Ghana have officially secured qualification for the Round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup before kicking a ball in their final Group L match against Croatia.
Carlos Queiroz’s side join Egypt, England, Portugal and Paraguay as the latest nations to book their places in the knockout rounds.
The expanded World Cup format sees the top two teams from each of the 12 groups qualify automatically for the Round of 32, alongside the eight best third-placed teams. Results in Group H ensured that no team finishing on four points could now miss out on qualification.
The Black Stars are making their first appearance at the World Cup knockout stage since their memorable run to the quarter-finals at the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
The Black Stars’ place in the knockout stage was confirmed following results elsewhere in the tournament, which ensured that four points would be enough to guarantee progression under the competition’s expanded 48-team format.
Those results left the Black Stars in a strong position, and with the qualification threshold now confirmed, Ghana are guaranteed to advance regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s clash with Croatia.
Although qualification is secured, Ghana’s final Group L fixture against Croatia remains significant as the Black Stars seek to finish top of the group and potentially secure a more favourable knockout-stage draw.
FIFA announced that Ghana, alongside Egypt, England, Portugal, Paraguay and Senegal, had all mathematically secured progression to the knockout stage before kicking a ball in their final group fixtures.
