Soccer
Today at the World Cup: Brazil stand in way of history, Germany attempt to set up European clash, Netherlands and Morocco meet at altitude
FIFA+: World Cup archive & programmes FREE on DAZN
The Round of 32 may have begun on Sunday with Canada's last gasp 1-0 win against South Africa, but today feels like the knockout stages truly get underway.
Three games will take place, with two previous winners, Brazil and Germany, in action along with the exciting Japan and Morocco who attempt to continue being a serious force on the international stage.
Here, DAZN News previews the day's matches at the World Cup.
Brazil vs. Japan
- Date: Monday, June 26
- Kick-off time: 6pm BST / 1pm ET / 10am PT
- Venue: Houston Stadium
After a worrying opening game against Morocco, Brazil are hitting a groove and star man Vinicius Junior is scoring for fun.
Up next for the five time winners is Japan, a team which often gets admirers at a World Cup, but is yet to win a knockout match.
Japan have proven that they can mix it with the best in international football, but Brazil are one of those teams with an aura which works in their favour.
It's no secret Japan will be underdogs, however, their ability to exploit wide areas and impressive technical ability on the ball means they have a good chance of causing problems for a Brazil team which can easily go from hot to cold in an instance.
DAZN/FIFAGermany vs. Paraguay
- Date: Monday June 26
- Kick-off time: 9.30pm BST / 4.30pm ET / 1.30pm PT
- Venue: Boston Stadium
Germany face Paraguay in the day's second Round of 32 match, and will be clear favourites to advance.
Paraguay may have got a win on the board in the group stage, but they have not captured the imagination of fans.
Germany will have too much in attack with the likes of Florian Wirtz, Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala, along with man of the moment Deniz Undav, and should be expected to eventually break down a stubborn Paraguay defence where France could be waiting in the next round.
Netherlands vs. Morocco
- Date: Monday, June 26
- Kick-off time: 2am BST (June 27) / 9pm ET / 6pm PT
- Venue: Monterrey Stadium
In the Mexican mountains, European and African footballing giants go head-to-head as the Netherlands take on Morocco in Monterrey.
Morocco have been tipped by many to excel at this World Cup, but they are yet to deliver a 90-minute performance to back up these predictions.
However, Morocco do have players which can produce a moment of magic such as Ismael Saibari and Ayyoub Bouaddi, and sometimes that is all that's needed to win a World Cup knockout match.
The Netherlands meanwhile are hitting their stride after a tough 2-2 draw with Japan. Striker Brian Brobbey has three goals already and has become the team's biggest goal threat.
The Sunderland forward is also supported by his teammates Cody Gakpo and Cyrsencio Summerville who have two goals so far at this World Cup, and with the Dutch attack in full flow, they should be feared by any defence they come up against.
With all this in mind, this clash between the Netherlands and Morocco has the potential to be a World Cup classic.
Watch World Cup archive, highlights and documentaries for FREE on DAZN
DAZN is the home of FIFA+ , a vast library of football on-demand content including World Cup archive, iconic documentaries, player profiles, live matches and both full match replays and highlights.
Watch it all for FREE on DAZN on smart TVs, phones, tablets, streaming devices, games consoles and web browsers.
