Full list revealed
England 3rd Mexico 5th – which nations have made World Cup knockout stages the most?
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It's now proper business time in the 2026 World Cup. The new 48-team format means that it is actually quite difficult for many of the top nations to get eliminated, with eight of the 12th third-placed teams also qualifying alongside the top two in the group. But now every game matters. Making it to the knockout stages is no mean feat. The first tie will see South Africa play Canada in the Los Angeles stadium on Sunday evening.
The group and knockout stages as we know it were first introduced for the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland. Although, it has taken on many different variations in the years gone by. Here at Transfermarkt, excluding the 1974 and 1978 tournaments, in which there was two group stages and then a final, we have trawled through the archives to find out which nations have the made the most World Cup knockout stages.
Most World Cup knockout stages reached
Leading the way are two nations who have now made the knockout stages 15 times – including this summer. Both five-time winners Brazil and four-time winners Germany (including wins as West Germany) have made the knockouts 15 times. The South Americans will play Japan in the round of 32, whilst the Europeans will face Paraguay. England are then third having now made the knockouts 14 times – they will face DR Congo in the round of 32.
Argentina are fourth having reached the knockout stages 11 times, whilst the first North American side in Mexico are fifth after beating the groups for the 10th time this summer. Despite this, they have never been past the quarter-finals. France, Spain and Italy have each made it to the knockout stages nine times, although the latter not since 2006 – when they won the World Cup. Netherlands and Uruguay complete the top 10 having made that stage on eight occasions.
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