The group stage is underway, and with 12 groups and 48 teams in play, the table picture moves fast. This is the page to bookmark — a living tracker of results, standings and the qualification race as the tournament unfolds.
Below: the scores so far, the marquee fixtures still to come, and a plain-English guide to what the standings actually mean in the new format.
Results so far
The opening matches are in. Two early results to log:
- Mexico 2-0 South Africa — the co-hosts opened with a controlled, clean-sheet win.
- South Korea 2-1 Czechia — a comeback win, with Son Heung-min leading the Korean charge to turn the game around.
These are the first entries in standings that will shift daily as the group stage rolls on. Check back as each round of fixtures completes.
Both opening results carried a clear marker: a co-host settling its nerves with a clean sheet, and an Asian side showing the resilience to come from behind. The pattern of matchday one is a tournament refusing to follow the script quietly.
The fixtures still to come
A cluster of heavyweight openers fills the next three days:
- Germany v Curaçao (June 13) — Curaçao, population around 150,000, the smallest nation ever at a World Cup.
- Netherlands v Japan (June 13) — the Dutch against Japan's golden generation.
- Ivory Coast v Ecuador (June 13) — an evenly matched group opener.
- Spain v Cape Verde Islands (June 14) — the favourites begin, with Lamine Yamal in focus.
- Belgium v Egypt (June 14) — a test of Belgium's transition.
- Saudi Arabia v Uruguay (June 14) — Uruguay open against a determined opponent.
- France v Senegal (June 15) — the standout opener, Mbappé's France against the African champions.
Results from these will reshape the early standings significantly.
How to read the standings
The 48-team format works like this: 12 groups of four, with the top two from each advancing automatically. That fills 24 of the 32 knockout places.
The remaining eight go to the best third-placed teams across all groups, ranked first on points, then goal difference, then goals scored. So 12 teams finish third and eight survive — only four are eliminated at that stage.
The practical upshot: a third-placed finish is usually enough, and goal difference is the tie-breaker that decides the cut. Watch the margins, not just the wins.
We explain the third-placed maths in full in our best third-placed teams guide, but the short version is this: 12 teams finish third and eight survive, so most of them are still alive heading into the knockouts.
What to watch in the table
Three things will tell you who is really in control as the standings fill out:
1. Goal difference, because it separates teams level on points and decides the third-placed race. 2. The third-placed mini-table, the eight-team cut-off that keeps so many nations alive. 3. Goals scored, the next tie-breaker down, which rewards sides that keep attacking even in won games.
We will update results and standings here as each matchday completes. Bookmark the page and check back — in a 48-team tournament, the picture rarely stays still for long.
With three group games per team and a knockout bracket that begins at the round of 32, the early standings are only a first draft. Form shifts, favourites stumble, and debutants surprise. The table you see today is unlikely to be the one that sends teams into the knockouts — which is exactly why it is worth tracking.
