One of the neat things about the World Cup is its ability to conjure up those same feelings we get each March, every four years in the summer … unless you hold the tournament in Qatar like it was in 2022 … that’s a story for another article.
At Mid-Major Madness, our group chat has been captivated, and we’ve caught World Cup fever. With most of it being played right here on the mainland U.S., it’s hard not to find yourself with a rooting interest when the host country isn’t playing. The ‘Yanks are making us proud so far. The good old U.S. managed to win its group with a game to spare.
Through the opening round of this tournament, it’s been one of some great upsets. We’ve seen 0-0 ties between Cape Verde and mighty preseason favorite Spain, as well as Ghana tying England, 0-0. There have been some performances by goalkeepers that we’ll remember for years to come, with Vozinha’s seven saves against Spain coming to mind as one of the best, while Curacao netminder Eloy Room narrowly missing tying former USA goalkeeper Tim Howard’s 16 saves in a match to set a new World Cup record against Belgium in the 2014 World Cup, as he saved 15 shots against Ecuador.
The stories that have emerged from this tournament are very much like some of the ones you hear in March, which almost always emerge from the mid-major programs taking part. In many ways, the World Cup is a championship where the field is made up largely of what would be considered as mid-major programs if we applied the factors that we attach in mid-major basketball, which include size, prestige and conference affiliation. Those characterizations can all be creatively applied to the nations.
Despite the World Cup being largely always made up of more mid-major programs than high major programs, it’s been high-major programs that have dominated this tournament over its previous 23 editions, as only eight nations have ever won the tournament.
Following Cape Verde’s tie with Spain, the country of about 530,000 people then took on two-time World Cup champion Uruguay—the smallest of the eight nations to ever win a World Cup crown (3.3 million population)—and it would be the Blue Sharks that would give a nation, which has always punched above its weight, some of its own medicine, forging a 2-2 draw. A 0-0 draw in its final group match bought Cape Verde at least one more week in the United States, and after that, who knows?
Cape Verde in my estimation is probably a 15 or 16 seed and is moving on to the round of 32 to face Argentina. Could Cape Verde do what the likes of a UMBC or Fairleigh Dickinson only have?
Both Curacao and Cape Verde are two of the four tournament debutantes, with Jordan and Uzbekistan being the other two. Iran and Senegal have encountered their own share of struggles, with Iran being forced to travel in and out of the country for their games due to the ongoing war between the United States and Iran. Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan all made early exits, but Cape Verde is the mid-major the nation has grown to know and love, and they have become the sentimental favorites for many throughout the country, thanks in large part to the 40-year goalkeeper, and his mother, who got to see her son play in Cape Verde’s 2-2 draw with Uruguay.
Without further ado, let’s look at some of the nations remaining and then make the mid-major comparisons, as well as the high-major comparisons applied to the mid-major opposition in the knockout rounds.
Major Soccer Nations and Their Comparative High Major Hoops Program
Before the comparisons begin, being a “major soccer nation” doesn’t always mean that is the nation’s sport of choice. For instance, for countries like the United States and Canada, the term “major soccer nation” is based not on history or on popularity of sport, but rather more on opportunities for youth players and with such vastness and with major professional domestic leagues in both, they then fall into the category of major soccer country rather than a mid-major or smaller mid-major nation. Plus, both are playing on home soil this summer and that makes a huge difference. With more than a few players from USA and Canada playing in some of Europe’s most storied leagues, it only made sense to include both in the “major” category rather than the “mid-major” one.
Brazil and UCLA have the most titles of all time, with five and 11 respectively, but on the pitch and hardwood, the two have not tasted the glory of lifting the trophy in quite some time. For Brazil, it has not won a World Cup since 2002; UCLA may have won 11 national titles in college basketball, but hasn’t lifted the trophy since 1995.
