The Auld Enemy Reunion: How England and Scotland Could Collide in the World Cup Last 16

Football fans on both sides of the border are eyeing a tantalising possibility taking shape inside the 2026 World Cup bracket: England and Scotland, the oldest rivals in the international game, are on a collision course that could see them meet in the round of 16 in Mexico City.
It is not a done deal — far from it. But as the group stage enters its final, frantic days, the pieces are starting to align.
England have made the cleaner path so far. Thomas Tuchel’s side sit top of Group L after thrashing Croatia 4-2 and grinding out a goalless draw with Ghana, level on points with the Ghanaians but well placed on goal difference. One more result against Panama on June 27 should be enough to seal top spot. Finish first, and England’s route through the round of 32 is expected to throw up a far less daunting test than the alternative side of the draw — eventually setting up a likely last-16 date in Mexico City on July 6 against the survivor of a tie between co-hosts Mexico and a third-placed qualifier.
That third-placed qualifier could be Scotland.
Steve Clarke’s side are dancing on a knife edge in Group C. A battling 1-0 win over Haiti marked Scotland’s first World Cup appearance in 28 years and their first World Cup victory since 1990, when they beat Sweden 2-1 — only for a tame 1-0 defeat to Morocco to bring them crashing back to earth. That sets up a winner-takes-nearly-everything finale against five-time champions Brazil, with kickoff today. Scotland go in as heavy underdogs — bookmakers and statistical models give them less than a 10% chance of victory — but a draw is widely seen as enough to lock up one of the eight precious spots reserved for the best third-placed teams across the tournament.
Here’s where it gets interesting. Should Scotland scrape through as a third-placed side, their projected round-of-32 opponent is Mexico — the co-hosts, at altitude, in front of a deafening home crowd in Mexico City. It’s a daunting ask. But beat Mexico, and Scotland would advance to face England just days later, in the very same stadium, in a last-16 tie loaded with nearly six decades of history dating back to the world’s first-ever international football match.
For England, it would mean facing a Scotland side riding an emotional high after toppling the hosts. For Scotland, it would mean a shot at the team that has dominated the rivalry for a generation — and a chance to write one of the great underdog chapters in the country’s footballing history.
None of it is guaranteed. Brazil are firm favourites to beat Scotland this evening, and England still have a job to finish against Panama. But for the first time since Scotland’s barren 28-year World Cup absence ended this summer, the maths and the bracket are pointing toward a genuine possibility: England vs Scotland, World Cup knockouts, winner-takes-the-tournament’s-attention.

Source BBC NEWS