England’s World Cup last-32 tie against DR Congo will be shown live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Wednesday in Atlanta, with kick-off at 17:00 BST – but the tournament has already produced an unprecedented footnote: Canada have become the first host nation in men’s World Cup history forced to play a match outside its own borders.
Thomas Tuchel’s side face knockout stage debutants DR Congo, who are appearing in their first World Cup in 52 years. The African side drew with Portugal in the group stage before coming from behind to beat Uzbekistan 3-1 to set up the intriguing clash.
“England face DR Congo on BBC; Canada become first host nation forced to play World Cup match abroad.”
All 16 games in the first knockout round are covered across BBC Sport, with the BBC and ITV each broadcasting eight last-32 matches. BBC One will also show Spain against Austria on Thursday (20:00), as the European champions seek a first World Cup knockout win since 2010, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal against Luka Modrić’s Croatia on Friday (00:00) – both Ballon d’Or winners turn 41 this year, making this likely a final World Cup appearance for one.
Four-time winners Germany face Paraguay on Monday (21:30), Mohamed Salah’s Egypt take on Australia on Friday (19:00), and Erling Haaland’s Norway meet Ivory Coast on Tuesday (18:00). Co-hosts United States play Bosnia-Herzegovina on Thursday (01:00), and Switzerland face Algeria on Friday (04:00), all live on BBC One.
But Canada’s round of 32 match against South Africa – the first in the knockout stage, kicking off at 5pm UK time on Sunday, June 28 – will be played at Los Angeles Stadium, not in Vancouver. Canada needed a win or draw against Switzerland in their final group match to top Group B and stay at home in Vancouver at BC Place. Instead, they lost 2-1, dropping to second place. The pre-set tournament bracket dictated that the Group B runner-up would face the Group A runner-up (South Africa) in Los Angeles, meaning Canada become the first host nation ever to play a tournament match outside its borders.
All matches will have live radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds, with spoiler-free highlights available each morning on iPlayer, the BBC Sport app and the BBC Football YouTube channel. BBC Sport’s interactive 3D experience is available for all live BBC TV matches on the website and app.