This is a Brazil team that, unlike some of those of the past, featured some memorable stars like Cameron Dollar, Tyus Edney, the O’Bannon brothers and Baron Davis to name some of the more recent ones. Donovan Dent spent much of his time at UCLA trying to stay healthy, which is much the same case for Neymar, as he arrived in the United States. Interestingly, both Dent and Brazil’s Neymar were nursing significant calf injuries towards the latter portions of the season, with Neymar forced to miss Brazil’s opening two matches of the tournament.
Machine-like consistency and winning; The Germans have been a nation that in recent World Cups, including the current one, have relied on youthful exuberance more than tried and true veteran leadership like some of the German World Cup teams of old, which relied on players like Rudi Voller and Andreas Brehme in 1990 or Franz Beckenbauer and goalkeeper Sepp Maier in 1974 to lift the trophy. It’s much the same way with Duke, which relied on its savvy leadership and veteran performers like Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley and veterans Jon Scheyer and Lance Thomas to make title runs in 1991 and 2010, respectively.
In the most recent national title team back in 2015, the Blue Devils made a shift to a paradigm of more youthful leadership to lead the team to the promised land, with guys like freshman guards Tyus Jones and Grayson Allen and rookie big man Jahlil Okafor highlighting a Blue Devils team that was a little ahead of schedule in storming to a national title 11 years ago. Much like that dynamic, the current German team is led by young stars like 23-year old forward Jamal Musiala and 23-year old attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz.
Huge nation that has made only it past the Sweet 16 only twice and is seemingly a nation that has always been there to be a threat, knocking on the door to become a world soccer power, however, they have not been able to take that final step, despite being one of the most successful Latin American Soccer countries in the world. The Mexicans reached the Elite Eight of the World Cup in 1986 and 1970. The last time they were knocked out on penalty kicks against West Germany. Like Mexico, Washington is a huge basketball-crazed state, but the Huskies lack any real sustained presence on the hardwood, despite the size and the excellent talent produced there in the past.
At one time considered a mid-major, but resources, devotion and support to Total Football in the 1970s saw the Dutch emerge as a soccer power, and they are widely considered the best team to not win a World Cup, having made appearances in three World Cup Finals: 1974, 1978 and 2010. The Dutch have had a litany of stars that we remember as much for their talent as other attributes from their physical appearance, like Ruud Gulitt’s dreadlocks, or Edgar Davids’ specialized glasses for a rare eye condition, which is much the same we remember guys like former Gonzaga greats Drew Timme or Adam Morrison, who both had epic mustaches.
The United States has great talent, but even in its golden era under Dave Odom in the mid-1990s, the Demon Deacons struggled to garner the kind of national acclaim the program so desperately sought. Even with dominant players across the years, the Demon Deacons have failed to really get over the hump on the hardwood, which is not all that unlike the USA on the pitch. USA’s breakthrough came in the early-mid 1990s on the pitch, as Paul Caligiuri’s goal vs. Trinidad and Tobago was like Randolph Childress’ eyeballs three vs. UNC’s Jeff McGinnis in the ACC Tournament Semifinals in 1995.
Both responsible for creating the modern games of world soccer and college basketball. Also like Kansas, often they are a team that seemingly underachievers more than meeting expectations. Still, the English have an amazing history in the sport, and they should have an excellent chance to win the title in the country that broke away some 250 years ago. Harry Kane is England’s version of former Kansas stars like Paul Pierce or Danny Manning in that no matter the situation or how the team is playing, he is normally among the most consistent and reliable stars in the sport. Kane’s consistency as a goalscorer is much like the efficiency of a Pierce or Manning, and he’ll have the Three Lions right where they need to be in the middle of July should this team continue to furnish him the ball in good goal-scoring opportunities.
Much like Nate Oats’ Alabama teams, which shoot a lot of threes and boast one of the most prolific offenses in college basketball year-in and year-out. Like the Crimson Tide, who had one of the most dynamic backcourts in all of college basketball the past few seasons. Few will forget the shooting of Mark Sears from a couple of years ago, or the talented Labaron Philon from this past season, and one element that has followed ‘Bama’s program over the past few seasons, is scandal. Few will forget the Brandon Miller gun incident, while the Aden Holloway weed story was a major topic of conversation heading into the NCAA Tournament this past season.
