World Cup 2026 Day 8 Preview: England Rolls and the Board Shifts

The first round of group stage games for the expanded 48-team World Cup finishes up today. Wednesday gave us plenty of action to digest. We saw a mix of expected dominance and surprising struggles from some of the tournament favorites. England Makes a Statement England faced a tricky opening test against Croatia in Dallas. They passed with flying colors in a 4-2 victory. Harry Kane found the back of the net, extending his national team record. The English attack looked fluid and dangerous. Their price to win the group and make a deep run will only get shorter after that performance. Portugal Stumbles Early On the other side of the coin, Portugal dropped points in a 1-1 draw with DR Congo in Houston. Cristiano Ronaldo made history by playing in his sixth World Cup, but the team struggled to break down a resilient defense. This opens up the group and creates some interesting betting angles for the remaining matches. In other action, Colombia handled debutant Uzbekistan 3-1, though the Central Asian side did manage to score their first-ever World Cup goal. SBA Takeaway Thursday features Mexico taking on South Korea and Canada facing Qatar. Keep an eye on the host nations. The crowds have been massive, and that home-field energy is a real factor to consider when looking at the board. Do not underestimate the value of playing in front of a friendly stadium. --- Related reading: - World Cup Day 6: Messi's Historic Hat Trick and a Day of Superstars - World Cup Day 5 Chaos: Four Straight Draws and a Cape Verde Miracle