World Cup 2026 Daily Guide 6/18/26: Matchday 2 starts for Groups A and B

A full week of World Cup 2026 is now in the books, as is one game for every team participating. We’ve learned a lot in the last week. A lot of the top stars shone brightly, but a few big names—especially Cristiano Ronaldo—left something to be desired. Now, we move on to matchday 2 for each nation, and it starts with two of the host nations. On Thursday, we get to see Mexico get back at it in Group A and Canada return to fight for advancement in Group B.

Here is your World Cup 2026 Daily Guide: What to watch for on 6/18/26.

World Cup matches on 6/18/26

Czechia vs. South Africa — Atlanta, Georgia — 12 pm ET (FOX, Telemundo/Peacock)

Odds: Czechia -125, Draw +255, South Africa +390

Switzerland vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina — Los Angeles, California — 3 pm ET (FOX, Telemundo/Peacock)

Odds: Switzerland -180, Draw +310, Bosnia and Herzegovina +500

Canada vs. Qatar — Vancouver, Canada — 6 pm ET (FS1, Telemundo/Peacock)

Odds: Canada -350, Draw +475, Qatar +1000

Mexico vs. South Korea — Guadalajara, Mexico — 9 pm ET (FOX, Telemundo/Peacock)

Odds: Mexico +105, Draw +230, South Korea +295

Odds via DraftKings

3 things to watch for on World Cup 2026 Day 8 

Here are three things to watch for and fun facts to amaze and entertain your friends with on Day 8 of the 2026 World Cup.

Team’s World Cup could be coming to an end

With the first set of Group Stage in the books, matchday 2 for several teams in this tournament could be the last meaningful game that they play. It all depends on their groups. Thursday is a good example of this, as the underdogs in the first few matches face very different realities at World Cup 2026.

If South Africa can’t get a result in its Group A showdown with Czechia on Thursday, they are almost certainly going home in a week’s time. That’s because if they start 0-2 with South Korea left on the docket, the potential for 0-3 is almost assured. With several lower-ranked teams earning draws in their first matches, 0-3 will not make the Knockout Stage, even with eight third-place teams going through.

Conversely, even if Bosnia and Herzegovina or Qatar lose to Switzerland and Canada today, they still have a chance to go through, and their matchday 3 game against each other becomes massive. The Group B teams have all drawn at this World Cup, so with a point on the board and playing each other on the horizon, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Qatar can both still hope to move on.

Canada to break glass in case of emergency on Alphonso Davies? 

Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies is still not 100%, but reports suggest he can play on Thursday if necessary, even though he won’t start. As mentioned above, Group B is tightly bunched at one point apiece, so beating Qatar outright is imperative for the Canadians.

Just based on the quality of the squads, Canada should pick up the win. But Qatar is fiesty, and if the team to the North gets in trouble, we could see Davies make his World Cup 2026 debut. If this happens, it will be nice to see for Canadian fans, but it also hints at big-picture trouble for Jessie Marsch’s squad.

Mexico’s World Cup begins in earnest

Let’s be honest. The Mexico-South Africa tilt from the opening day of the 2026 World Cup wasn’t much of a fight. Julian Quinones scored nine minutes in, and South Africa picked up two red cards in the second half. Mexico didn’t need to break much of a sweat to win that game.

Now, they face a skilled, organized, and dangerous South Korean team that will challenge the Mexican defense in a way South Africa simply couldn’t. And Mexico will have to stand tall without its best defender, Cesar Montes, who picked up a red card of his own late in that first match.

Is Mexico really a contender? Or did they just look like one against South Africa? We’ll find out Thursday night.

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