France, too, has a dynamic coach, in Didier Deschamps, but unlike Oats, has managed to stay out of the spotlight. He has been good for France and is the longest tenured head coach in the World Cup, leading the French national team since 2016. His team is stacked with offensive firepower, with players like Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele. France will be one of the favorites again, and if Argentina or Spain don’t lift the Cup, the French just might.
Another unglamorous aspect of the French team in recent World Cups has been some of their stars making the headlines for all the wrong reasons, with Frank Ribery, Karim Benzema, and Mathieu Valbuena all having some alarming scandals involving sexual misconduct. In the case of Benzema, he secretly taped teammate Mathieu Valbuena having sex as a form of blackmail against him…Yikes!…Some teammate. Oft criticized for their lack of French-born players in past World Cups by leaders like Jean-Marie Le Pen in past World Cups, it’s also true that Alabama was accessing talent from elsewhere more often than not through the transfer portal, and even created a bit of controversy this past season when bringing back Charles Bediako from the G-League and convincing a judge to give him a temporary restraining order, which allowed Bediako to suit up for Alabama. France has been known to still play players from its owned provinces like Martinique and Algeria among many others to play for its national teams in recent World Cups. It’s been a controversial subject in international soccer over the past decade or so.
Like Michigan’s basketball program, Spain has been a recentpower in the modern game. Talent has never once been an issue for either program, but team chemistry is always something discussed when it comes to both Michigan basketball and Spain. Spain’s soccer teams are always talented, but they are also very divided between the Barcelona club players and Real Madrid club players, with the Catalan culture of Barcelona mixing with the soccer culture, which is why Barcelona is often referred to as being a place that is “more than a club” and that doesn’t always carry good connotations.
There isn’t really a comparison to that currently as far as Michigan is concerned, but if you have read Mitch Albom’s book Fab Five, there was a clear division at one time between those five freshmen that came in and their upperclassmen teammates. Instead of causing problems, that would end up bringing the team together in a unique way, helping the Wolverines make a pair of NCAA Championship game appearances, yet despite that, could never get over the hump.
Spanish soccer for a large majority of the 96-year history in the World Cup Tournament has underachieved in comparison to the influence in nearly every aspect of the game. It’s only been since 2008 that we have regarded that nation as one that is a legitimate soccer power to win major competitions. It feels a little like that with Michigan, who had one national title (1989) prior to its most recent one, has often been an underachieving basketball program for the influence and talent it has produced.
Canada = Washington State
Both Canada and Washington State have great fan culture for soccer and college basketball, however, neither has much of a history in either. Alphonso Davies is the Klay Thompson of Canadian soccer, and he’s been a revelation over the past few years, playing for Bayern Munich. He’s yet to play much of a role for Canada this summer, but the Canadians have qualified for the knockout rounds of the competition for the first time in their history, finishing second in Group B.
Argentina = North Carolina
Not only do Carolina Blue and the Albiceleste strip of Argentina exude class and winning brand anytime you see them on the hardwood or pitch, but the two programs are responsible for giving us arguably two of the greatest historical stars the each sport has to offer, with Argentina giving us two of the greatest soccer players to ever grace the pitch in different eras—Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi—while North Carolina gave us arguably the greatest basketball icon and player of any era, in Michael Jordan.
Led by one of the top coaching names in the World Cup, in Marcelo Bielsa, he’s excelled at every level of the game, but Bielsa has also notably had his share of underwhelming leadership roles, which he has failed to lead his teams to meet some lofty expectations. Bielsa’s Uruguay feels an awful lot like Kevin Willard’s Villanova. The Cardinals have largely not met some lofty expectations since he assumed the role as the head coach, nor has Bielsa’s Uruguay. Bielsa’s Uruguay lacked the kind of punch we’ve seen the Sky Blues bring to the tournament so many times in the past, with the likes of Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani and Diego Forlan in recent World Cups.
