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The 2022 World Cup has so far provided the sort of fun, crazy, and absolutely bananas footballing action not seen in a while.
The matches pitting the finest teams in the world with unheralded ones seeking to slay giants have proven to be a winning formula in the wake of a global health crisis that has kept intermingling between people of different countries at bay for more than two years.
Last 16 in
After two weeks of non-stop surprises, the last 16 countries to qualify for the knockout stage are confirmed.
For the next five days, Davids and Goliaths will continue to face-off, which could lead to more upsets and stunning football on the pitch to make this one of the most memorable World Cups ever.
Here is how the remaining 16 teams will square off:
via Fifa
Dec. 3
Netherlands vs USA
Dec. 4
Argentina vs Australia
France vs Poland
Dec. 5
England vs Senegal
Japan vs Croatia
Dec. 6
Brazil vs South Korea
Morocco vs Spain
Dec. 7
Portugal vs Switzerland
Which games to look out for
Netherlands vs USA
Right off the bat, the first knockout stage match between the Netherlands and USA will be exciting.
Ranked 16 and 14 respectively, this match will see both sides that are relatively high up the Fifa rankings battle it out.
Moreover, the Dutch hold the record for playing the most World Cup finals without ever winning the tournament.
They finished second in the 1974, 1978 and 2010 World Cups, losing to West Germany, Argentina and Spain respectively.
Team USA advanced to the round of 16 in 2010 and 2014 and failed to qualify in 2018.
Football is a less popular sport in the U.S., but that has not stopped the Americans from excelling at it.
Japan vs Croatia
All eyes will be on the Blue Samurais given the Japanese players' and fans' showing this World Cup and the social capital the country has acquired for being such a cool and kooky place all these years.
Japan entered this tournament as the underdog, and everyone loves an underdog.
Regardless, the Japanese, without a doubt, have emerged as one of the best teams representing Asia and Asians and have shown they are master giant killers in this current outing, effectively knocking Germany out.
Croatia have appeared in the World Cup on six occasions in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022 since gaining independence in 1991.
Their best result thus far was reaching the 2018 final, where they lost 4–2 to France.
They were the underdogs.
Brazil vs South Korea
South Korea will have their mettle tested against Brazil, which is recognised as the greatest footballing nation in the world.
The South Koreans have excelled on the world stage, especially in the area of exporting its pop culture.
The vast resources of social capital it has also accumulated has seen people all over the world rooting for them to do even better.
Brazil's first two World Cup wins were in consecutive tournaments in 1958 and immediately after in 1962.
In total, Brazil has won the World Cup five times.
Brazil was the runner-up in two final matches, the first in 1950 and again in 1998.
In total, Brazil has played in seven World Cup finals.
Their last World Cup final win was in 2002.
Why is this World Cup so unpredictable?
A small note on why this World Cup has been so unpredictable.
It was postulated before this World Cup started that things will be unpredictable in the wake of international travel being cancelled for a good few years, leading to countries lacking exposure to foreign competitors, which is bound to throw up some surprises.
The entire dynamics and global order of football has been reshuffled as a result.
Plus, the desert heat of Qatar might not be helping players accustomed to competing in wintry conditions this time of the year.
Temperatures in Qatar at night are about 22°C to 28°C.
The introduction of VAR to decisions big and small have no doubt also altered the objectivity of refereeing and increasingly rule out the vagaries of human judgement.
But who knows? Given the results of matches thus far, maybe the final could well be Australia vs Senegal.
All bets are on.
We shall see.
Top photos via Fifa