The logic behind why two World Cup teams might not actually want to win their final group stage games
So, for Algeria, a tie is easily its best-case scenario.With a tie, Algeria would clinch a spot in the knockout round as a third-place finisher in Group J and face either Belgium, Switzerland, England or Ghana. ET in Kansas City, but for now, The Athletic gives Algeria less than a 1% chance of advancing with a loss. If prior games go in its favor ahead of time, the likelihood jumps only to 9%.
- ▪So, for Algeria, a tie is easily its best-case scenario.With a tie, Algeria would clinch a spot in the knockout round as a third-place finisher in Group J and face either Belgium, Switzerland, England or Ghana.
- ▪ET in Kansas City, but for now, The Athletic gives Algeria less than a 1% chance of advancing with a loss.
- ▪If prior games go in its favor ahead of time, the likelihood jumps only to 9%.
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Sports The logic behind why two World Cup teams might not actually want to win their final group stage games The winner of the Algeria-Austria game faces Spain By Ryan Morik Fox News Published June 27, 2026 2:10pm EDT Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video Anti-Israel agitators protest outside a World Cup match Anti-Israel agitators shout NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Spain's 1-0 win on Friday night perhaps put a damper on a couple of teams' World Cup plans.
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