In some respects, Bielsa and Willard share some similarities in that they might be good coaches, but they are also somewhat overrated. There was a time when both Villanova and Uruguay made the most of being the huge underdogs, like the 1950 shock of Brazil in the Maracana in the World Cup Final in a game that was played before 173,850 fans and La Selecao needed only a draw with Uruguay to claim the Cup, however, lost 2-1 on a goal by Juan Alberto Schiaffino in the late stages of the match. A national depression set in, and the loss by the Brazilians became known as the “Maracanzo” as the nation mourned its loss in the championship. Uruguay’s run in 1950 in Brazil is reminiscent of Villanova’s on the hardwood in 1985 under Rollie Massamino, which defeated heavily favored Georgetown, 66-64, at Rupp Arena.
When we think of the Aussies, it’s a big nation, but like the United States and Canada, soccer isn’t high on the priority list in terms of recreational activities, although apparently break dancing is a sport the nation aspires to be a world power in, and that’s why I say Clemson. Clemson wants to play on the same hardwood or pitch as you, but even if they can do so effectively, we all know that school is always going to be football dominant no matter how much they try to prove to us that basketball is of real importance in Tiger Town.
It was a long time ago that we learned how good a soccer nation that Portugal could be. It was 1966 in fact when the world was introduced to Eusebio, who led the Portuguese fleet to the banks of the River Thames before running out of gas at the very last minute and lost the semifinal 2-1 to the eventual champion England. We figured it wouldn’t be long for the “other” Iberian neighbor to lift a World Cup trophy. However, 60 years later with Ronaldo replacing Eusebio and still no trophy. It kind of feels like all those Purdue great teams from Glen Robinson-to-Zach Edey and still no national title. West Lafayette and Lisbon might seem like worlds apart, but in theory, these have more in common than most realize from a comparative sporting perspective.
Reputable Mid-Majors/Soccer Nations That Could Be Cinderella This July
A soccer nation and a basketball program that have had trouble taking the next step as a program. In 2014, Algeria came closest to advancing quarterfinals, but after 91 minutes of scoreless soccer, an Andre Schuerle goal early in extra time was followed by a Mesut Ozil strike in the 119th minute to put the potential upset bid by the Desert Foxes out of reach, with Abdelmoumene Djabou adding a consolation goal in injury time of extra time, but it would be too little too late, as Germany went on to the 2-1 win and began their march towards a fourth World Cup crown. This is Algeria’s fifth World Cup appearance, and it literally needed a last-second draw with Austria to even find themselves in the round of 32.
Like Algeria, Troy is a program that has knocked at the door of an NCAA Tournament win, but despite making each of the past two NCAA Tournaments, have faltered once there, losing to Kentucky and Nebraska in each of the past two tournaments. Two of Troy’s four NCAA Tournaments have come in the past two seasons under Scott Cross, who was whisked away to become the new head coach of Georgia Tech following the season.
Why Grand Canyon you might ask? Well, Croatia has emerged as a power on the World Cup in recent times, much the same way Grand Canyon has been. Grand Canyon is known for its tremendous crowds at its home facility, and if you’ve ever watched a game played in Zagreb, whether it be the national team or the Dynamo Zagreb, then you know exactly what I am talking about. Croatia made the World Cup final in 2018 and finished third in the previous World Cup in Qatar.
Morocco = San Diego State
San Diego State’s prowess in the Mountain West has never really been questioned, but the NCAA Tournament has proven a big stumbling block. That is until 2023, when the Aztecs broke through to become the first Mountain West program to make the national title game when they faced off against UConn in 2023 only to lose 72-58 to the Huskies.
Playing half of its qualifiers at above 7,000-feet of sea level at Estadio Olimpico Atahualpa in Quito, La TriColor has been a mid-major juggernaut since breaking through to qualify for the World Cup in 2006. Ecuador’s mid-major comparison is Utah State, and they could be one of the dark horses that could make a deep run in the knockout rounds, as they are one of the mid-major programs that could legitimately win it all. Ecuador’s advantage of playing its home games in such an environment in Logan. Much like Colombia, Ecuador has great fans and is comparable to Utah State in that way.
