Two quarter-finals, one afternoon, two 2-1 wins by the team most neutrals fancied. England went ahead through Cole Palmer before half-time at MetLife and closed Belgium out with a Jude Bellingham run three minutes from time. Then Germany and the Netherlands went the distance at AT&T Stadium and Virgil van Dijk headed a Dutch semi-final in extra time. The top half of the bracket is set. England play the Netherlands at MetLife on July 14 for a place in the World Cup 2026 final.
Final scores
Belgium 1-2 England: Bellingham finishes it
Belgium played the first thirty minutes the way their staff promised they would. Sit deep, deny England the space to play through Declan Rice, wait for the moment. The moment came in the 34th minute when Jรฉrรฉmy Doku โ on for the injured Leandro Trossard rather than for tactical reasons โ ran onto a De Bruyne through-ball and finished off the outside of the boot past Jordan Pickford. Belgium 1-0 up in a match they had barely touched.
England answered in nine minutes. Palmer, who Thomas Tuchel had pushed higher to press the Belgian backline, met a Rice driven ball at the edge of the penalty area and finished first-time. It looked from the replay as though he had put his laces through it without breaking stride. 1-1 at half-time and a match that had turned from a Belgian tactical exercise into a knockout tie.
The second half was England. Saka pinned Timothy Castagne for forty-five minutes; the corner count finished 9-2. But the goal, when it came in the 87th minute, was Bellingham from open play. He took the ball off Youri Tielemans on the halfway line, drove past two Belgian midfielders who did not want to book themselves out of a potential semi-final, and slipped the finish under Koen Casteels. England 2-1. Belgium three minutes plus stoppage to find the answer they never looked like finding.
De Bruyne walked off the field before the whistle went. His Belgium career, almost certainly, ended on the MetLife bench. England play a semi-final for the second time in three tournaments and the fourth time in men's World Cup history.
Germany 1-2 Netherlands (a.e.t.): Van Dijk in the 108th
Germany played the first hour the way they had against Argentina in the round of 16. Florian Wirtz in a false right winger role, Jamal Musiala tucking inside from the left, Kai Havertz drifting. Wirtz scored the opener in the 22nd minute after a Joshua Kimmich pass split the Dutch midfield โ a low, precise finish across Bart Verbruggen that told the AT&T Stadium crowd this German team is different from the one Louis van Gaal beat in Qatar. 1-0 at the hour mark and a game the Netherlands did not look like drawing.
They drew it in the 66th minute anyway. Cody Gakpo, who has scored in every knockout round he has played, took a Frenkie de Jong pass on the half-turn at the edge of the box and hit it flat, low and inside the near post. 1-1 in a match that then settled into thirty minutes of Dutch pressure and German counter-punches without anyone finding the second goal.
Extra time was open. Both teams brought on their two allowed changes and both looked as if they preferred penalties to the risk. Then, in the 108th minute, Xavi Simons stood over a corner and hit the delivery that a player of his height had no business hitting, straight onto the head of Van Dijk. The Dutch captain, 35, met it six yards out and finished into the same corner he has been heading crosses into for a decade. The German bench went still. Ronald Koeman ran twenty yards down the touchline. Van Dijk stood by the corner flag for the ten seconds it took his teammates to reach him.
Germany had eight minutes plus stoppage. Musiala hit the post from twenty yards. Wirtz curled a free kick over. The Dutch defended the way they have defended all tournament โ deep, narrow, calm โ and got out.
What Thursday told us about the semi-final
England and the Netherlands play at MetLife on July 14. The tactical questions almost write themselves. Bellingham and Palmer between the Dutch centre-backs and de Jong is the matchup Koeman spent the German quarter-final preparing for. Van Dijk against Harry Kane, if Kane starts, is the most obvious personal duel on the pitch. Denzel Dumfries hunting Saka on the right side of the Dutch back three is the matchup the Netherlands win most nights โ but Saka has been the best right-winger in the tournament and Dumfries has not yet been asked to defend against a top-three version of anyone.
The Netherlands have not lost to England in a World Cup match since 1974. That statistic includes zero fixtures at this stage of the tournament and one group-stage draw in 1982; the number is smaller than it sounds. What matters is that both teams have won 2-1 today and both teams have conceded to the opposition's best chance. Neither of Thursday's ties was a straightforward performance. The semi-final may not be either.
The top half of the bracket
- Semi-final 1: England vs Netherlands ยท Tuesday July 14 ยท MetLife Stadium.
- Winner: plays the winner of the second semi-final at MetLife on July 19 for the World Cup.
- Bottom half: Spain vs France Friday July 10, Mexico vs Norway Saturday July 11 โ see the Scorelisto blog for the Friday preview.
FAQ
Who scored for England against Belgium? Cole Palmer equalised on 43 minutes and Jude Bellingham scored the winner in the 87th. Doku had put Belgium 1-0 up in the 34th.
Was there any controversy in the Germany-Netherlands tie? None from VAR โ both goals stood cleanly. Musiala's late shot off the post at 1-2 was the closest either team came to a second-half of extra time equaliser. There was no offside review at any goal.
When is the World Cup 2026 final? Sunday July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. Kickoff is 4 p.m. ET.
Where can I follow live World Cup scores? Full fixture list and live updates on the Scorelisto soccer scoreboard. Bracket recap and quarter-final round-ups on the Scorelisto blog.