Daga ƙungiyoyi 48 na farko, yanzu mun rage zuwa takwas kawai. Marhalar kusa-da-karshe na FIFA World Cup 2026 tana farawa Alhamis har Lahadi, tare da wasanni huɗu da za su yanke wa kasashe huɗu hanyar zuwa semi-final — kuma su ci gaba da mafarkin ɗaukar kofin a ranar 19 ga Yuli.

France vs Morocco — Alhamis, 9 Yuli (karfe 9 na dare, Foxborough)

France sun isa kusa-da-karshe a matsayin masoyan Opta Supercomputer na gasar baki ɗayanta, kuma ba wuya a gane dalilin. Nasarori uku a marhalar rukuni, da kuma busar da Sweden 3-0 a zagaye na 32, sun tabbatar da ƙarfinsu. Nasara mai wahala fiye da ita akan Paraguay a zagaye na 16 ta nuna wasu raunuka, amma hazakar Kylian Mbappe ta iya rufe kusan duk wata matsala. Ƙwallaye bakwai a wannan gasar sun ɗaga adadin sa zuwa 19 a wasanni 19 na Kofin Duniya — adadi da ke sanya shi a gasar kai tsaye da Lionel Messi don rikodin kowane lokaci.

Haɗarin da ke gaban France ba ya zuwa daga Morocco kawai — yana iya zuwa daga ciki. Michael Olise da Bradley Barcola duka sun kasance katin rawaya ɗaya nesa da dakatar da su a semi-final, yanayin da zai iya tilasta manaja ya sake tsara layin gaba wanda ya yi kyau sosai har yanzu. Manu Kone, wanda ba a san shi sosai kafin gasar ba, ya tabbatar da matsayinsa a matsayin injin layin tsakiya, yana farawa a wasanni uku daga cikin huɗu na ƙarshe da nutsuwa da ta jawo hankalin manyan kulob-kulob na Turai.

Morocco, a nasu ɓangare, suna da dalilai nasu na kwarin gwiwa. A shekara ta 2022 sun zama ƙasar Afirka ta farko da ta kai semi-final na Kofin Duniya, kuma wannan kamfen ya tabbatar da cewa ba wata ƙaramin nasara ɗaya ba ce. Daidaita da Brazil, nasarori biyu a rukuni, nasara a harbe-harben fenareti akan Netherlands, sannan nasara mai kayatarwa akan mai organising-gasa Canada sun gina kuzari na ainihi. Hare-haren da kyaftin Achraf Hakimi ke yi daga gefen dama na tsaron baya na ci gaba da zama matsala ta ƙirar wasan ga duk wani abokin gaba, kuma ɗan wasan tsakiya mai shekaru 18 Ayyoub Bouaddi — wanda aka haife shi a France kuma a zaɓe shi da ƙungiyar matasan Les Bleus a bana — na iya zama babban jarumi na wannan wasa. Kawai damuwar Morocco ita ce lafiyar babban mai zura ƙwallo Ismael Saibari, wanda ya bar filin wasa yana ciwo bayan mintuna 20 kawai a zagaye da ya gabata.

Spain vs Belgium — Juma'a, 10 Yuli (karfe 8 na yamma, Los Angeles)

Spain ta kasance ƙungiyar da ta fi dacewa da hangen nesa a wannan gasar. Daidaito na farko 0-0 da Cape Verde ya haifar da firgici, amma suka amsa ta hanyar murtsunawa Saudi Arabia da kayar da Uruguay don saman Rukunin H. Nasara ta 3-0 akan Austria ta biyo baya, kafin ƙwallon Mikel Merino na ƙarshe ya fitar da Portugal a zagaye na 16. Mafi mahimmanci, Spain har yanzu ba ta karɓi kwallon cikin gidarta ba, tana nuna mafi ƙarancin adadin xGA — 1.49 kawai — daga cikin duk ƙungiyoyin da suka rage. Ɗan wasan baya na tsakiya Pau Cubarsi, mai shekaru 19, ya kasance mafi ɗorewa a Spain a gasar, yana samar da haɗin kai mai ƙarfi tare da Aymeric Laporte. Lamine Yamal, wanda har yanzu yana dawo da ƙafinsa bayan rauni a cinyarsa, ya kammala mintuna 90 na farko gaba ɗaya akan Portugal kuma yana kama da yana shirye don yin canji.

Belgium ta bi hanya mai yawan girgiza. Daidaito da Egypt da Iran kusan ya lalata kamfen ɗin su na rukunin, kafin nasara ta 5-1 akan New Zealand ta cece su. Wasan zagaye na 16 da Senegal ya kasance mafi ban sha'awa a gasar — suna a baya da ƙwallaye biyu tare da mintuna huɗu da suka rage, Belgium sun daidaita sannan suka zura ƙwallon nasara a minti 125 a lokaci na kari. Nasara mai juriya ta 4-1 akan United States ta biyo baya. Leandro Trossard ya kasance mafi tsarkan ɗan wasan Belgium, yana zura ƙwallaye biyu da bayar da agajin ƙwallaye biyu yayin da yake ƙirƙirar manyan damar kai hari fiye da kowane ɗan wasa a gasar. Charles De Ketelaere, ɗan wasan gaba na Atalanta, ya ƙarfafa nasa zargin matsayin farawa da ƙwallaye biyu da taimako ɗaya akan United States. Tambayar da ke rataye a kan Belgium ita ce ko Kevin De Bruyne da Jeremy Doku — duk biyun suna gefen fagen aiki har yanzu — za su iya ƙarshe nuna ƙarfinsu a mafi babban matakin wasan.

Norway vs England — Asabar, 11 Yuli (karfe 10 na dare, Miami)

Norway sun kasance ƙungiyar mamaki ta FIFA World Cup 2026. Nasarori akan Iraq da Senegal sun tabbatar da cancanta kafin wasan ƙungiyar na ƙarshe, kuma tun suka kayar da Ivory Coast da Brazil don kai kusa-da-karshe na farko a tarihinsu a Kofin Duniya. Salon wasansu ya yi ƙawance kamar yadda sakamakon su suka yi mamaki, yana mai da su jaruman gasar.

England, a nasu ɓangare, sun bi ta hanyoyin knockout da kwarin gwiwa mai ƙaruwa. Ƙungiyar Gareth Southgate ta nuna juriya a kowane matakin kuma tana wakiltar ɗaya daga cikin manyan ƙungiyoyi mafi cikakken ɓangaren jiki da fasaha a gasar. Gasa a Miami a Asabar tana da alƙawarin zama wasa mai ban sha'awa a tsakanin kuzarin Norway da gogewa ta England.

Argentina vs Switzerland — Lahadi, 12 Yuli

Argentina sun shiga kusa-da-karshe suna ɗaukar nauyin suna a matsayin 'yan wasan gasar waɗanda ke kare lakabin su. Lionel Messi ya ci gaba da zama tsakiyar komai a wasan Argentina, kuma gasar nasa da Mbappe don rikodin ƙwallaye na Kofin Duniya na ƙara ƙarin labarun gasar. Switzerland, masu ƙarfin zuciya da tsari mai kyau, sun cancanci matsayinsu a tsakanin takwas na ƙarshe kuma ba za su zama abokan gaba marasa nauyi ga kowa ba — har da 'yan wasan da ke kare lakabin su.

Duk wasanni huɗu suna alƙawarin ban sha'awa, tarihi, da irin kwallon da ke tunatar da duk duniya dalilin da yasa Kofin Duniya ya ci gaba da kasancewa mafi girman fagen wasa a duniyar wasanni.