Ecuador has also had some truly great managers come through the ranks in the past as well, including Francisco Maturana, who was responsible for building Colombian soccer into the world power it is to this day from 1987-90 and then again from 1993-94. “Pacho,” which is the nickname he is more widely known by, started to build. In much the same fashion, Utah State’s success has a foundation built upon great coaches from the past, including Danny Sprinkle, Ryan Odom, Larry Eustachy and Jerrod Calhoun. Ecuador is one of those mid-majors that, like Utah State, has potential to do some real damage to major soccer nations before this tournament concludes.
Both South Africa and Idaho are relative strangers to success on the pitch and the hardwood, as success has been fleeting for both Bafana Bafana and the Vandals, with Idaho having made just its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance this past March when it was a No. 15 seed and faced the No. 2 seed Houston Cougars.
This Norway team is reminiscent of a team that has one absolute star that could lead it further in the tournament than it maybe should ever go, in Eerling Haaland, who has a ridiculous strike rate, having scored 59 goals in just 51 international appearances. The Vikings have a player in Haaland like 2008 Davidson with Stephen Curry, who was special enough to lead a program like Davidson all the way to the Elite Eight and within a missed three at the buzzer of defeating eventual national title winner Kansas. Martin Odegaard, who is Norway’s often forgotten star, is much like Davidson’s forgotten star from that 2007-08 season, in point guard Jason Richards, who was very much the table-setter often for Curry. Odegaard plays a similar role with Haaland, helping put his teammate in excellent situations to have such a highly successful strike rate.
Egypt has a proud soccer history, but it has struggled to make the biggest stage. No country has won more continental championships than the Egyptians, but World Cup success has been fleeting. The reason for the comparison to Hofstra is just like the nation of Egypt, which is coached by its all-time leading goal scorer Hossam Hassan, who helped lead Egypt to its first-ever World Cup appearance back in 1990. He has a national team record 69 goals, but there is a new star of Egyptian soccer named Mohammed Salah. Salah led the Pharoahs to their first-ever World Cup win over New Zealand, as the Egyptians defeated New Zealand, 3-1, scoring a goal to reach 68 goals in his career playing for the national team.
As far as the mid-major comparison, it has to do with who coaches each. Hassan is a former Egyptian legend that is looking to lead his country to a run in the knockout rounds. That is kind of the same story that Speedy Claxton had when he led his upset-minded Pride into the NCAA Tournament against Alabama as a No. 13 seed this past March. Claxton is widely considered one of the best players to ever put on a Hofstra uniform, and while the Pride were able to keep the game respectable for a while, it could never quite match the depth and overall talent of the Crimson Tide, dropping a 90-70 game to Alabama.
It wasn’t so long ago, that Japan was an afterthought in world soccer circles, and that all would change after the country through major support behind its domestic league, which is referred to as the “J-League,” as well as developing its homegrown talent, and in 2002, for many reasons, the sport would change in both the Asian region as well as in the country of Japan. Japan and South Korea became the first two to jointly host a World Cup in 2002, and it would be the South Koreans that would make it all the way to the semifinals before being narrowly defeated by Germany. Some 24 years later, Japan is the strongest Asian team remaining, with South Korea having already bowed out in the group stage. Japan is a real threat and a real darkhorse team to go a long way in this tournament, and I say that knowing their round of 32 matchup is against Brazil.
With that said, High Point’s success in recent seasons has become one of the major topics in mid-major basketball. While spending the money and building the beautiful Qubein, which is maybe the best mid-major arena in the country, seating 4,500 fans. Zico, a former Brazilian soccer superstar, who was part of three World Cups, and was Japan’s World Cup coach in 2002 and was the Director of Technical Development in 1998 before that. His name alone is one that draws attention, and he’s largely responsible for helping lay the foundation of success for Japanese soccer to this day. For High Point, Tubby Smith, who is an alum of the small mid-major just outside of Greensboro, N.C., first seemingly drew some attention to the program after ending his coaching career as the High Point’s head coach, coaching the Panthers from 2018-22 and overseeing the opening of the Qubein Center.
