England score twice vs Panama as Croatia-Ghana stay level
DIRECT ANSWER: England scored twice against Panama on Saturday in the group world cup 2026 finale, tightening their grip on Group L while Croatia and Ghana were level in the simultaneous Philadelphia fixture. With the last groups being decided, the Three Lions moved closer to a knockout berth as the group stage closed.
Key Takeaways
- England struck twice against Panama at New York/New Jersey Stadium as Group L reached its conclusion.
- Croatia and Ghana were level in their parallel fixture, keeping automatic knockout qualification in the balance.
- Panama entered already eliminated after narrow losses to Ghana and Croatia in earlier Group L games.
- Opta's supercomputer had England as heavy favourites and Croatia as slight favourites before kickoff.
- Saturday also closed Groups J and K, with Argentina resting Lionel Messi and Portugal facing Colombia.
What happened in Group L on Saturday?
England and Panama met at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, with the Three Lions looking to seal top spot in Group L. According to ESPN's live coverage, England scored twice against Panama as the group-stage curtain fell on the final groups.
At the same 5 p.m. EDT kickoff, Croatia and Ghana shared the field at Philadelphia Stadium. ESPN reported that match level, meaning neither side held a lead at that stage of play. FOX Sports noted before kickoff that the winner would be guaranteed at least second place, while Ghana would finish second in the event of a draw.
Why does England scoring twice matter for the knockout stage?
England entered the day with four points from a 4-2 opening win over Croatia and a 0-0 draw with Ghana. FOX Sports explained that a victory over Panama, combined with Ghana failing to beat Croatia, would deliver the group title. If Ghana also won, the group would be decided on goal differential, with England at +2 and Ghana at +1.
Panama had nothing left to play for. Thomas Christiansen's side were already eliminated after a late 1-0 loss to Ghana and a 1-0 defeat to Croatia, when Ante Budimir scored in the 54th minute. England had beaten Panama 6-1 at Russia 2018, still their biggest World Cup win, and Al Jazeera's Opta model gave them a 78.5% pre-match win probability across 25,000 simulations.
Where do Croatia and Ghana stand while level?
This was the first-ever World Cup meeting between Croatia and Ghana. Despite sitting a point behind Ghana in Group L, Croatia were pre-match favourites in Opta's 25,000 simulations, winning 56.3% of the time compared with Ghana's 17.6% and a 26.2% draw rate.
Ghana arrived after a hard-fought 0-0 draw with England on Tuesday, frustrating the Three Lions with a compact defence and dangerous counterattacks, according to FOX Sports. With the score level in Philadelphia, both nations remained in the fight for automatic round-of-32 places as ESPN's World Cup Daily live blog tracked the closing groups.
What else was decided on the final group-stage day?
Saturday's six-match slate also settled Groups J and K. Argentina, already group winners, faced eliminated Jordan in Dallas, with Lionel Messi rested from the start according to Al Jazeera. Portugal met Colombia in Miami for Group K supremacy, while DR Congo and Uzbekistan both chased first World Cup wins in Atlanta.
Off the pitch, Cape Verde became the smallest nation by population to reach a men's World Cup knockout round, Iran awaited best third-place math, and pink boots emerged as a major tournament trend. For more on how data models are reshaping sports coverage, see our Future Tech & AI Wonders hub. Full schedules and permutations are on FOX Sports.