2026 FIFA World Cup Group K
Group K of the 2026 FIFA World Cup took place from June 17 to 27, 2026.[1] The group consisted of Portugal, DR Congo, Uzbekistan, and Colombia.
Colombia secured their advancement to the round of 32.[2] after two group game wins, and would top the group after earning a draw against Portugal. Portugal also advanced as group runners-up, after a crucial victory against Uzbekistan.
Although DR Congo failed to win their first two matches, a victory over Uzbekistan allowed them to finish third in the group and advance as one of the best third-place teams.[2] Uzbekistan finished fourth and were eliminated, losing all three of their group games.
Teams
[edit]| Draw position | Team | Pot | Confederation | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
Finals appearance |
Last appearance |
Previous best performance |
FIFA Rankings[3][4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2025[nb 1] | June 2026 | |||||||||
| K1 | .svg/40px-Flag_of_Portugal_(official).svg.png){kind=small} Portugal |
1 | UEFA | UEFA Group F winner | November 16, 2025 | 9th | 2022 | Third place (1966) | 6 | 5 |
| K2 |  DR Congo |
4[nb 2] | CAF | Inter-confederation playoff Path 1 winner | March 31, 2026 | 2nd | 1974 | Group stage (1974) | 56[nb 2] | 46 |
| K3 |  Uzbekistan |
3 | AFC | AFC third round Group A runner-up | June 5, 2025 | 1st | — | — | 50 | 50 |
| K4 |  Colombia |
2 | CONMEBOL | CONMEBOL round robin third place | September 4, 2025 | 7th | 2018 | Quarterfinals (2014) | 13 | 13 |
Notes
- ^ The rankings of November 2025 were used for seeding for the final draw.[5]
- ^ a b As the identity of the inter-confederation playoff Path 1 winner was not known at the time of the final draw, positions in the FIFA Rankings were not taken into account, and the placeholder in the draw was automatically seeded into pot 4.[5]
Standings
[edit]| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colombia
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 7 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Portugal
|
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 5 | |
| 3 | DR Congo
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | |
| 4 | Uzbekistan
|
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 11 | −9 | 0 |
In the round of 32:[2]
- The winner of Group K, Colombia, advanced to play the third-place team of Group L, Ghana.
- The runner-up of Group K, Portugal, advanced to play the runner-up of Group L, Croatia.
- The third-place team of Group K, DR Congo, advanced to play the winner of Group L, England, as one of the eight best third-place teams from the group stage.
Matches
[edit]All times listed are local.[1]
Portugal vs DR Congo
[edit]The two teams had never met before.
This match marked the country's first time competing under the name DR Congo, having previously appeared as Zaire in 1974. It was also the first match to be played within the vicinity of a tropical cyclone (Tropical Storm Arthur), but it was unaffected.
Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo matched Argentina's Lionel Messi by playing in a sixth World Cup finals, and also become the oldest outfield player to start a World Cup match at the age of 41 years and 132 days.[6]
Portugal went in front in the 6th minute when João Neves headed to the right corner after a cross from the left by Pedro Neto. In time added on in the first half, it was 1–1 when Yoane Wissa headed to the left of the net from six yards out after a cross from the right by Arthur Masuaku, the goal was DR Congo's first ever World Cup final's goal.[7]
| Portugal | 1–1 | DR Congo |
|---|---|---|
|
[Report 1] |
|
          Portugal[8]
|
     DR Congo[8]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[8]
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Uzbekistan vs Colombia
[edit]The two teams had never met before. It was the first time since May 12, 2002 that Colombia returned to the pitch of the Azteca having lost a friendly match there to Mexico 2–1. The fixture marked Uzbekistan's debut at the FIFA World Cup.
In the 40th minute, Daniel Muñoz put Colombia in front when he scored with a volley from six yards out, connecting with a pass over the top from Luis Díaz. Abbosbek Fayzullaev made it 1–1 in the 60th minute when he headed into an empty net from close range after Colombian goalkeeper had parried a shot from Eldor Shomurodov on the right. The goal was Uzbekistan's first-ever goal at a World Cup finals.[10] Colombia went back in front five minutes later when Luis Díaz scored with a low finish to the right corner. In the 9th minute of added time, substitute Jaminton Campaz made it 3–1 when he headed to the left corner of the net from six yards out after a cross from Cucho Hernández on the right.[11]
| Uzbekistan | 1–3 | Colombia |
|---|---|---|
|
[Report 2] |
   Uzbekistan[12]
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     Colombia[12]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[12]
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Portugal vs Uzbekistan
[edit]The two teams had never met before.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in the first half, becoming the first player to score in six FIFA World Cup tournaments.[13]
This fixture was the second-largest defeat suffered by an Asian team during the tournament's group stage, following Qatar's 6–0 loss to Canada.
Portugal[14]
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Uzbekistan[14]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[14]
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Colombia vs DR Congo
[edit]The two teams had never met before.
In the 76th minute, Daniel Muñoz scored the only goal of the game with a low finish from the right that was deflected and went in at the near post.[15]
| Colombia | 1–0 | DR Congo |
|---|---|---|
|
[Report 4] |
    Colombia[16]
|
DR Congo[16]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[16]
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Colombia vs Portugal
[edit]The two teams had never met before.