Smaller Countries and the Smaller Corresponding Mid-Majors They Are Matched With:
Bosnia and Herzegovina = Cal Baptist
Like California Baptist, Bosnia and Herzegovina punches well above its weight, and is a team that famously kept Italy out of the World Cup in the latest edition of the tournament. Cal Baptist, like Bosnia-Herzegovina, is a college basketball program that is relatively new to the NCAA Division-I scene, as the program only announced it would be moving up to the NCAA Division-I level in 2017. The Lancers knocked at the door of an NCAA Tournament berth in 2019 and 2022, making the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) before finally breaking through and making the NCAA Tournament this past March. The Lancers only became eligible to even make the field in 2022-23. Dominique Daniels, who averaged 23.2 PPG this past season as a 5-foot-10 guard, is Cal-Baptist’s version of Edin Dzeko, who is the 40-year old superstar for this Bosnian team and has made over 150 appearances for his country, scoring 73 goals. Bosnia has been a country since proclaiming its independence from Yugoslavia in 1992, which was followed by a three-year war. The country currently has roughly 3.4 million inhabitants.
One of the teams that has an interesting soccer history that seemingly no one talks about much is Paraguay, yet in recent World Cups, it’s a country that has stood strong and proud among its South American counterparts. Though “La Albirroja” hasn’t the overall history of say an Argentina, Brazil or Uruguay, it’s a team that is consistently a difficult puzzle in the World Cup. That has been the case ever since a breakthrough World Cup back in 1986, which was headed up by star Julio Cesar Romero “Romerito,” who helped La Albirroja reach the knockout stage for the first time in its history. In three of the four World Cups since, the Paraguayans have made it out of the group stage, which includes a quarterfinal appearance in 2010.
The 1998 tournament saw a tough, gritty Paraguay team provide France arguably its toughest test on home soil in the first knockout stage before the French went on to claim the World Trophy on home soil with a 3-0 win over Brazil. Paraguay is often team other big soccer nations hope to avoid in the knockout stages because of their tradition of being a gritty, physically-sound defensive unit and good goalkeeping in recent world cups dating back to ’86. Paraguay is a country that won’t wow you with stars but will exchange that headlining star with a cultural identity that doesn’t shy away from promoting its indigenous roots, as well as the role soccer plays within the indigenous culture in that celebrates its cultural identity through soccer rather than downplay or shy away from it.
In the same way, Furman’s basketball culture has been a unique one under Bob Richey, and like Paraguay, they have been a team that has had recent success within the SoCon, as well as being a team that, when they have made a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances after a long drought, bigger schools have hoped to avoid. One need look no further for the reason than Virginia in 2023, and though the Paladins weren’t going to beat UConn in 2025, Furman did enough to make the Huskies sweat the entire way before eventually taking an 82-71 win. Furman’s 15 seed undervalued their talent level and team overall ability and culture, and it’s much how casual soccer fans often take a country like Paraguay not very seriously in the knockout stages. However, take them for granted at your own peril. This is a Paraguay team that has more than enough to pull an upset or two in the knockout rounds of the competition.
Ah yes, the tournament debutantes have become the Cinderella story of several Cinderella stories of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Cape Verde is like Queens, who made its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance this past March. Both have underrated head coaches that have seen a thing or two in their time managing their respective sport. For Cape Verde, it’s Bubista, who has led his team with three straight draws in games his team was underdogs each of the three times they took the field. Two of those draws came against World Cup champions Spain (0-0) in the group stage opener, while a captivating 2-2 draw against two-time World Cup Champion Uruguay (1930 and ’50) sent La Celeste into a tailspin, to which it was forced to defeat Spain in its final group match. It didn’t not, losing 1-0, while Cape Verde tied 0-0 with Saudi Arabia in its final group match to secure qualification into the knockout round. The reward for their hard work is a date with three-time World Cup champion, which also happens to the be the defending champion, Argentina, which is also led by the sport’s top player in its history—Lionel Messi. Good luck to Bubvista, as all of us at mid-major madness will be rooting for the Blue Sharks.
