Catastrophic Group Stage for Asia, While Africa and South America Excel So Far

The group stage of the 2026 World Cup, which concluded last night, proved catastrophic for Asian representatives in the tournament.

Of the 16 teams eliminated in the first phase of the World Cup, nearly half—seven, to be precise—hailed from the AFC zone. Out of all nine Asian teams, only Japan and Australia (who compete in the AFC confederation) advanced to the Round of 16. Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, and Uzbekistan finished last in their respective groups, while Iran and South Korea were among the four third-placed teams that failed to progress to the knockout rounds.

Europe and North America each saw three teams eliminated. However, it's worth noting that UEFA had the most representatives at the World Cup, with a total of 16. Only Czech Republic, Scotland, and Turkey failed to qualify for the second stage. CONCACAF, on the other hand, lost half of its teams in the tournament, namely underdogs Haiti, Curaçao, and Panama. Yet, all three host nations—Mexico, Canada, and the USA—will play in the Round of 16. Oceania was left without its sole representative after New Zealand's exit.

Conversely, two confederations bid farewell to only one of their teams in the World Cup. The performance of African teams is particularly impressive, as a remarkable nine out of ten successfully navigated the group stage. The exception was Tunisia, who exited the tournament after three losses. Meanwhile, South America also lost only one representative—two-time world champions Uruguay—while the remaining five CONMEBOL teams are still in contention for the title.