FOX Sports Unveils 4 World Cup 2026 Quarterfinal Broadcast Teams

Q: Has the new 48-team format made Argentina's quest for a historic back-to-back World Cup title easier or harder?

It has likely made it harder overall for Argentina to repeat as world champion. The main reason is structural: in the 48-team tournament, the champion must now survive an extra knockout round. Under the old 32-team format, a finalist needed four knockout wins after the group stage. In 2026, a team must win five. That adds another do-or-die match, another chance for an upset, and more physical and mental strain over a longer tournament. The expanded field does give Argentina some help early on. With 12 groups of four and 32 teams advancing, elite sides face less danger in the group stage. Argentina’s group draw is viewed as manageable, and the format gives strong teams more room to rotate players and recover while still expecting to qualify. But that advantage is offset by the bigger risk later. The new Round of 32 creates an earlier single-elimination hurdle, where one bad performance can end a title defense immediately. Analysts also note that the expanded bracket is more complex and less predictable, increasing the importance of the draw and the possibility of awkward matchups sooner than before. So the format may make Argentina’s path out of the group easier, but its path to the trophy harder. For a team chasing a rare back-to-back title — something not achieved since Brazil in 1958 and 1962 — the added knockout match and greater volatility are the more important factors.

1 articles · Updated · FOX Sports · Jul 9

Four quarterfinal match crews were assigned by FOX Sports for July 9-11, covering France-Morocco, Spain-Belgium, England-Norway and Argentina-Switzerland on FOX.
John Strong and Stu Holden get the opening France-Morocco match from Boston on July 9, with a two-hour pregame show starting at 2 p.m. ET and Jenny Taft reporting from the pitch.
Darren Fletcher, Owen Hargreaves and Katie Shanahan will call Spain-Belgium from Los Angeles on July 10, while Ian Darke, Landon Donovan and Natalie Gedra handle Argentina-Switzerland from Kansas City on July 11.
Saturday’s England-Norway quarterfinal in Miami also goes to Strong and Holden, joined by Geoff Shreeves, with coverage beginning at 4 p.m. ET before the 5 p.m. kickoff.
FOX said semifinal assignments will come next round; the network is carrying all 104 matches of the 48-team, 16-city tournament across FOX and FS1.