Like Cape Verde, Queens’ Grant Leonard was able to lead the Royals to the NCAA Tournament this past March, and like Vozihna has done between the pipes in defending the Cape Verde goal throughout the tournament, so did 6-foot-9 Avontae Parker, who ranked fourth in the Atlantic Sun in blocks this past season, swatting away 45 shots and averaging 1.3 blocks-per-game.
Paraguay (Furman) 1 (4), Germany (Duke) 1 (3)
This is a solid No. 3 vs. No. 14 or No. 2 vs. 15 matchup, however, Furman is probably a program that in this sense is seeded too high, and they are the type Mercer that could give Duke fits and pull the upset. Cue up JP Pegues and Alex Wilkins in the form of Miguel Almiron and Julio Enciso of Paraguay and the Paladins…er…Paraguayans have a real chance to pull the upset of Julian “Jon Scheyer” Nagelsmann’s Germany here.
**-Furman pulled the Mercer Mountain hawk over the Blue Devils in overtime! The PK win for Paraguay to slay the giant is right on cue!
France (Alabama) 3, Sweden (Florida State) 0
This game is a high-major on high-major clash here, but its really only that in theory. Alabama and Mbappe had this locked up with a 2-0 lead early in the second half. Sweden is a proud soccer country, which made the semifinals of the 1994 World Cup, but haven’t made a ton of noise on the world soccer scene. Much like Florida State’s best days of sustained national prominence involved guys like Bob Sura and Charlie Ward.
**Canada (Washington State) 1, South Africa (Idaho) 0
This matchup was apparently so good that it needed a whole day for people to tailgate and prepare for. The Vandals of Bafana Bafana kept it close, but Eustachio’s three with a second left gave Pullman another reason to party.
**Morocco (San Diego State) 1 (3), Netherlands (Gonzaga) 1 (2)
Gonzaga was once thought of as a mid-major, until that run in 1974…I mean 1999 and when that slipper still fitted thing…That’s no longer the case, as the ‘Zags have outgrown their shoes made of glass. San Diego State might have as well, but Brian Dutcher’s team might need a miracle to knock off Mark Few’s Bulldogs in the first round of the knockout games. We hope you’re pulling for Dutch and the Aztecs to do a number on the Few’s Zags in the real land of the Aztecs…at Monterrey Stadium in Guadalupe Mexico of course.
**San Diego State gets the upset in overtime and will face Washington State in the Sweet 16 was my prediction, and the Moroccan win on PKs is spot on with that.
Portugal (Purdue) vs. Croatia (Grand Canyon)
This has the potential to be one of the best games of the opening round of knockout fixtures, and Grand Canyon is a program from the mid-major ranks no major program wishes to face in the Big Dance. Bryce “Zlatko” Drew knows a little something about upsets in March or maybe June and Matt Painter knows all too well what Fairleigh Dickinson’s logo looks like…This one has upset potential all over it. This is your 5-12 matchup.
Spain (Michigan) vs. Austria (Wright State)
This matchup is more tricky for one of the tournament favorites than it should be. Coach Clint Sargeant has turned Wright State into a mid-major power in the Horizon League in a short amount of time, but newly named head coach Michael Boynton Jr. has just enough talent from that extra few million spent in the portal to slide past a Wright State team that gave Virginia some headaches for a while in the most recent NCAA Tournament in a first round clash in Philly.
USA (Wake Forest) 2, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Cal Baptist) 0
It’s probably the only game you should root for the favorite in. Even when the USA are supposed to win they sometimes find ways to make things more interesting. Flo Balogun scored before halftime but was given a controversial red card early in the second half, leaving the Americans to play down a man for much of the final 45.
