Who could England face in the last-16 at World Cup 2022?

Harry Kane in action for England against Italy and wearing the One Love armband.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

England are currently top of Group B at World Cup 2022 and, should they avoid losing 4-0 to Wales tonight, are through to the knockout stages of the tournament.

Depending on where England finish in the group determines who their next opponent might be in the last-16, with plenty of permutations still to consider as Iran take on USA in the other group fixture at 7pm.

The winners of Group B play the second-placed team in Group A, while the second-placed team in Group B take on the winner of Group A, put simply. Therefore, England can face either of the Netherlands or Senegal in the last-16. 

If things stay as they currently are, England would face the second-placed team from Group A, which has been confirmed as Senegal, the African nation beating Ecuador2-1. 

If England finish second, though, they will end up facing the winners of Group A, the Netherlands, in the last-16 on Sunday. The European nation defeated the already-eliminated hosts Qatar for their final group match, ensuring they won the group with seven points. 

In order to make it a certainty to top Group B, England need to win against Wales. Should they draw and Iran win, then England will finish second, most probably setting up an intriguing fixture between the Three Lions and the Oranje. 

However, if USA win and England loses, they can still top the group on goal difference, though that relies on low scores in both matches - England's goal difference is currently plus four, while the USA's is zero. 

if Wales win and the game between Iran and USA is a draw, England can still top the group, provided the score is kept below 3-0. 

Phew, have you got all of that? Granted, it's fairly complicated, but, come 9pm GMT tonight, it'll be clear who England's opponents are after their game with Wales.  

Ryan Dabbs
Staff writer

Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.