Both teams struggled to make goals from either side, with Cristiano Ronaldo missing his shots throughout. In the end, both teams finished with a 0-0 draw, with Diogo Costa earning Man of the Match for his consistent performance.
  Colombia[17]
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Portugal[17]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[17]
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DR Congo vs Uzbekistan
[edit]
The two teams had never met before.
Uzbekistan scored an early lead against the determined DR Congo team by Eldor Shomurodov in the first half, though a costly mistake in the second half resulted in Yoane Wissa to score an equalizer. Additional goals by by both Fiston Mayele and Yoane Wissa secured them a chance for the Round of 32 altogether.
For Uzbekistan, their three straight defeats meant they were eliminated from the group stage alonside fellow debutant Jordan, who also went winless with three straight defeats in another group.
| DR Congo | 3–1 | Uzbekistan |
|---|---|---|
| [Report 6] |
|
    DR Congo[18]
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Uzbekistan[18]
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Discipline
[edit]The team conduct ("fair play") score would have been used as a tiebreaker if the head-to-head and overall records of teams were tied. It would also be used as a tiebreaker for the third-place ranking between groups if the overall records of teams were tied. The score was calculated based on yellow and red cards received by players and team officials in all group matches as follows:[2]
- yellow card: −1 point;
- indirect red card (second yellow card): −3 points;
- direct red card: −4 points;
- yellow card and direct red card: −5 points;
Only one of the above deductions could be applied to a player or team official in a single match.
| Team | Match 1 | Match 2 | Match 3 | Score | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Colombia
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1 | 2 | 1 | −4 | |||||||||
| Portugal
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3 | 1 | −4 | ||||||||||
| Uzbekistan
|
1 | 1 | 2 | −4 | |||||||||
| DR Congo
|
1 | 1 | 3 | −5 | |||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ a b "FIFA World Cup 26 – Match Schedule" (PDF). FIFA. February 4, 2024. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
- ^ a b c d "FIFA World Cup 2026 Regulations" (PDF). FIFA. May 2025. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 23, 2025. Retrieved June 7, 2025.
- ^ "FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking (19 November 2025)". FIFA. November 19, 2025. Retrieved November 22, 2025.
- ^ "FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking (11 June 2026)". FIFA. June 11, 2026. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ^ a b "Draw Procedures for the FIFA World Cup 2026" (PDF). FIFA. November 25, 2025. Retrieved November 25, 2025.
- ^ "Portugal 1 DR Congo 1". BBC Sport. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- ^ "Yoane Wissa gives DR Congo first ever World Cup point in draw with Portugal". Guardian. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Portugal v. Congo DR" (PDF). FIFA. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 17, 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f "Michelob Ultra Superior Player of the Match – every winner". FIFA. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 17, 2026.
- ^ "Classy Colombia have too much for debutants Uzbekistan". RTE Sport. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- ^ "Uzbekistan 1 Colombia 3". BBC Sport. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Uzbekistan v. Colombia" (PDF). FIFA. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 17, 2026.
- ^ "Cristiano Ronaldo scores at record sixth World Cup as Portugal thrash Uzbekistan: Live updates and reaction". The New York Times. June 23, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Portugal v. Uzbekistan" (PDF). FIFA. June 23, 2026. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
- ^ "Colombia 1 DR Congo 0". BBC Sport. June 23, 2026. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Colombia v. Congo DR" (PDF). FIFA. June 23, 2026. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Colombia v. Portugal" (PDF). FIFA. June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tactical Line-up – Group K – Congo DR v. Uzbekistan" (PDF). FIFA. June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
Reports
[edit]- ^
- "Portugal vs Congo DR | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 17, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Portugal v. Congo DR". FIFA. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 17, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Portugal v. Congo DR". FIFA. June 17, 2026. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
- ^
- "Uzbekistan vs Colombia | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Uzbekistan v. Colombia". FIFA. June 18, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Uzbekistan v. Colombia". FIFA. June 18, 2026. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
- ^
- "Portugal vs Uzbekistan | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Portugal v. Uzbekistan". FIFA. June 23, 2026. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Portugal v. Uzbekistan". FIFA. June 23, 2026. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
- ^
- "Colombia vs Congo DR | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Colombia v. Congo DR". FIFA. June 24, 2026. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Colombia v. Congo DR". FIFA. June 24, 2026. Retrieved June 25, 2026.
- ^
- "Colombia vs Portugal | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Colombia v. Portugal". FIFA. June 28, 2026. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Colombia v. Portugal". FIFA. June 28, 2026. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ^
- "Congo DR vs Uzbekistan | First Stage | FIFA World Cup 2026". FIFA. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- "Match Report – Group K – Congo DR v. Uzbekistan". FIFA. June 28, 2026. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- "Post match summary report – Group K – Congo DR v. Uzbekistan". FIFA. June 28, 2026. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
External links
[edit]- 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage
- Portugal at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- DR Congo at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- Uzbekistan at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- Colombia at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
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