Belgium (Vanderbilt) 3, Senegal (Xavier) 2
Two programs with big aspirations and not much of a track record on the biggest stage to match such aspirations. This would be your No. 8 vs. No. 9 or No. 7 vs. No. 10 matchup at a normal NCAA Tournament because boy, was it close. Senegal led 2-0 until late in the second half when Belgium scored twice to force extra time. Fast forward to the end when the Belgians prevailed on a penalty kick.
Brazil (UCLA) 2 vs. Japan (High Point) 1
Flynn Clayman’s men are built for a long tournament run, with the technical ability of Ayase Ueda hitting you like a Rob Martin crossover in March. The Bruins have pedigree, and though Carlo Ancellotti is the anti-Mick Cronin, the point is it won’t disappoint us to see Clayman waxing poetic about the lack of Brazils he can get on his non-conference World Cup slate this time around either. Take the Blue Samurai Panthers to be a real danger in this tournament, as they move past one of the pre-tournament favorites.
**–Got this one a bit wrong, although High Point put up a fight, however, Maritinelli’s goal with a minute remaining in stoppage time was like a Donovan Dent buzzer-beater to take out the Panthers.
Norway (Davidson) 2, Ivory Coast (South Florida) 1
Despite some past success at Davidson (Norway) prior to joining the A-10, it’s been fleeting and far between since joining the much tougher mid-major from the Southern Conference a little over a decade ago now. The Norwegians are now back on the biggest stage for the first time since 1998 and they bring with them their very own Steph Curry in the form of goal scoring man Erling Haaland, who fittingly scored the game-winner.
Mexico (Washington) 2, Ecuador (Utah State) 0
Ecuador can’t overcome Mexico in Mexico City as one of the host countries powers through with a pair of first-half goals. Now, it’s a matchup with England that awaits.
England (Kansas) 2, DR Congo (Akron) 1
Harry Kane and the inventors of the modern game faced an interesting test in DR Congo. Like Akron, DR Congo has shown they can play with anyone this season, as evidenced by them holding a 1-0 lead for much of the match. That was a similar performance to their draw earlier in the tournament with Portugal. Akron hung in with highly-ranked Purdue early in the basketball season. However, the talent of Kane showed through in the end as he put home two goals in the final 20 minutes.
Switzerland (Nebraska) vs. Algeria (Troy)
This is an intriguing matchup, and it’s a game where Troy will need to pack the paint and sit in a low block to keep Nebraska’s Johan Manzabmi and Breel Embolo from getting space to operate within. This feels like a bit of a mismatch even though Nebraska lacks the overall knockout round success of some of its other power conference programs. That exact thing is true on the pitch.
Colombia (Texas) vs. Ghana (Northern Iowa)
The Panthers of Cedar Falls, Iowa, and Black Stars of Ghana may be worlds apart on a map and in culture, but where the two converge is their ability to cause headaches with their ability to defend their foes. UNI led the NCAA in scoring defense (61.8 PPG), and if you watched the England-Ghana match, then you know the Black Stars held England to a scoreless draw, which is something quite astonishing considering the Three Lions had four goals against Croatia in their first game of the tournament.
Argentina (North Carolina) vs. Cape Verde (Queens)
Cape Verde isn’t scared of anyone. It was clear for everyone to see in their performances against Uruguay and Spain in the group stage, garnering ties in both games. It’s hard not to love Messi, but sorry, we’re all for Grant Leonard’s Queens Royals in this blockbuster clash.
Australia (Clemson) vs. Egypt (Hofstra)
This sets up as one of the best matchups of the knockout rounds. Like Brad Brownell’s Clemson teams, the Australians are strong defensively, and they have good size on set pieces, with the likes of 6-foot-6 Harry Southar. Egypt are much smaller in stature, but Mo Salah and Omar Mamoush are one heck of a tandem in the midfield and up front, and it is much like the tandem offered between both Hofstra guard Cruz Davis and Preston Ed Mead. An upset here wouldn’t really shock me and it wouldn’t be a huge upset because Hofstra are just that good and that dynamic.
