Images